It’s that time; as of yesterday, the Apple Watch Series 4 has now been added to Apple’s growing list of vintage products.
The Apple Watch Series 4 was introduced in September 2018, which marked the first redesign since the original Apple Watch which debuted back in September 2014 and initially launched in April 2015. The Apple Watch Series 4 was the first to feature a 64-bit system-in-package architecture as well as larger displays with rounded corners and UI elements that take full advantage of all the displays’ corners. The Series 4 included both aluminum and stainless steel cases in both 40mm and 44mm sizes – both of which were larger than the previous 38mm and 42mm sizes from older generations. There was never an Apple Watch Edition collection for the Apple Watch Series 4, hence no ceramic models for that Series. The Apple Watch Series 4 was discontinued a year later in September 2015, and it was replaced with the Apple Watch Series 5, which became the first to introduce the always-on display and brought back the Edition model with both ceramic and titanium cases.
Just recently, watchOS 11, Apple’s latest wearable operating system, dropped support for the Apple Watch Series 4, along with the Apple Watch Series 5 and the Apple Watch SE (1st generation). It’s been five years since Apple discontinued the Series 4, so it’s now declared vintage, and the time span since its discontinuation has exceeded five years. Apple and other Apple Authorized Service Providers may offer repairs for vintage products while parts last.
Additionally, the last 15-inch MacBook Pro that was introduced in May 2019 was added to the vintage lists as well. That particular model came with the 9th-generation Intel Core processors, and it was quickly replaced by the first 16-inch MacBook Pro later that year. That larger 16-inch MacBook Pro righted a few of the wrongs that the prior 15-inch MacBook Pro had by bringing back the physical Escape key and the more reliable Magic Keyboard.
