The
legal battle between Apple and medtech
company Masimo over blood oxygen monitoring technology has not only halted online sales of the
Apple Watch
Series 9 and
Apple
Watch Ultra Series 2 (with in-store sales to follow) but also may impact the owners of older Apple Watch.
According to a report by Bloomberg, out-of-warranty hardware repairs for several Apple Watch models are now unavailable to customers.
“The company also will no longer be able to repair watch models that are out-of-warranty, a potential headache for consumers,” said Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
He also claimed that Apple has informed customer service employees that out-of-warranty hardware repairs and whole unit replacements for the Apple Watch Series 6 onward (except for the SE) will be unavailable for the duration of the ban.
This means, if you own an Apple Watch model that is out of warranty, you must be careful because it may not be repaired for some time.
Apple Watch under warranty unaffected
Repairs of products under warranty (or the extended AppleCare Plus program) are unaffected by the situation. Gurman also says that customers will be notified when hardware replacements will be back.
The Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 currently being unavailable from Apple’s online store during the holiday season may be a hit for the company. Those who wish to purchase the wearables can rush in to get their hands on one in Apple’s physical stores, which will pull the devices after December 24.
Third-party retailers, such as e-commerce websites and partners, can continue selling them. Still, there are chances of dwindling supply due to the dispute, which revolves around the SpO2 sensor built into the Apple Watch Series 6, 7, 8, 9, Ultra, and Ultra 2. Apple is working on a software update that could avoid further infringement of Masimo’s patents.
English (US) ·