If you’re in the market for a new Apple Watch, you’ll want to be aware that as of today, Apple has been forced to disable a major feature on select models of the smartwatch. All Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 models that Apple sells in the United States now no longer come with a working blood oxygen sensor. The sensor previously monitored the levels of oxygen in the blood.
The reason Apple disabled the blood oxygen sensor is a legal one. Apple has been in an ongoing patent dispute with medical device maker Masimo, which alleges that Apple has infringed on its blood oxygen technology patents. As Reuters notes, in December the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled in Masimo’s favor and ordered Apple to stop selling Watches with the blood oxygen sensor in the United States. But within a day, a federal circuit court lifted the ban while Apple sought to appeal the ITC ruling. Yesterday, however, a U.S. court of appeals ruled that Apple must adhere to the ban even as it appeals the ITC ruling.
Apple was left with only two options: stop selling all Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 models in the United States while the lengthy appeal process plays out or disable the sensor and continue selling the affected models. Apple chose the latter.
What this means for customers in the United States is that if you buy an Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 here, it will still have the blood oxygen sensor hardware in it, but the sensor will not work. If you launch the Blood Oxygen app on your newly bought Apple Watch, you’ll get an alert saying the app isn’t available.
As for those who bought an Apple Watch Ultra 2 or Apple Watch Series 9 in the United States prior to today, your blood oxygen sensor and app will continue to function as normal. As the ITC ruling only applies to models sold in the United States, the blood oxygen sensor will continue to be a feature of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 sold in other countries around the world.
Responding to yesterday’s court ruling, Masimo CEO Joe Kiani said the ruling “affirms that even the largest and most powerful companies must respect the intellectual rights of American inventors and must deal with the consequences when they are caught infringing others’ patents.”
Following the ruling, Apple issued its own statement.
“Apple’s appeal is ongoing, and we believe the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit should reverse the USITC’s decision. We strongly disagree with the USITC decision and resulting orders,” the company said.
“Pending the appeal, Apple is taking steps to comply with the ruling while ensuring customers have access to Apple Watch with limited disruption. These steps include introducing a version of Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in the United States without the Blood Oxygen feature. There is no impact to Apple Watch units previously purchased that include the Blood Oxygen feature.”
[Update: this post has been updated to include the statement from Apple.]
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