 2022 is a big year for the Apple Watch. There's not one, not two, but three new models. There's the all new Apple Watch Ultra for extreme fitness buffs, and even a new, slightly cheaper SE. But we're not here to talk about those two watches today. We're here to talk about the brand new Series 8. Like the Series 7, the Series 6 before that, and the Series 5 before that, the Series 8 is a fairly iterative update. As in, most of the changes this time around are invisible to the naked eye. Seriously, it's got the exact same design as the Series 7, it just comes in slightly different colors. I've got the larger 45 millimeter version in Starlight, which is basically what you get if you split the difference between silver and gold. You can also get the Series 8 in 41 millimeters if you've got petite wrists or just prefer a smaller watch. It's also the same price as before, starting at 399 for the GPS only version and 499 for the cellular. But while the design hasn't changed much, there are significant differences inside the watch. Namely, it's got the new S8 chip. With the S8, Apple isn't promising huge performance or battery life gains. It's more that it's adding a bunch of new sensors. For starters, the S8 adds two new temperature sensors. There's one right under the display that measures your environmental temperature and another closer to the skin that measures your wrist temperature. The idea is to reduce environmental bias so that you can get a more accurate reading. But the temperature sensors aren't like the existing EKG or blood oxygen sensors. You can't take on-demand readings. They only measure your wrist temperature while you're sleeping, kind of like the Oura ring. It's also mainly tracking changes from your baseline. It's not going to tell you an absolute body temperature. So why should you care about how your wrist temperature varies from night to night? Well, it depends. A lot of trackers like the Fitbit Sense and Samsung's Galaxy Watch 5 mainly use temperature as an extra metric in determining your sleep quality. And you can do that with the Series 8 too, though it's not going to be contextualized for you in the single sleep score or anything like that. It's more that you can monitor how things like jet lag, a particularly gnarly workout, or even a few margaritas might impact your baseline. For folks who use the Apple Watch to track their cycles, enabling temperature tracking will also get you retrospective ovulation estimates after about two cycles. It's retrospective and not predictive for a reason. The idea is that a better understanding of past cycles might help folks who are trying to conceive. But like many, many other health and wellness features on the Apple Watch, this is strictly an awareness tool. You're not meant to use this in a medical capacity or as a contraceptive. There are other apps and devices out there that are FDA cleared for that purpose, but this ain't one of them. Don't use the Series 8 for that. And just as another aside, I can understand if in the post-roll world advanced cycle tracking leaves you feeling a bit uneasy. You should know that you don't have to use Apple's cycle tracking app. And if you do, temperature data is totally optional. You can turn that off in the settings. If you do want to use it, however, Apple says that cycle tracking data is encrypted on your device and only accessible with a passcode, touch ID, or face ID. If you enable a passcode and use two-factor authentication, health app data synced with iCloud is also end-to-end encrypted. Okay, now that we've gotten that out of the way, I wish I could tell you how well the temperature tracking works, but I can't just yet. I've only had this for about a week, and you need at least five nights of sleep tracking data in order to build a baseline. I also don't have two cycles worth of temperature data yet. I will be testing this long-term, however, so stay tuned for some follow-ups. The other new sensors in the Series 8 are a souped-up high-G accelerometer and an improved gyroscope. These two sensors work with the barometer, GPS, and microphone to detect if you've been in a severe car crash. If you have, the watch will alert emergency services for you. Now, this isn't limited to the Series 8. It's also included on the iPhone 14 lineup, as well as the Apple Watch SE and Ultra. Again, I wish I could tell you if this feature works, but for obvious reasons, this isn't something I was able to test out. I love y'all, but I'm not about to get myself into a car crash for a smartwatch review. We did use a little RC car here to try and trick the Apple Watch into detecting a crash, and to no one's surprise, we didn't fool the watch. I think we just wanted an excuse to play with the toy car. That said, like fall detection, you're not likely to get false triggers. The new accelerometer can detect up to 256 Gs, and the feature is designed to detect extreme impact and sudden changes in speed. While these are not the most powerful sensors, while these are the two marquee updates with the Series 8, you also get a bunch of new features with WatchOS 9. These updates will also be coming to the Series 4 or later, so they're not exclusive to the Series 8. As with every new version of WatchOS, you get some nifty new watch faces. I particularly liked the Metropolitan and Lunar watch faces, as well as the new color backgrounds for the Modular watch face. The Calendar app has also been redesigned, and I found it really helpful for visualizing when all my meetings were. WatchOS 9 also introduces medication reminders. I'm incredibly bad at taking my meds, and these reminders didn't exactly change that, but they did help me take them more consistently. And before you ask, yes, WatchOS 9 introduces a new low-power battery mode. This low-power mode turns off the always-on display, background sensors, and limits Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity. However, enabling it doesn't mean you're suddenly going to get multi-day battery life on the Series 8. Apple says you can get up to 36 hours on the Series 8 with low-power mode enabled, but I've yet to get that in testing. I mostly got around 24 hours and found low-power mode most useful for when I wanted to get a little extra juice to make it home from the office, or if I forgot to top up the battery before a long run. As for health features, WatchOS 9 improves sleep tracking, so you can now view metrics like respiration rate and your sleep stages. It's still not quite at the level as, say, a Fitbit or Aura Ring, but it's a lot better than it used to be. If you've been diagnosed with AFib, the watch can also now passively monitor your AFib history. On the fitness front, WatchOS 9 adds some new running metrics like running power, vertical oscillation, stride length, and ground contact time. You can also monitor elevation changes and your heart rate zones directly from the wrist. Now, this I have gotten to test. It's not as in-depth as some of the features you'll find on a Garmin or a Polar, but it is a significant step up. I run a lot, and I really dug the ability to scroll through multiple workout views, check which heart rate zone I was in, and create my own custom interval workouts. Good news for hikers, WatchOS 9 includes a redesigned compass app, and some of those fancy features coming to the Apple Watch Ultra will also be available on the Series 8. While I loved a lot of what WatchOS 9 brought to the table, again, it is a software update. So if these upgrades sound cool, you don't necessarily need the Series 8 itself to get them. Those new compass features, you can also get them as long as you have a Series 6 or later. So if you've got a Series 6 or 7, there really isn't a compelling reason to upgrade unless you really want advanced cycle tracking or crash detection. And even then, crash detection is available on the iPhone 14 lineup, so you could just easily upgrade your phone if you're happy with the watch you've got. It's a different story if you've got a Series 3, 4, or 5. Personally, I'm a big fan of the larger screen and thinner bezels you'll get on the newer Series 7 and Series 8. I've got terrible eyesight and that extra readability is a huge benefit. I'm also a big fan of the always-on display and think it's worth upgrading if you're on a Series 3 or 4. Again, if you're on a Series 6 or later, you're not gaining much by upgrading. While the Ultra is the shiny new Apple Watch on the block, I gotta say, this is the best Apple Watch for the vast majority of people. It's not only more affordable, but the style is also more versatile for formal occasions or if you have smaller wrists. The SE might be the better choice if you're on a budget or a first-time Apple Watch owner, but if you already know you like the watch, this gets you all the bells and whistles you're used to. Plus, if you're more of a casual athlete, you really don't need the Ultra's extra durability or battery life. Though, if that's what you want, don't let me stop you. All I'm saying is that while this isn't the most exciting update we've ever seen, it doesn't need to be. Like they say, if it ain't broke. The Apple Watch was already the best smartwatch around for iOS users. The Series 8 just further cements that. Hey guys, thanks for watching our thoughts on the Series 8. The Apple Watch Ultra is next, so what feature are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments.