Apple Watch S9 and Ultra 2: Double Teardown, Double Tap

[@User57655]

There isn’t a new sensor for Double Tap, my understanding is it’s ML running on the NPU taking input from the sensors. The existing accessibility feature runs on the CPU and therefore is much worse for battery drain. Older devices don’t have the NPU that the S9 has.

[@daniielbrand]

Exactly!

[@devonkennedy1386]

And, regardless, still for certain not worth the money! Treat this watch as “an ode to make the 8 cheaper”

[@joerobinnettebiden4723]

.

[@iTzBrillianTFX]

The closeups are really cool 😮

[@philippemiller4740]

Love the intro and humour! Good job iFixit :)

[@anianii]

I don't think it would be correct to assume to find a new sensor for Double Tap. Even Series 4 has this as an accessibility feature.

[@kalafalas246]

My understanding is it uses a combo of heart rate monitor + accelerometer, but the magic is in the software which is why Apple is stating it needs the S9 to be fast enough. I bet a slower version on older watches might have been feasible but quite slow, and probably not up to apples standards. Still would have been nice as an option though.

[@Raja995mh33]

I still kinda hate it that the Taptic Engine in the iPhone gets smaller and smaller every year without ANY downgrade in actual haptic feedback but in the Apple Watch it still is this gigantic motor that takes up literally 1/3 of the internal volume. They could easily make it a bit smaller and increase the battery by like 10-20% without even trying...

[@gerardrosales]

The first and only time the Apple Watch Taptic Engine gained a size increase was with the Series 6 and people + iFixit themselves actually noted that the haptic feedback is stronger there lmao

[@alexandrefonseca2917]

A vibração no meu antigo iPhone 11 era melhor e mais audível no que dá porra do iPhone 15 pro. Se estiver sobre a cama não se ouve NADA

[@M4W07]

I love how you always jump straight in to the videos!

[@timr.2257]

What about the 45mm? Wonder if the battery is bigger on that model.

[@harhccha]

Very informative and teardown host seems like a super fun person to be around.

[@EmreSaracoglu]

Perfect engineering and technology!

[@hfranzua]

Is that a h...? + No, that's not a hair. Oh, okay.

[@cjkittyofficialyt]

Needs help with broken back glass (shattered) (Series 9, 45mm, GPS)

[@cjkittyofficialyt]

2:05

[@jd2086]

It is funny because the double tap feature existed on the ultra one even before and even funnier almost every single apple watch has it the thing is they now marketed a regular feature on accessibility but now they say it is a new feature but every single apple watch can do that I did on my ultra even before the ultra 2 it is handy

[@nutzeeer]

Could you make an app where we can rotate the scanned 3d models?

[@CrescentX3]

The ultra actually seems... repairable? Are there any major software locks, say on the sensors or display? Also, are the Ultra 2 components swappable with the Ultra 1?

[@BioGimp]

A+ Futurama reference!

[@mrrkrr]

Coolest intro ever!

[@jared9127]

Hey iFixit-can you go back to text-based teardowns with high-res images instead of these perfunctory videos?

[@nutzeeer]

Thats on their website

[@daniielbrand]

Agreed

[@SuperSocks7]

We love a zombieland reference

[@daledevernon56]

People who use accessibility have been assigning actions to buttons on their phones and using gestures to control not only their phones but they watches as well for years, you can find a version of double tap in accessibility.

[@LivaEntertainment-nd1sg]

very helpful

[@djdndbbs5784]

How much ram?

[@ameliabuns4058]

135CAD for a battery replacement YIKES, 385CAD for the display...

[@K24Z3CU2]

They may as well state that it's an Apple Watch Refurbished using last models stock. The S9 SoC doesn't seem to be much of an improvement over the predecessor - it's still dual-core, it's still 32-bit but wait it's double the storage. Wow! I mean meh whatever!

[@philangundze1885]

I’d say it’s a must-buy, not a must-upgrade.

[@123theprodigy5]

Who is she, she sounds just like Gwendolyn. I miss her.

[@aparagarwal1234]

Get the haptic engine off and increase the battery!!!! An endurance athlete doesn’t care for the haptics.

[@anirban9439]

Classic apple style,doing unnecessary illogical stuffs in their products,they dont give bigger battery on iphones so that the phone doesn't become heavy and then using stainless steel,and in watch which doesn't even lasts a day they are wasting so much space giving a vibration motor which 90% people doesn't even notice!

[@cooperschwartz318]

Double tap isn’t new, I have it on my Series 7

[@alex8thebest91]

I opened several apple watch, except the ultra, and I think using heat plus metal blade is not the greatest way of doing it. I’m still researching and testing, but today I can open an Apple Watch in a way easy way and I can even refurbish the display with broken glass very easily.

[@triantafyllo5]

Why did they keep putting the taptik engine it uses so much space without a reason

[@maxgrayson5182]

It does have a purpose tho? It provides feedback, and it's the only reason I wear my Apple Watch to bed. Id say it far exceeds the vibration feel of other smart watches

[@edgarsnezinu1439]

well under microscope it will scratch at level 6 .. lvl 8 you must be kidding

[@camfocus8888]

The video view shows she know nothing about electrical engineering

[@Zaki-ti9pi]

Why?

[@SilviuDobrica]

Why does she sound like Angie Zampona? Am I hearing things? She does sound like her, right?

[@PWL104]

Who is this video aimed at? Why does the script have to be “entertaining”? Ifixit videos should be factual, informative, clear and concise. Unfortunately this one does not meet that standard.

[@ethanchow9170]

First!

[@FlavorTrends]

Maybe all technology is already in, enabled or not, same as the iPhone camera sensor, how long they have been using it as same as the lens, changing vendor to pay less from Taiwan to China, spread the innovation from one to low cost, only using marketing to make us buy. The world has to learn to make one significant investment upfront and then take a good three to five years for ROI. Tim, you are always a number guy, not innovative like ONE MORE THING