Apple Announces Newest Pride Collection
Apple this week announced its latest Pride Collection for Apple Watch. As usual, this year’s Pride Collection features a new band, watch faces, and wallpapers for iPhone.
“The new Pride Edition Sport Loop, available to order today, is woven from a rainbow of 11 colors of nylon yarns,” Apple said in a Newsroom post on Monday. “The intricate weaving blends one color into the next, creating depth and movement across the band. The resulting design is joyful and vibrant, showcasing a full spectrum of colors that reflect the unique identities that shape LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.”
The Pride Edition Sport Loop costs $49 and will be available beginning “later this week,” according to Apple.
The reason I’m covering this story is, in an accessibility context, I love the Sport Loop. Although I have a ton of Sport Bands dating back to the Apple Watch’s 2015 debut, the Sport Loop is without question my all-time favorite band. As someone with lackluster fine-motor skills, the infinite adjustability of the it’s-Velcro-but-don’t-call-it-that fastener is so easy to use. In the very early days of Apple Watch, I used to need to ask for help getting my watch on because the Sport Band is somewhat fiddly—which I didn’t like because I was giving away part of my personal agency. With the coming of the Sport Loop, the adjustability and self-adhesive nature of the material helped reclaim said autonomy. It reasserted my own independence as a person with disabilities, and broadly speaking, is a prime example why Apple Watch bands are undoubtedly an integral part of the product’s accessibility story. And from a pure stylistic sense, I’ve always fancied myself a low-key band collector; to wit, every time Apple seasonally refreshes the colors, I’m always keen to see the new colors and find out if there’s any I like. In fact, I have my eye on the 46mm Blue Mist Sport Loop. (I also own several Pride Edition bands from prior vintages, which I think are pretty cool too.)
The Pride Edition wallpapers are purportedly coming with the release of iOS 26.5.
Pride Month is next month.
