Apple Collected Over 18,000 Hours of Health and Fitness Data for Apple Watch

ABC was recently invited to Apple's top-secret health and fitness lab for the Apple Watch for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the testing facility, accompanied by Apple executives Jeff Williams and Jay Blahnik. The network shared a preview of its visit on Good Morning America earlier today, and has now provided a closer look at the facility on the latest episode of late night show Nightline.

The five-minute interview behind closed doors revealed that Apple collected over 18,000 hours of health and fitness data based on over 10,000 workout sessions that Apple employees participated in over the past two years at the company's secretive fitness lab. Blahnik, director of fitness and health technologies at Apple, also confirmed that the company tested the Apple Watch outdoors based on a variety of activities.


Lower-quality YouTube video available for viewing outside the United States

Apple Watch will be available April 24, with pre-orders starting April 10 in the first wave of launch countries: United States, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and United Kingdom. The wrist-worn device starts at $349 for the Apple Watch Sport, while the stainless steel models will retail for between $549 to $1,099 and the 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition will cost up to $17,000.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Tags: ABC, Nightline
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
Tim Cook WWDC 2018

Report: Tim Cook to Step Down as Apple CEO 'as Soon as Next Year'

Saturday November 15, 2025 2:40 pm PST by
Apple is preparing for Tim Cook to step down as CEO of the company "as soon as next year," according to the Financial Times. The company's board of directors and senior executives "recently intensified preparations for Cook to hand over the reins," the report said. While the report said that Apple is unlikely to name a new CEO before its next earnings report in late January, it went on to ...
iPhone Pocket Short

iPhone Pocket Now Available to Order, But Already Selling Out

Friday November 14, 2025 6:20 am PST by
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. iPhone Pocket is available to order on Apple's online store starting today, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. However, it is already completely sold out in the United...
apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple m5

Apple's 2026 Mac Plans

Friday November 14, 2025 3:23 pm PST by
Most of Apple's Macs are slated to get M5 chips across 2026, and there's a possibility we'll even see the first M6 chips toward the end of the year. Updates are planned for everything from the MacBook Air to the Mac Studio. MacBook Air (Early 2026) The MacBook Air will be one of the first Macs to get a 2026 refresh, with an update planned for the first few months of the year. The MacBook...
best early black friday deals

Best Black Friday Apple Deals Live Now - Save on AirPods, iPads, and Apple Watches

Saturday November 15, 2025 1:45 pm PST by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...
tvOS 26 Profiles

tvOS 26.2 Adds a Useful New Feature to Your Apple TV

Friday November 14, 2025 10:02 am PST by
Starting with the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, currently in beta, additional profiles created on the Apple TV no longer require their own Apple Account. In the Settings app on the Apple TV, under Profiles and Accounts, anyone can create a new profile by simply entering a name and indicating whether the profile is for a kid. The profile will be associated with the primary user's Apple Account,...
walmart new ornametns

Walmart Black Friday Deals Begin Today With Low Prices on Headphones, TVs, and More

Friday November 14, 2025 7:55 am PST by
Walmart's Black Friday sale has officially kicked off today, with an online shopping event that's also seeing some matching deals in retail locations. There are quite a few major discounts in this sale, including savings on headphones, TVs, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Walmart. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us...
CarPlay Pinned Messages

iOS 26.2 Adds New CarPlay Setting

Thursday November 13, 2025 6:48 am PST by
iOS 26 extended pinned conversations in the Messages app to CarPlay, for quick access to your most frequent chats. However, some drivers may prefer the classic view with a list of individual conversations only, and Apple now lets users choose. Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.2 this week, and it introduces a new CarPlay setting for turning off pinned conversations in the Messages...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.2 Beta 3

Monday November 17, 2025 3:20 pm PST by
Apple provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming iOS 26.2 update, and there are still new features that are being added with each beta that we get. We've rounded up all of the changes that Apple made in beta 3. AirDrop Apple added new AirDrop functionality, providing a way for two people to share files temporarily without having to add one another as contacts. iOS 26.2...

Top Rated Comments

macs4nw Avatar
139 months ago
Solid homework. Nothing surprising here..... reminds me of that glimpse into Apple's wireless/cellular testing lab they revealed after the ruckus about the so called "antenna gate"..... God, I hate that word.....
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nagromme Avatar
139 months ago
Try to imagine Samsung running 10,000 1–2 hour test sessions in a secret fitness lab over two years. Not very believable, is it? Neither the extreme pursuit of quality and usefulness, nor being years AHEAD of the industry instead of following 2 months behind the latest rumor about Apple...

I don't know if/when I'll want an Apple Watch, but I do know Apple goes way beyond the halfway spaghetti-on-the-wall product development practiced by the competition.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jimthing Avatar
139 months ago
This is all for marketing and PR nonsense.

"Oh look, people running on machines. How amazing our product therefore is."

...or not.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TechGod Avatar
139 months ago
Pretty cool, but expected. As a tech company as prestigious as Apple, you have to test it and perfect it otherwise your reputation will suffer.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Soccertess Avatar
139 months ago
surprised

I wouldn't never expect Samsung to test a product like this, they just release crap and keep releasing different products till they get it right. So good on you Apple on the effort to get a good product out the first time...

I still won't buy it though.... maybe when Apple drops the price or adds more sensors to make it worth that price point...


10 bucks a new watch strap connector comes out in 2 years and makes all those over priced straps useless.... Jono ivey will come out and say.. all new thin connector so we can make the thinnest watch ever, saving 1mm and ****ing all you over. thank you for dropping 500 dollars on your old useless strap...
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
62tele Avatar
139 months ago
Lol, this is Macrumors. I would be surprised if some douche didn't bash Samsung, Google or any of the other Android manufacturers.
"Douche"? You mean like the douches who could care less about Apple but come to Macrumors just to antagonize.

I don't know whether the Apple Watch will be a marketing success. I don't know whether it will check enough boxes in performance and function. I do know that Apple has done an awful lot of design and testing in bringing their smartwatch to the playing field. None of the other full feature devices have hit the mark yet but many of them were rushed to market in what appeared to be an effort to scoop Apple.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)