Where to place a camera on the Apple Watch? This is the question that the Cupertino engineers must have asked themselves, because a new patent tells us about the possibility of an Apple Watch with camera. An interesting addition, although there is still a long way to go if it comes to fruition.
A digital crown that offers so much more
As noted in Patently Apple, Apple experimented with the idea of put a camera in the Digital Crown of the Apple Watch. Taking a photo would be as simple, in theory, as pointing your wrist at the object of interest.
Given the proximity of the Digital Crown to our arm, and always taking into account the aperture that the camera we are talking about could have, on too many occasions we could end up capturing more with our hand than the object in question. It is precisely for this reason that the patent raises a system to easily remove the Apple Watch from the bracelet to take the picture.
In case all this seems little, the patent that Apple published also states that the Digital Crown has a light emitter to illuminate scenes when capturing images. A transmitter that would serve both as a flash for the camera and as a physiological sensor. A whole display of technology in a very small component.
The truth is that it is one of those patents that surprises us due to the objectives that it offers. Installing a camera and a flash in such a small component of our Apple Watch must be a feat. On the other hand, the possibility of using the Apple Watch to make Face Time calls, a very attractive subject, is not resolved in this patent.
It’s true that more and more of us can leave the iPhone behind and just use the Apple Watch while we walk, run, shop, etc. although the power taking pictures on the wrist doesn’t seem to be a priority for Apple. As we always say, a patent is exactly that, and it may never reach a final product, but Apple’s interest in making the Apple Watch even better, yes. We’ll see how its evolution develops and if WWDC 2022 gives us any clues.
