Blood Oxygen Censor Features Will Not Return To Apple Watch In The Near Future

JAKARTA - Apple has removed the blood oxygen monitoring feature (blood oxygen sensing) from Apple Watch since early 2024. Until now there is no sign that the feature will return in the near future. The legal feud between Apple and health technology company Masimo is the main reason for the delay in the return of this feature.

Blood oxygen sensors, or pulse oximetry, are non-invasive technologies to measure levels of oxygen saturation (SpO2) in the blood. This feature was first introduced by Apple to the Apple Watch Series 6.

However, after the ruling from the US International Trade Commission (ITC) which won Masimo's patent lawsuit, Apple chose to disable the feature rather than stop selling Apple Watches in the US.

There is hope that it will appear in February 2025 when Masimo appoints a new CEO, Katie Szyman, to replace the previous CEO who was known to be tough on Apple. Some analysts predict his approach will be softer and open to dispute resolution. However, until August 2025, Masimo did not see any changes in attitude.

On July 7, 2025, Apple brought the case to the US appeals court, arguing that the ban should not have been imposed because the Masimo device that was used as the basis for the patent did not actually exist at that time.

Apple's legal team also confirmed that their features were developed independently. But Masimo accused Apple of recruiting a number of important talents from their companies, and taking advantage of the internal knowledge to develop its SpO2 feature.

Masimo himself finally launched an oxygen-monitoring wearable device called W1 in 2022, two years after Apple introduced a similar feature. Apple then sued Masimo for alleged design similarities, but only won $250 in compensation in the October 2024 decision a very small amount for technology legal standards.

The Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 purchased after January 2024 no longer have blood oxygen measurement features, although the physical hardware (sensor) is still in it. Even the latest models such as the black edition Apple Watch Series 10 and Ultra 2 also do not support this function.

As of August 1, 2025, there has been no final decision from the court regarding Apple's appeal. Meanwhile, Masimo confirmed that the patent is hardware-based, so Apple cannot outsmart it with just a software change. Apple's current solution is only two: settle disputes with Masimo or develop new technologies that don't violate patents.

But until now, these two options are far from reality. So, users who buy the Apple Watch Series 9 or Ultra 2 before January 2024 can still enjoy the SpO2 feature, while new users have to wait longer or maybe forever to see that feature again.

In this situation, Apple and Masimo are playing a tech 'chicken' game: who will give in first? Unfortunately, there is no sign that one of them will brake. The end of this legal drama may still be a long time from coming.