{"id":142306,"date":"2025-05-29T20:38:15","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T20:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/142306\/"},"modified":"2025-05-29T20:38:15","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T20:38:15","slug":"4-whoop-5-0-features-the-apple-watch-11-needs-to-steal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/142306\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Whoop 5.0 features the Apple Watch 11 needs to steal"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve spent a few weeks with the Whoop 5.0<\/a>, which is a return to the days when simple fitness bands ruled wearables, and distraction-free health tracking was the standard. Since then, smartwatches and smart rings have taken over, but is the change for the better? While the Whoop 5.0 has its quirks, and I personally get more value from the Apple Watch Series 10<\/a>, I have identified several things Apple would be wise to imitate for the Apple Watch Series 11 and in WatchOS 12<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Strain metric<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\t\tAndy Boxall \/ Digital Trends<\/p>\n

The Whoop 5.0\u2019s app uses three key metrics to help you understand your current state and position for the day: Sleep, Recovery, and Strain. Strain is the most interesting of the three, as it\u2019s a different, but arguably more interesting way of assessing how hard you\u2019ve worked. It takes in the data we\u2019re more familiar with, such as steps and heart rate, and presents it in an easy to understand, but unique way.\u00a0<\/p>\n

You\u2019re given a target Strain level and the Whoop keeps track of your activity during the day, and gives advice on how to reach it. It avoids the simplicity of step count or calorie burn, which some prefer not to know, as a way to understand how much you can push yourself. The Whoop app\u2019s advice doesn\u2019t just say \u201ctake a walk,\u201d or \u201cworkout,\u201d in its efforts to motivate you either.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It goes deeper by saying you\u2019d need a 40 minute walk to reach your goal, and often suggests alternative activities like cleaning the house. Apple Health is far more passive, and I rarely have any reason to open the app. Whoop\u2019s Strain metric encourages me to look at my stats more deeply, and then prompts me to get moving in ways which better suit my lifestyle. Yes, it\u2019s another number in a sea of other numbers, but the way Strain evolves during the day, affected by more than just steps, makes it even more motivational than Apple\u2019s already excellent and easy to visualize Rings.<\/p>\n

Whoop band material<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

\t\tAndy Boxall \/ Digital Trends<\/p>\n

Apple\u2019s range of bands for the Apple Watch covers almost all tastes and environments, but it would do well to take a close look at the straps attached to the Whoop 5.0, as they\u2019re excellent. Whoop has three different types of strap \u2014 CoreKnit, SuperKnit, and SuperKnit Luxe \u2014 for the Whoop 5.0 and Whoop MG. I\u2019ve been wearing the SuperKnit Luxe, and it\u2019s soft, suitably stretchy, yet still grippy due to the way it\u2019s constructed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The do-it-all Apple Sport Loop band works in most situations, but for all its comfort, Whoop\u2019s SuperKnit material is a step above. The closest parallel in Apple\u2019s official range of bands of the Solo Loop, but it\u2019s still heavier and less flexible. For 24-hour wear, I\u2019d love to see an Apple Watch band in a material similar to Whoop\u2019s SuperKnit. It\u2019s really that comfortable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Healthspan and Pace of Aging<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\t\tAndy Boxall \/ Digital Trends<\/p>\n

In addition to Strain, there\u2019s another data-driven Whoop feature I\u2019d love to see in a future version of Apple Health and on the Apple Watch. It\u2019s called Healthspan, and it only unlocks after you\u2019ve tracked sleep for 21 nights. It\u2019s also only available on the Whoop Peak and Life subscription plans, so you have to pay more to get it. However, it\u2019s one of the few pay features most will find informative and motivational.<\/p>\n

By using sleep, VO2 Max, type of workouts, Strain, and other factors it estimates your Whoop Age. If this is lower than your actual age, you\u2019re doing the right things, but if it\u2019s over then perhaps things need to change. It also calculates your Pace of Aging, helping understand your lifestyle\u2019s affect on your body. It\u2019s all accompanied by clear, informative graphs which show exactly where improvements can be made.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Healthspan is probably the most unique and informative data-driven health feature available in the Whoop app, and by incorporating something similar into Apple Health, the Apple Watch could elevate itself beyond its primarily casual focus, yet still remain relevant to those who aren\u2019t into hardcore sport. I\u2019m all for wearables explaining how my daily life impacts my long-term health, and Healthspan gets the balance between showing heavy stats and staying useful exactly right.<\/p>\n

Longer battery life<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\t\tAndy Boxall \/ Digital Trends<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve worn the Whoop 5.0 for 21 days as I write this, and I\u2019ve charged the battery once during this time. Whoop\u2019s own estimate of the battery returning 14 days on a single charge seems to be accurate, and very different from the two days battery life I get from the Apple Watch Series 10. Not having to think about regularly charging a battery is freeing, and a genuine benefit of a screen-less fitness tracker like the Whoop.<\/p>\n

Getting 14 days battery life from a complex smartwatch like the Apple Watch, with all the health tracking features active, is unlikely, but we are seeing advances in models like the OnePlus Watch 3<\/a>. Its battery easily lasts four days on a single charge. I don\u2019t expect Apple to suddenly work out how to extend the battery life to match the Whoop, but getting closer to the OnePlus Watch 3 should be a priority for the Apple Watch Series 11.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next for the Apple Watch?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

\t\tApple Watch Series 10 Andy Boxall \/ Digital Trends<\/p>\n

The Apple Watch Series 10 is my favorite smartwatch<\/a>, but even I can see how it has only marginally advanced over the past couple of years. I\u2019ve no doubt the Apple Watch Series 11 will continue to be one of the best smartwatches you can buy, but to take it to the next level and remain truly compelling, it needs something extra.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t want direct copies of any Whoop features, and the Whoop itself is far from perfect, but spending some time with it did show me the joy of wearing a highly focused, distraction-free health tracker with some interesting ideas inside. The Apple Watch Series 11 is expected to launch later this year, likely alongside the Apple iPhone 17<\/a> series, while WatchOS 12 will be first revealed at WWDC 2025<\/a> in June. We\u2019ve also explored some of the features the iPhone 17 will need to be compelling<\/a> too.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I\u2019ve spent a few weeks with the Whoop 5.0, which is a return to the days when simple…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142307,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3160],"tags":[61579,1685,547,53,16,15,61580,61581,61582],"class_list":{"0":"post-142306","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-gadgets","8":"tag-apple-watch-series-11","9":"tag-gadgets","10":"tag-mobile","11":"tag-technology","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-watchos-12","15":"tag-whoop-5-0","16":"tag-whoop-mg"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114593051706579770","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}