The Apple Watch Series 6 Happens To Be The First Smartwatch To Feature The U1 Chip

Apple Watch Series 6 was introduced by Apple this morning with many color options, new oxygen measuring sensor and faster processor. However, Apple briefly mentioned that the Series 6 models all come with the U1 chip, which first appeared in the iPhone 11 launched last year.

This U1 chip uses a positioning technology called Ultra Wideband radio, providing accurate spatial awareness as well as location. So, a device equipped with the U1 chip can detect the location much more accurately than other devices.

The iPhone 11 is currently using this system to improve AirDrop, which can detect the nearest device to show up right in the sharing options. However, it seems that Apple's ambitions are even broader when bringing this U1 chip to the Apple Watch for the first time.

Besides AirDrop, the new Car Key feature will also take advantage of the new U1 chip inside the iPhone 11 and now add the Apple Watch Series 6. With Car Key, the driver can replace the keys. physical lock by iPhone or Apple Watch via NFC. However, thanks to the U1 chip, you don't even need to take your iPhone out of your pocket or raise your wrist to unlock the door or start the car.

With the rumors about the upcoming AirTags, Apple is expected to also integrate the U1 chip inside this product to provide the exact location of the devices, even when offline. AirTags are small wearables that you can attach to anything like a backpack or even a car to track them using Apple's Find My network.

Apple has also developed a new NearbyInteraction framework that developers can use to collect the location of nearby iPhones and deliver interactive user experiences. Although Apple hasn't mentioned anything about it yet, the framework may be added to watchOS in a future update.

These features haven't been announced yet, but sure enough, Apple has added the U1 chip to the Apple Watch Series 6 for a bigger purpose. However, it is worth noting that, even though the Apple Watch Series 6 is equipped with a U1 chip, the Apple Watch SE version does not have this feature.