How heartwarming! Parents send their newborn baby's heartbeat to distant relatives using the Apple Watch
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Critics of Apple's new watch have complained about its looks, sensor accuracy and price.
But one family has found the device to be priceless at the birth of their child and its heartbeat function to be far from gimmicky.
A couple in the US used the Apple Watch Sports model's heartrate sensor to record the heartbeat of their newborn baby and share it with relatives who couldn't be at the birth.
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Heartwarming: A couple in the US used the Apple Watch Sports edition's heartbeat sensor to record the heartbeat of their new born baby and share it with relatives who couldn't be at the birth
They wrote on their YouTube page: 'Our first child was born and we used an Apple Watch Sport to send his heartbeat to our distant family members it was a really awesome experience that we couldn't have done without the Apple Watch.'
In the video, the Sports Watch, which costs from £299 ($349) is pressed gently to the baby's arm as his father initiates the sensor and a reading is taken, shown by the flashing pink heart on the screen.
'Look how cool that is,' the mother says, adding that the baby is a few hours less than a day old in the video.
The parents used Apple's Digital Touch function to then send the heart beat data to their friends.
The parents used Apple's Digital Touch function to send the heartbeat data to their friends and family. The feature was shown off at the watch's launch, with the company suggesting it could be used to send a couple's heartbeats to one another (illustrated above)
Commenting on the Video, YouTube users Kaysha said: 'Beautiful and the reason why the watch appeals to the general public.'
Heartbeat readings are taken by the sensor on the back of the watch's case.
A ceramic cover with sapphire lenses sits above a sensor that uses infrared and visible-light LEDs and photodiodes to detect the wearer's heart rate.
Apple Watch also uses this sensor, along with an accelerometer and the GPS and Wi‑Fi in a connected iPhone, to measure physical movement such as steps, distance and calories.
When Apple launched its Watch last month, it said the sensor could be used to create new ways to communicate and showed a couple sending their heart beats to each other.
The Digital Touch feature lets users send heartbeat readings and taps to others wearing an Apple Watch, and touching the side button brings up a list of the wearer's friends, making this a simple process.
While the sensor works well in this video, Apple last week admitted that it won't work properly when worn on some tattooed wrists.
On the official support page for the Watch's heart rate sensor, the Californian company wrote: 'Permanent or temporary changes to your skin, such as some tattoos, can impact heart rate sensor performance.'
Heartbeat readings are taken by the sensor on the back of the watch's case. A ceramic cover with sapphire lenses sits above a sensor that uses infrared and visible-light LEDs and photodiodes to detect the wearer's heart rate. The sensor's used for personal training and Apple Pay apps (illustrated above)
The retailer is advising people to use external heart rate monitors as a workaround for the problem.
It appears the pigmented ink of some tattoos affects the watch's sensor's ability to read an individual's heart rate, which in turn leads the watch to think it has stopped making contact with the skin.
Under the heading, 'What else affects your reading?' on the support page, Apple said: 'The ink, pattern, and saturation of some tattoos can block light from the sensor, making it difficult to get reliable readings.
Tests conducted by iMore suggest that tattoos in dark and solid colours interfere with the device the most.
This is because the heart sensor reads a pulse by measuring light absorption though the skin - a process called photoplethysmography.
'This technology, while difficult to pronounce, is based on a very simple fact: Blood is red because it reflects red light and absorbs green light, Apple writes on its support page.
'Apple Watch uses green LED lights paired with light‑sensitive photodiodes to detect the amount of blood flowing through your wrist at any given moment.
'When your heart beats, the blood flow in your wrist - and the green light absorption - is greater. Between beats, it's less.
'By flashing its LED lights hundreds of times per second, Apple Watch can calculate the number of times the heart beats each minute - your heart rate.
So the problem seems to occur when a wearer has something on their skin that reduces the lights reflectiveness, such as ink under the skin's surface.
This doesn't include natural skin pigmentation and Apple stressed that heart rate is just 'one of many factors that Apple Watch uses to measure your activity and exercise'.
Apple last week admitted the Watch won't work properly when worn on some tattooed wrists (pictured). On the official support page for the Watch's heart rate sensor, Apple wrote: 'Permanent or temporary changes to your skin, such as some tattoos, can impact heart rate sensor performance'
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