New Rugged Apple Watch May Be Named 'Apple Watch Pro', Replace Apple Watch Edition

The rumored new rugged Apple Watch may be called the 'Apple Watch Pro' and could replace the Apple Watch Edition, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

The costlier Apple Watch is set to arrive this fall with new features including a larger and more shatter-resistant display, enhanced tracking for hiking and swimming, longer battery life, and a rugged and premium metal case (likely titanium).

While the smartwatch will appeal to extreme athletes, its premium materials, larger screen, and longer battery life will likely make it enticing to users who want the best Apple Watch available.


Gurman believes the company intends to brand this new device the 'Apple Watch Pro'.

Given that the rugged Apple Watch, codenamed N199 inside the company, will apply to extreme sports enthusiasts and consumers who typically spring for Apple’s pro offerings, I think the company will probably go with the Apple Watch Pro name and marketing. Apple has already been touting the durability of the current watches, so it’s clearly a selling point that it believes clicks with consumers. The shift to a new Apple Watch will probably mean the end of the Apple Watch Edition. Apple severely miscalculated the audience for the first Edition models in the mid-2010s, and has gradually moved away from the $17,000 gold Apple Watch to stainless steel models that come in a gold tone and titanium offerings.

Notably, Samsung is planning to launch a Galaxy Watch Pro 5 next month so this will create another device category the two companies can fight over.

In addition to the Apple Watch Pro, we're expecting Apple to unveil a new Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch SE in September. The Series 8 will keep the same screen sizes, get a new S8 chip with the same performance as the S7 and S6, and add a body temperature sensor. The SE model will get the same S8 chip but no body temperature sensor.


If you're looking for an Apple Watch right now, Amazon has an excellent deal on the Apple Watch Series 7. It's on sale today for just $284, down from $399.

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