Reworked Apple Watch avoids ban, but Masimo battle escalates

What just happened? Apple's latest Apple Watch redesign has cleared a key hurdle at a US trade agency, easing one immediate threat to its wearable roadmap while leaving a broader, high-stakes patent dispute with Masimo unresolved. A judge at the US International Trade Commission issued a preliminary finding that Apple's current smartwatches do not infringe Masimo's patents on blood-oxygen monitoring, rejecting the medical-device company's attempt to revive an import ban on the devices.

The decision, made public on Thursday, concludes that Apple's latest implementation of pulse-oximetry functionality falls outside the scope of Masimo's asserted rights. The full ITC commission will now review the judge's ruling and decide whether to adopt it – a step that will determine whether the redesigned watches remain protected from trade sanctions in the US.

The preliminary ruling is the latest development in a dispute that has already forced Apple ...