New Apple Watch bands tipped for Spring launch — iOS 17.4 code reveals new styles are on the way

Apple Watch Series 9 review
(Image credit: Future)

A whole new set of Apple Watch bands may have just been revealed in an unusual way — via code in the new iOS 17.4 release candidate. 

As originally reported by MacRumors, one of its contributors spotted a handful of spring colors for the Apple Watch. They come in the following shades:

  • Light Blue
  • Ocean Blue
  • Pink
  • Raspberry
  • Soft Mint
  • Sunshine

Though Light Blue and Ocean Blue feel fairly familiar in concept, the Pink band could be great for the pink Apple Watch Series 9 we saw late last year. The Soft Mint could also be a great choice for someone looking for a lighter shade, but the Sunshine Yellow is what catches my eye here. If done right, this could be among the best Apple Watch bands

As well as these, two new Hermes colors were also spotted: Bleu Céleste and Jaune de Naples. The former could be one of three blue shades potentially coming to the Apple Store with the previous shades, and the latter could be a bright yellow, much like that of Sunshine. 

A regular occurrence

Every year, during spring, we get new Apple Watch bands in different colors so it seems likely this leak revealed information we will find out in just a few short weeks. However, it’s worth pointing out that the end of March/start of April is expected to be quite big for Apple. With Apple Vision Pro having launched at the start of February and Apple’s next event expected for WWDC 2024 in July, there’s a gap between product launches between now and then.

To fit in between, rumors have suggested for a while that a brand new M3 iPad Pro with OLED screens will launch, alongside a brand new iPad Air line and the M3 MacBook Airs. It’s possible that the new lineup of Apple Watch colors could arrive with little fanfare just to purchase at the Apple Store near you, or Apple could unveil them alongside the bigger products. Perhaps, we could see an impromptu event going over all these launches and more. Either way, I can’t wait to see what these colors will eventually look like. 

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James Bentley

James is a staff writer and general Jack of all trades at iMore. With news, features, reviews, and guides under his belt, he has always liked Apple for its unique branding and distinctive style. Originally buying a Macbook for music and video production, he has since gone on to join the Apple ecosystem with as many devices as he can fit on his person. 


With a degree in Law and Media and being a little too young to move onto the next step of his law career, James started writing from his bedroom about games, movies, tech, and anything else he could think of. Within months, this turned into a fully-fledged career as a freelance journalist. Before joining iMore, he was a staff writer at Gfinity and saw himself published at sites like TechRadar, NME, and Eurogamer. 


As his extensive portfolio implies, James was predominantly a games journalist before joining iMore and brings with him a unique perspective on Apple itself. When not working, he is trying to catch up with the movies and albums of the year, as well as finally finishing the Yakuza series. If you like Midwest emo music or pretentious indie games that will make you cry, he’ll talk your ear off.