If you’re interested in learning about how the iPhone-compatible Apple Watch works, then you can refer to the Apple’s newly released WatchKit documentation. However, some of you might face difficulty in understanding the documentation. Reading this post will help you provide a basic understanding of the Apple Watch device, how it works and about some of its key aspects.
An Overview of Apple Watch
Though all watches helps in telling about the time, but Apple’s Watch doesn’t just tell you about accurate time but also help you to view the time – in the most meaningful manner. It’s a device that keep you stick to your fixed schedule, and also acts as a health and fitness companion that helps to explore ways to keep you more active and fit. All these features makes Apple Watch much more than just a timepiece.
How Does Apple Watch Works?
1. A Look at the Hardware Requirements
You can even develop apps for the Apple Watch, however, designers will have to design an app that works on 38mm screen with 272 x 340px resolution and larger, and 42mm screen with 312 x 390px resolution. Both these screen resolutions come into the “Retina displays” category. In a nutshell, in order to develop an app for Apple Watch.
2. More Watch Sizes to Show Up Later
You could expect to attain the watch with more screen sizes later. According to Apple, unlike iOS running devices wherein the views are placed the screen coordinates, with WatchKit you’ll observe that the objects will automatically move downward from the left navigation. What’s more? The Watch is extremely flexible and will make you aware of how you can group and nest elements in the app you’ve created for the Apple Watch. This means that the apps will act as a responsive website and will adjust to the screen resolution it is being accessed on. This is certainly going to make things pretty easier for developers.
3. Notifications
The Apple Watch comes with two types of notifications named Short Look and Long Look. The “Short Look” notification will be visible only when you’ll raise your wrist – since it can be an app name, icon or any brief information. According to Apple, if the wrist is raised by the wearer for long – then after a while – the device screen will change to a “Long Look” notification. Unlike the “Short Look”, the “Long Look” notification provides is more customizable and offers more information.
4. Creating Glances is Possible
Apart from the app and the notification, developers can now provide information (like weather, time etc.) in the form of “Quick View” to users by creating Glances. The information, however, needs to fit on a single screen and will be read-only. But you can tap the information, in order to enter the interrelated app.
5. No Custom Gestures
The interface offers vertical swipe scrolling through the screen, while horizontal swipes will be available between pages and taps. Additionally, “force touch” option on the device will open up a context menu, and so on. Besides this, there will be an “edge swipe left” that will take you back or up a page, and an “edge swipe up” that opens up the “Glance” view.
6. Static and Not-So-Interactive Maps
The Apple Watch comes with built-in mapping toolkit that enables you to craft “non-interactive snapshots” to around five annotations, by making use of either standard differently colored pins (like red or green or purple) or custom images. You won’t be able to scroll around the map snippet, which will be as big as the display of the device. You will be able to tap on the map that will open up the “Apple Maps” app.
7. Cool Images, But Not so Cool Videos
When creating an app for the Apple Watch, you’ll be able to cache up to 20MB of image resource. However, rest of the things will be made available from the WatchKit extension (that is from your iPhone). Moreover, you’ll be able to create “pre-rendered animations” with help of a series of static images. However, you wouldn’t find any support for the videos.
8. New Font
Typefaces are not an important topic of discussion for many people and is often a useless thing for the untrained eye. But in reality, typefaces can make a huge difference in increasing the usability and in making the product design look appealing to the viewer eye. A new typeface called San Francisco has been designed for the Apple Watch, and Apple highly recommends usage of this font.
Conclusion
Hopefully, reading this post will give you a better understanding of the Apple Watch device and some of its most important key aspects.
