Apple fine-tunes its popular smartwatch with improved health features, including a tie-in with Lumihealth.sg
With the Watch Series 6, Apple has tweaked its successful smartwatch formula, especially with the Watch SE now available for consumers who want a more affordable entry-level smartwatch.
Physically, the Watch 6 looks nearly identical to the Watch Series 5, though it now comes in 11 colour variations and three case materials including anodised Blue Aluminium and (PRODUCT)RED aluminium, which Apple sent us for this review, and it simply looks outstanding. There’s also a Stainless Steel option, while the Watch Edition 6 models come with a titanium case. 
Flip the chassis over and you’ll spot the biggest visual difference (apart from case colour) – Apple has upgraded the health sensor suite and there’s now a new SpO2 sensor for blood oxygen monitoring, which can be done manually in just 15 seconds, or as part of the holistic health monitoring system that makes the Watch 6 excellent as a 24-hours health tracker. 
Uniquely for Singaporeans, Apple has partnered with the Health Promotion Board with an app called Lumihealth that uses the Apple Watch to provide a personalised health programme and uses a virtual game environment where your activities, including yoga, exercise and meals, get you points to let you complete challenges that will be rewarded with HPB eVouchers. A new Family Setup now enables you can manage multiple Apple Watches from the Watch App on an iPhone, such as your kid’s Watch SE, so you can monitor their activity or set location notifications, plus restrict when they can access the device’s LTE features.
Internally the Watch 6 has a speedier processor, which makes scrolling watchOS 7 UI and opening apps almost instantaneous, while there’s better WiFi and UWB features plus a brighter screen that makes it easier to make out in bright direct sunlight. Battery life has also been tweaked, and on a normal day’s routine I could get up to 30 hours of performance, before needing to recharge for slightly longer than an hour.
From $599
Rating 4.5 / 5
We say
With the Watch Series 6 Apple has updated the World’s best smartwatch with better-improved health features, and a unique tie-in with the Health Promotion Board
Product Specifications (as tested):
OS watchOS7
Dimensions/weight 44mm case: 44 x 38 x 10.7mm/36.4g (aluminium)
Water Resistance 50 metres
Processor Dual Core S6 processor, W3 wireless chip, U1 UWB chip
Display 1.78-inch 448 x 368 pixel (44mm) LTPO OLED always-on Retina display, 1000nit
Sensors GPS, heart rate, ECG, SPO2, altimeter, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope, ambient light
Connectivity Bluetooth 5, WiFi, Apple Pay
Battery life Up to 18 hours
First published in NXT Magazine December 2020. A digital edition can be purchased from Magzter.
