The Apple Watch ban has finally pushed Apple into ceasing all sales for the Series 9 and Ultra 2, but this has implications for much more than just buying a new one.
For context, the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 are about to be banned in the U.S. due to a legal dispute, where medical equipment company, Masimo, claims that the Apple Watch’s blood oxygen feature is a violation of its patent. As it doesn’t have this feature, the Watch SE 2 can still be sold.
As originally reported by Bloomberg, Apple will have to stop offering repairs on any Watches that are out-of-warranty, and this includes Watches that Apple doesn’t sell from their site anymore like the Apple Watch Series 6, Apple Watch Series 7, Apple Watch Series 8, and Apple Watch Ultra. You can still get support for software issues, but breaks and scratches are now on you to fix.
How do you upgrade? – iMore’s take
In that same Bloomberg article, Mark Gurman said, “Company representatives were told to tell affected customers that they will be contacted when hardware replacements are allowed again.” This uncertainty is potentially offputting for new buyers but for someone looking for an upgrade, it’s hard to really know when it makes sense to anymore. Those on older watches may start to feel the battery going dead a little earlier in the day or may be noticing a few scratches on the device. It makes sense to start looking around for an upgrade if you’re on an older device, especially the 3-year-old Series 6.
You could roll the dice on a deal from a third-party seller but if something goes wrong and you end up with a big crack on your brand-new Series 9, you could be left with the option of just waiting an indefinite amount of time for it to be repairable again. If you haven’t picked one up already, it may be worth waiting until the Apple Watch X to make up your mind.
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