Review | The Apple Watch Series 9 review: first chip upgrade in years, finger-thumb tap feature and enhanced iPhone connectivity – but is it worth buying?

The Apple Watch 9 looks like the 8, but the first chip upgrade in 3 years enhances Siri and iPhone connectivity. A finger-thumb tap feature will soon be enabled

The screen is also brighter. But pre-existing features, like movement tracking and the ability to reply to WhatsApp messages on your wrist, make the watch shine

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The Apple Watch 9 looks like its predecessor but comes with a powerful new chip that improves Siri capability and iPhone connectivity, and facilitates a new finger-thumb tap feature. Photo: Ben Sin

Published: 5:15pm, 24 Sep 2023

The Apple Watch Series 9 at first glance looks like not much of an upgrade. Its outer appearance is virtually identical to the last two generations, and the most tangible new feature – the ability for the watch to detect your thumb and index fingers tapping together – won’t be ready until October, when it will become available via a software update.

But after wearing the new watch over multiple days in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we are reminded again why this product is so dominant in its class – it just serves our daily lives so well.

Design and hardware

The Apple Watch 9 comes in two sizes as before. We wore the larger 45mm version, but the 41mm should be enough for most people.

Among the main new features in the Apple Watch Series 9 is its ability to detect thumb and index finger tapping – but not until a software update, due in October, makes the feature available. Photo: Ben Sin

The Watch 9’s 1.9-inch display is sharp and vibrant as in previous generations, but is noticeably brighter, going up to 2,000 nits. This came in handy during motorbike rides under the harsh Thai sun – we could see the screen clearly even from a distance.

While the outer casing material (aluminium or stainless steel – we tested the former) and overall dimensions are the same as before, this latest upgrade sees the Apple Watch get a new chip for the first time in three years.

The outer casing and dimensions of the Watch 9 are the same as the previous generation, but the Watch 9 is equipped with a new chip. Photo: Ben Sin

This new chip is essentially built on the same architecture as the A15 chip that was in the iPhone 13 series, so it is very powerful for a watch.

It’s the combination of this chip, plus the existing sensors like in the accelerometer, gyroscope, and optical heart rate reader that allow the Apple Watch to accurately detect the aforementioned finger tap gesture.