“Over the past few decades, Apple has revolutionized the personal computer, the smartphone, and digital music, just to name a few,” Dan Moren writes for Macworld. “But the company’s next target might be its biggest yet: human health.”
“That should hardly be a surprise at this point. Those who have been paying attention have seen Apple heading in this direction since before Tim Cook took over as CEO,” Moren writes. “Probably, not coincidentally, since around the time that Steve Jobs was first diagnosed with the illness that eventually took his life.”
“The most obvious evidence of Apple’s push for a healthy lifestyle has come from its products, especially the Apple Watch,” Moren writes. “Nor does the company look to be stopping its health foray anytime soon. If anything, it’s intensifying its focus, if two recent developments are any indication.”
MacDailyNews Take: Yup.
If you think about some of society’s biggest problems and challenges, one of the ones that we are really focused on is health. And arguably the health care system can be made much simpler, can have much better results, you can have patients that really feel like customers…and have systems and applications that bring out the best in the medical professionals… I think the runway there is enormous.
I love the watch. One day, this is my prediction, we will look back and we will wonder: how can I ever have gone without the Watch? Because the holy grail of the watch is being able to monitor more and more of what’s going on in the body. It’s not technologically possible to do it today to the extent that we can imagine, but it will be…
Our minds convince all of us all too often not to seek help. And…many times we don’t know there is a symptom, so if you could have a device that knew stuff about you, it would be pretty incredible and would extend life and extend quality. — Apple CEO Tim Cook, May 24, 2016
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: As soon as our interns wake up and finally TTK we’ve been staring at since lunch, our Apple Watches will begin to efficiently and precisely track our beer curls.
Here’s to yer health, everybody!
SEE ALSO:
This start-up has stumbled across an incredibly popular use for the Apple Watch – May 12, 2017
Apple Watch helps doctors detect the leading cause of heart failure with 97% accuracy – May 12, 2017
Apple buys Beddit, a company with an Apple Watch sleep-tracking app – May 10, 2017
College student uses SOS on Apple Watch to get rescued after rollover crash – April 27, 2017
Apple files a patent application for a circular wearable – December 1, 2016
iOS 10.2 delivers Apple Watch’s Emergency SOS feature to iPhone – November 9, 2016
Apple reportedly working on sleep tracker for the Apple Watch – September 27, 2016
Apple to expand HealthKit from tracker to diagnosis tool; new Apple Watch apps for sleep tracking, fitness levels in pipeline – September 26, 2016
Apple files patent application for heart-monitoring wearable device – August 12, 2016
Apple working on all-new, advanced health-tracking hardware; years in the making – August 9, 2016
How my Apple Watch saved my life – July 25, 2016
A real lifesaver: Apple Watch saves lives – March 28, 2016
Man credits Apple Watch with saving his life – March 15, 2016
Tim Cook hints Apple might build a health device – November 10, 2015
Apple Watch saves teenager’s life; Tim Cook offers thankful teen an internship – October 2, 2015
One day Apple Watch will be something really special. I can’t wait for that day.
There are A LOT of people who think it’s great now, poor empty-life Frank.
The quality of my life is not dependent upon anything I own, unlike some other shallow and insignificant people.
The quality of my life is not dependent on the material things that I own, unlike some other shallow, petty, and insignificant people.
Frank: I know how the voices in your head bother you, but I’m wondering if you could do something so they’re not overflowing into the public realm?
The fun is just beginning, fanboy.
Lol. Fanboy. On a fan site. You got him good, frank!
But I digress, I just got my series 2 and I love it and am so impressed with it already!
Doesn’t take much to impress you.
I think the Apple devices sector will easily outsell Macs and iPad combined within two years. Easily!
However, i haven’t bought one yet. I’m with you. Doesn’t mean I’m blind though. Who’s buying them? Any type of front-facing service worker addicted to their phone but can’t be seen see checking their phone every five minutes without being fired.
That’s who’s buying them. That’s who I see wearing them.
And that’s one massive market. Enough for Apple drive it down to the rest of us.
Not if take it off at night, like I do. Besides I don’t want to be woke up by some piddling little notice or message.
Yes, and there is also the fact that barring congenital issues, health is not a complex equation. Very generically, it consists of diet (what you put into your body, how you fuel it), exercise (what you do with your body), and sleep/rest (how you let your body recover). Silicon Valley (including Apple) are over-thinking this one.
They are also approaching this and other new technologies the way engineers did during the PC revolution – most people don’t think like engineers and have a very low tolerance for complexity. What is gee-whiz-cool to the technologically inclined is just annoying to the average person.
I still think by and large all of it is a fad, as with VR/AR, algorithms and voice interfaces masquerading as ‘AI’, and wearables that are intrusive. These things are all baby steps and will likely look very, very different once integration has truly occurred some day.
Umm try ‘Do Not Disturb’. It’s a game changer.
“Apple Watch can track your sleep…”
great, I’ll strap it on for Pipeline Timmy’s next keynote speech.
Killer App? Not the best choice of titles for a “health” app….
Taking all your vital signs to save on my buddy Bezos’ AWS iCloud isn’t evil is it? I mean, i gotta fill my pipeline with something. I couldn’t be more excited about becoming Big Brother to all you gullible dorks! It will be really awesome to sell your health data to insurance companies, because nobody but Apple could make it so easy.
The illness that took Steve Jobs life was waiting 6 months before following the advice of his doctors. Wasting time with prayer to some sky gawd and fasting never fixed anything, but it gave an already aggressive Cancer a chance to spread.
Nobody wants a Whipple Procedure, but he might well be alive today had he not wasted valuable time. It is amazing how some very smart people can be very dumb about some things. The Notorious RBG survived the same cancer, but she did not waste time when diagnosed.
It’s nice to see Apple moving beyond the high margin, convenience products with very low quality of life factors to products which can truely impact people’s lives!! For those who desire to own such products today instead of waiting a few years for Apple to catch up, check out this first to market health and wellness wearable, designed by the genius who brought us the Apple Watch and the last 3 iPhone models!! http://www.thestrohs.helo.life
Why don’t you just buy some ad space on MDN for your product, you cheap bastärd.
There were rumors of the Apple Watch being able to monitor glucose levels before the first release. That would be awesome but that was over two years ago. This must be another feature in Tim Cook’s “pipeline.”
I’m entirely leery of a watch measuring blood glucose, that is without having to inject radioactive dye into the patient or poke a hole into their skin. (o_O) I’d soon expect a built in Kirlian aura meter. Bad aura, hypoglycemia. Time to test your blood. 😉
Unfortunately, Steve Jobs killed himself by delaying chemotherapy. Sure, he might have died anyhow, but feasting on his “natural diet cure” did nothing to reverse the ravages of his cancer. For all his brilliance his hubris took his life. If only he had Apple Watch….