Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2, and iPhones will receive an update on Thursday that enables this feature, which was blocked since the end of 2023.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) has announced that Apple Watch users will be able to track their blood oxygen levels once again after an update that is set to be rolled out starting Thursday.
Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2, and iPhones will receive an update on Thursday that enables this feature, which was blocked since the end of 2023.
Apple shares traded 0.19% higher in Thursday morning’s trade, while Masimo shares fell nearly 5%. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around both companies was in the ‘bullish’ territory.
Apple said this update was enabled by a recent customs ruling, allowing the iPhone maker to bring back a feature after a nearly two-year-long tussle with an American health technology company, Masimo Corp. (MASI). “Following this update, sensor data from the Blood Oxygen app on Apple Watch will be measured and calculated on the paired iPhone, and results can be viewed in the Respiratory section of the Health app,” Apple said, explaining how blood oxygen monitoring via the Apple Watch will work going forward.
Apple Watches with the blood oxygen monitoring feature were banned from being imported into the U.S. in December 2023, due to a patent dispute with Masimo. Weeks later, Apple started selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 with the blood oxygen tracking feature disabled. Thursday’s update reenables this feature, but requires users to track their blood oxygen levels on their iPhones.
Users can start a blood oxygen monitoring session on their Apple Watch–the data collected by the watch will be sent to the connected iPhone for calculation, and the results will be available in the Respiratory section in the Health app.
AAPL stock is down 7% year-to-date, while MASI stock is down 10%.
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