If you’re shopping for a new Apple Watch after Christmas Eve, your options will be limited. In an unusual move, Apple is pulling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 from store shelves in the thick of the holiday shopping season. The company is suspending online sales effective Thursday and in-store sales on Sunday, after losing a patent dispute. And it’s unclear when—or if—the watches will be available to buy again.
The move does not affect people who already own a Series 9 or Ultra 2. Those watches will continue to function as normal. But if you visit Apple’s website after 3 p.m. ET on December 21 or wander through an Apple store after Christmas Eve, the only smartwatch you’ll be able to buy is the entry-level Apple Watch SE. That’s because the SE is the lone watch in the lineup that doesn’t have an SpO2 sensor, which, on the pricier Apple Watches, enables a feature that takes blood oxygen measurements.
The blood oxygen feature is the cause of a dispute between Apple and California-based health technology company Masimo, which claims Apple infringed on its patents. In October, the US International Trade Commission ruled in Masimo’s favor. That decision is currently undergoing presidential review. But if U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai decides against intervening, the ruling will go into effect. Apple is preparing for the possibility that it will.
“While the review period will not end until December 25, Apple is preemptively taking steps to comply should the ruling stand,” the company said in a statement provided to Wirecutter.
If the ruling does stand, Apple plans to appeal the decision to a federal circuit court.
“Apple strongly disagrees with the order and is pursuing a range of legal and technical options to ensure that Apple Watch is available to customers,” the company continued in its statement.
Apple is reportedly working on software updates that could work around the patent issues, according to Bloomberg. But those updates could take months to test, and they might prove insufficient enough to work around Masimo’s patents, leaving the watches in limbo.
Apple could also decide to negotiate with Masimo to license its blood oxygen sensor technology, New York University law professor Rochelle Dreyfuss, who specializes in patent law and has no affiliation with the case or either party, told Wirecutter. Or it could eliminate the pulse oximeter from its watches altogether.
The SpO2 sensor is just one of the many health features that make the Series 9 our top smartwatch pick for iPhone owners. The Ultra 2, our upgrade pick, includes the same sensor, plus additional features designed for endurance athletes.
The SpO2 sensor works by shining light through a user’s skin to measure oxygen saturation levels. The watches can passively monitor blood oxygen levels in the background if the feature is enabled, and users can also take manual 15-second measurements throughout the day. But while the blood oxygen measurement is an interesting data point, it’s not quite as life-changing (literally) as some of the Apple Watch lineup’s other health features, some of which won’t be available once the Series 9 and Ultra 2 are pulled. For instance, Apple Watch Series 4 and later models (except for the SE) offer an ECG feature that can detect atrial fibrillation. However, the SE, which will remain available to buy, offers high and low heart rate alerts, fall detection, and other health features that, in our opinion, could be more potentially useful than blood oxygen levels. The company said it would provide more information on its plans when the presidential review period ends, on December 25.
Bottom line: If you buy a Series 9 or Ultra 2 from Apple’s website, you have until the end of day on December 24 to pick it up in-store. If you miss that window, though, you won’t be completely out of luck—third-party retailers like Walmart and Best Buy will continue to sell both models.
This article was edited by Jason Chen and Amber Angelle.
