A major hardware upgrade for the Apple Watch lineup is planned for next year, findings in internal Apple code suggest.

According to lines of internal code spotted by Macworld and subsequently confirmed by MacRumors, Apple has been experimenting with biometric authentication for 2026's Apple Watch lineup. The code mentions support for "AppleMesa," which is Apple's codename for Touch ID, suggesting that prototype models currently offer the feature in some way.

It is worth noting that no other Apple Watch models, including the upcoming 2025 lineup, include code for ‌Touch ID‌. How exactly ‌Touch ID‌ would be implemented on the Apple Watch is unclear, but the company could opt to place it under the display like some Android smartphones, or integrate it into the side button.

‌Touch ID‌ on the Apple Watch could make the device more secure, reducing reliance on short numerical passwords. In fact, the security of processes such as Apple Pay could be considerably enhanced with on-device biometric authentication.

Apple could still abandon the ‌Touch ID‌ sensor on the prototype models and strip references to it out of its internal code, but the possibility of the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 touting the feature should now be taken seriously.

The code also reveals that the models "N237" (Apple Watch Series 12), "N238" (Apple Watch Series 12 with cellular connectivity), and "N240" (Apple Watch Ultra 4) will contain an all-new CPU with the identifier "T8320." The S9 and S10 chips, as well as the upcoming S11, are all essentially the same chip with the identifier "T8310," indicating that a meaningful S-series chip upgrade is highly likely next year.

Beyond ‌Touch ID‌ and a faster chip, the code suggests that 2026's Apple Watch lineup will be a considerable upgrade more broadly. The new series is identified as "Watch8;" the Series 9, 10, and 11 are all identified as "Watch7," pointing to a significant departure from previous models in 2026. Seemingly corroborating this, DigiTimes last week reported that significant design changes are coming to the Apple Watch next year.

Source: Macrumors