[Image credit: Apple] Guests try on the new Apple Watch Series 4
Apple made a number of announcements during the Apple Special Event at the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California.
One of the many products showcased at the event was the Apple Watch Series 4. The Watch now comes with a lot of new functionalities and features that are even more closely related to health and fitness.
Here are four wonderful features that the Apple Watch Series 4 can do to keep our health in check.
Heart Rate Monitoring
[Image credit: Apple] Apple Watch Series 4 ECG crown
The heart rate monitor function is taking a more proactive role in keeping your heart in check than the previous series.
It now tracks the heart rate round the clock and will report on any abnormality, even those that are too faint for you to notice.
With a touch on the redesigned digital crown, you can also get your heart rate checked thanks to the built-in Electrocardiogram or ECG.
Fall detection
[Image credit: Apple] Apple Watch Series 4 SOS Emergency Services
Singaporeans are ageing. As we get older, our fall risk increases. A fall can do a lot of damage to brittle bones and if not reported immediately, it could be fatal.
The Watch Series 4 can help to prevent the unthinkable. It is capable of detecting falls. When there’s a hard fall, the Watch will alert you to either initiate a call to “emergency services or dismiss the alert.” If you are unconscious and do not respond within 60 seconds to the alert, the Watch will make the emergency call for you and send a message to all emergency contacts.
Emergency SOS
The Emergency SOS is not triggered only when one has a hard fall. In times of emergency, holding down the side button will pop up a menu where you can initiate the Emergency SOS function.
Once triggered, it will contact emergency services, your emergency contacts, ping your location and display your Medical ID badge on your Watch for the paramedics to have a view of your medical background. Hence it’s utmost important that you complete your Medical ID.
However, do remember that if your Watch Series 4 is without mobile connectivity, your iPhone should be within range for the Emergency SOS to work.
Breathe App
The Breathe App may seem like a gimmick that’s passed down from the previous series. However, according to numerous research, taking time to breathe helps to relax the mind and reduce stress.
In an article by Harvard Medical School, it stated that:
“Deep abdominal breathing encourages full oxygen exchange — that is, the beneficial trade of incoming oxygen for outgoing carbon dioxide. Not surprisingly, this type of breathing slows the heartbeat and can lower or stabilise blood pressure.”
This explains scientifically what happens during deep breathing and how it translates to a calmer self and a lower blood pressure.
You can either access the app through the Watch or let it prompt you every four hours to take a minute to breathe. If a minute of deep breathing is not enough, you can choose to do more.
The Apple Watch Series 4 will be available on 21 September. It comes with a GPS only version that is priced at S$599 and a GPS and Cellular version that is priced at S749.
You can pre-order yours now.
