Innovation in every interaction.
Apple Watch is unlike any device we’ve ever made. But we wanted interacting with it to be just as easy and intuitive as using your iPhone or working on a Mac. So we invented all-new ways to select, navigate, and input that are ideally suited to a smaller device worn on the wrist. The result is an experience that’s both unique to Apple Watch and quintessentially Apple.
Digital Crown. A modern twist
on a traditional feature.
Every new product we’ve introduced has been defined by a unique input device. With Apple Watch, it’s the Digital Crown. On mechanical watches, the crown has historically been used to set the time and date and to wind the mainspring. We reimagined it as a versatile tool that answers the fundamental challenge of how to magnify content on a small display. Pinching to zoom, as you do on iPhone, is impractical. But turning the Digital Crown allows you to navigate nimbly and precisely, without obstructing your view. You can zoom in and out of photos, quickly scroll through lists, input data, or press it like a button to return to the Home screen. The Digital Crown is an integral part of the Apple Watch experience.
Not just a display, but the focal point of the whole experience.
A Retina display is the primary surface for every interaction with Apple Watch. And it’s clear why. The incredibly high pixel density makes numbers and text easy to read at a glance, even while you’re moving. Images and graphics render with remarkable sharpness and contrast, including finely detailed ones like the rotation of a hair-thin second hand on a watch face. And the display is extremely energy efficient, critical for a device you wear throughout the day. On most Apple Watch models, the display is laminated to a machined and polished single crystal of sapphire. Next to diamond, it’s the hardest transparent material. On watches in the Sport collection, protection is provided by strengthened Ion-X glass.
Sensitive enough to tell a tap from a press.
In addition to recognizing touch, Apple Watch senses force, adding a new dimension to the user interface. Force Touch uses tiny electrodes around the flexible Retina display to distinguish between a light tap and a deep press, and trigger instant access to a range of contextually specific controls. With Force Touch, pressing firmly on the screen brings up additional controls in apps like Messages, Music, and Calendar. It also lets you select different watch faces, pause or end a workout, search an address in Maps, and more. Force Touch is the most significant new sensing capability since Multi‑Touch.