Apple Watch Blood Oxygen Monitoring Feature Sees an Update

Apple has reintroduced a redesigned version of its blood oxygen monitoring feature on the Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2. This update comes after the feature was removed earlier in 2024 following a patent dispute with a company called Masimo, which claimed that Apple's original implementation infringed on its light-based pulse oximetry patents.

The feature's removal allowed Apple to dodge an import ban, enabling the continued sale of the Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches in the United States. The revised feature is made possible by a recent U.S. Customs ruling, according to Apple’s announcement.

This fresh iteration of blood oxygen monitoring is designed to navigate around the patent conflict. Instead of displaying results directly on the Apple Watch, the sensor data will now be processed and available via the Health app on a paired iPhone.

To access this updated feature, users need to install watchOS 11.6.1 and iOS 18.6.1 on their devices. Watches outside the U.S. were never affected by the patent issue, as the import ban was specific to U.S. sales.

The dispute stems from a 2020 lawsuit where Masimo accused Apple of leveraging its engineers after initial partnership talks in 2013 broke down, leading Apple to develop the blood oxygen capability independently.