Apple Asking Some Developers to Have Apple Watch Apps Ready by Mid-February

applewatch2Apple appears to be asking some high profile app developers and partners to have their Apple Watch-compatible iPhone apps prepared and ready to launch in the App Store in mid-February. According to a source that spoke to MacRumors, Apple has asked one of its biggest Apple Pay partners to prepare an iOS application with WatchKit support that's ready to launch in the App Store by February 12.

It is unclear if Apple is asking the same of other developers, but it is possible the company is hoping to test some third-party Apple Watch apps with employees ahead of the device's launch to get a better feel for battery life when using non-Apple apps. As we detailed earlier today, thousands of Apple employees in the Cupertino area are wearing and testing the device on a daily basis to work out final kinks ahead of an April launch.

It's also possible that Apple could use this high-profile partner's app in an upcoming demonstration or launch event to show off how Apple Pay works on the Apple Watch. Apple Pay will be a key function of the Apple Watch, letting users authorize credit card payments right from their wrists. As has been outlined in the past, the Apple Watch will authenticate payments biometrically, requiring a passcode when the device is first placed on a wrist and again if it loses skin contact.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said earlier this week that Apple Watch development is on track and that the device will launch at some point in April. Pricing for the Apple Watch is largely unknown, but will start at $349 for the least expensive option.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch Series 9
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Top Rated Comments

vinced45 Avatar
121 months ago
I wished they reached out to me...

I would love for them to demo my Watch app..

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9beAy9jKaM&list=UUSgj_E4RY1jhp7_hZVESUdg
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Peace Avatar
121 months ago
Sounds to me like Apple wants to showcase a few Apple Watch apps in realtime for a potential event in February.

;)
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ebouwman Avatar
121 months ago
They really need to get this thing under the $200 mark.

No.
They.
Don't.

Look at the pebble steel, thats at the $200 and it doesn't have half the features that the apple watch has.

Look at the iPad, that was (and still is) very expensive, especially when comparing it to a laptop, but its still a great device that defined a new market.

The cost of most apple devices is a little high and people are constantly moaning about the cost of this product or that. For me though, the cost is usually worth it.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
princered Avatar
121 months ago
Mixed Feelings

I have mixed feelings about the :apple:Watch. I am excited about the product, and I want to have faith that Apple will make it satisfying. I don't care if it's not a superior product in it's first generation. As long as it has that :apple: feel to it and works fine. I'm glad the release is pushed back further, so hopefully they get everything right. iOS 8 has been a very bad :apple: for me. I became an Apple fan because things "just worked". I continue to fork over my money bc of the same reason. Let's get back on track Apple
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SockRolid Avatar
121 months ago
Sounds to me like Apple wants to showcase a few Apple Watch apps in realtime for a potential event in February.

;)
More like Apple wants to have real apps running on the watch so they can film better commercials. If the watch launches in mid-April, that will give Apple's ad agency (or in-house marketing group) two months. Plenty of time.

Not sure that Apple really needs to do another Apple Watch event.
Another pre-launch event will only lessen the impact of the actual launch.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
shandyman Avatar
121 months ago
Sounds to me like Apple wants to showcase a few Apple Watch apps in realtime for a potential event in February.



;)
If they're only getting apps ready for mid February, then they need time to test them. Event is more likely March, since Tim said April for launch.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Rumored to Add These 10 New Features to Your iPhone

Wednesday April 24, 2024 2:05 pm PDT by
Apple is set to unveil iOS 18 during its WWDC keynote on June 10, so the software update is a little over six weeks away from being announced. Below, we recap rumored features and changes planned for the iPhone with iOS 18. iOS 18 will reportedly be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, with new ChatGPT-inspired generative AI features, a more customizable Home Screen, and much more....
Apple Silicon AI Optimized Feature Siri

Apple Releases Open Source AI Models That Run On-Device

Wednesday April 24, 2024 3:39 pm PDT by
Apple today released several open source large language models (LLMs) that are designed to run on-device rather than through cloud servers. Called OpenELM (Open-source Efficient Language Models), the LLMs are available on the Hugging Face Hub, a community for sharing AI code. As outlined in a white paper [PDF], there are eight total OpenELM models, four of which were pre-trained using the...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces 'Let Loose' Event on May 7 Amid Rumors of New iPads

Tuesday April 23, 2024 7:11 am PDT by
Apple has announced it will be holding a special event on Tuesday, May 7 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (10 a.m. Eastern Time), with a live stream to be available on Apple.com and on YouTube as usual. The event invitation has a tagline of "Let Loose" and shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
macbook pro purple february

Best Buy Introduces Record Low Prices on Apple's M3 MacBook Pro for Members

Thursday April 25, 2024 7:41 am PDT by
Best Buy is discounting a collection of M3 MacBook Pro computers today, this time focusing on the 14-inch version of the laptop. Every deal in this sale requires you to have a My Best Buy Plus or Total membership, although non-members can still get solid second-best prices on these MacBook Pro models. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy. When you click a link and make a...
apple id account

Apple ID Accounts Logging Out Users and Requiring Password Reset

Saturday April 27, 2024 12:41 am PDT by
There are widespread reports of Apple users being locked out of their Apple ID overnight for no apparent reason, requiring a password reset before they can log in again. Users say the sudden inexplicable Apple ID sign-out is occurring across multiple devices. When they attempt to sign in again they are locked out of their account and asked to reset their password in order to regain access. ...
macos sonoma feature purple green

Apple's Regular Mac Base RAM Boosts Ended When Tim Cook Took Over

Friday April 26, 2024 6:34 am PDT by
Apple used to regularly increase the base memory of its Macs up until 2011, the same year Tim Cook was appointed CEO, charts posted on Mastodon by David Schaub show. Earlier this year, Schaub generated two charts: One showing the base memory capacities of Apple's all-in-one Macs from 1984 onwards, and a second depicting Apple's consumer laptop base RAM from 1999 onwards. Both charts were...