Apple unveils Series 9 Watch with ‘double tap’ ahead of iPhone 15 launch

This year's September Apple Event is debuting new versions of the Apple Watch and iPhone, with new gesture controls for single-handed use of the watch.

Apple debuted a new Series 9 Watch with a more powerful processor on Tuesday ahead of an expected announcement about the iPhone 15 with new charging ports and better cameras – and possibly higher prices for top models.

Apple also introduced a new feature to the Series 9 watches called “double tap” where users tap thumb and finger together twice, without touching the watch, in order to perform tasks like answering a phone call.

It uses machine learning to detect tiny changes in blood flow when the user taps their fingers together, freeing up the other hand for other tasks like walking a dog or holding a cup of coffee, said Apple Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams.

CEO Tim Cook also said Apple is “on track” to ship its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset early next year.

The event at Apple’s Cupertino, California, headquarters comes amid a global smartphone slump and lingering economic uncertainty, especially in China, Apple’s third-largest market where it faces challenges from expanded restrictions on using its iPhones in government offices and the first new flagship phone in several years from Huawei Technologies.

Apple is also expected to debut new AirPods models at the event, but the star of the show will be the iPhone, which still made up more than half of Apple’s $394.3 billion in sales last year.

By far the biggest change for most Apple customers will be a switch from Apple’s propriety “Lightning” charging cables to USB-C, a standard that Apple already uses on its laptops and some high-end iPads.

Apple was forced into the change by European regulations, but analysts believe that the company will position the change as an upgrade, taking advantage of faster data speeds that can transfer high-quality videos made with iPhones.