Sales on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 were paused late last year due to a patent dispute with medical technology company Masimo. The International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled that the blood oxygen monitoring features on Apple's devices infringed on patents held by Masimo. Thus Apple pulled both watches from their shelves.
According to a statement by Masimo, those features will be dropped on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9.
Redesigned watches
According to Masimo, Apple has redesigned the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9 without the blood oxygen meters. Matt Whewell, director of Global Communications at Masimo told The Verge, "Apple’s claim that its redesigned watch does not contain pulse oximetry is a positive step toward accountability." Additionally, Bloomberg is reporting that the redesigned watches have already been shipped to Apple stores.
Devices already sold still have the oxygen monitoring features, and The Verge is reporting that "the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 would continue to be available with the feature."
The redesign should allow the watches to be sold in the US once again, however if you already own an Apple Watch Ultra 2 or Series 9 with an oxygen meter and that function is important to you, you may want to carefully read the details on any future watch OS updates.
