Apple Watch Series 8 announced, adds temperature sensor to the mix

Apple has announced the Apple Watch Series 8, which adds a few new features but is largely the same as Series 7 in design and tech.

The big new addition is a new temperature sensor, with one on the rear and another on the display. This allows for the rear sensor to take body temperature but also take into account the external temp too.

It can detect changes as small as 0.1-degree Celsius and can also track a user through the night. It can be used to share information with a healthcare provider in case of a sudden change or fever.

As before, there are also heart rate, ECH and SpO2 sensors, while fall detection and emergency SOS capabilities return too.

In terms of other new features, crash detection is new for Series 8. The Watch will notify emergency services if you are in a serious car accident, for example.

And there’s international roaming for the cellular edition, with more than 30 carriers worldwide supporting the function.

Apple claims that the Watch Series 8 will last for up to 18 hours on a single battery charge and comes with a new low power mode that doubles that.

The GPS version will be available in four colours – midnight, starlight, silver and (Product)Red – while the cellular edition will be in silver, gold and graphite.

It’ll cost $399 for GPS, $499 Cellular and pre-orders are opening today. It’ll ship from 18 September.