Apple Watch Series 4 ECG functionality is also coming to Canada... maybe... eventuall

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Today’s the big day for early adopters of the iPhone XS, XS Max, and Apple Watch Series 4, but even if your pre-order shipment hasn’t been delayed or you’ve taken your place in front of the line at a physical store, you won’t actually be able to use the game-changing feature of Cupertino’s latest wearable device off the bat.

Instead, you will need to wait for a future software update to bring you the first-ever ECG app “offered directly to consumers”, as FDA approval reportedly came in the very day before the Apple Watch Series 4 was unveiled.

Of course, the Food and Drug Administration only has jurisdiction over the US market, and Apple was ominously silent about ECG monitoring functionality being enabled anywhere else.

As it turns out, the groundbreaking albeit controversial technology is on its way to at least one more country. Unsurprisingly, we’re talking about the friendly US neighbor to the north. Unfortunately, there are no words on exactly when should Canadians expect the Electrocardiogram tool to become regionally available.

But Apple has confirmed the company is “in the process of working with Health Canada to bring the functionality to the Canadian market”, which is obviously great news. Apparently, FDA’s national public health-responsible equivalent up north tends to be on the same page as the US Food and Drug Administration concerning this type of stuff, so the approval process shouldn’t take too long.

Then again, in the FDA’s own terminology, the Apple Watch Series 4 is classified as a device that does not fit “into any particular class”, having no “equivalent device that is currently marketed.” Basically, there’s little precedent for this product, so we can’t be 100 percent certain Health Canada will give it the green-light anytime soon.