While many tuned into Apple's Spring Forward event to hear about the much-anticipated Apple Watch, the bigger news might be Apple's new ResearchKit. This set of tools is aimed at the medical research industry and leverages the versatility of Apple's technology to help redefine how medical research is conducted.

A great example of this is Apple's new app for Parkinson's Disease. The app uses the accelerometer in the iPhone to help measure the patient's gait and the microphone to record vocal symptoms.

Currently, a doctor would record these data points, using their own judgement to measure the symptom. By using an iPhone, the data can be normalized and (hopefully) many more data points can be collected.

Another great example given at the Spring Forward event was the research being conducted to help pinpoint causes of asthma. A team in New York placed sensors around the city to measure different pathogens. As asthma sufferers record their symptoms, the GPS in the iPhone can also record their location, which can then be mapped to the pathogens in the air. This can give a better understanding of what causes asthma attacks.

When Will the iPad Pro Be Released?

Apple Watch is coming April 24th

And for those patiently (or impatiently) awaiting Apple Watch, you can order Apple's newest device starting April 10th. The Apple Watch comes in many different flavors, including the entry level Apple Watch Sport starting at $349, the Apple Watch starting at $549 and a solid gold limited edition starting at around $10,000.

There's no word yet on if the $10k version comes with a laser beam for personal protection, but the smart money is still on it selling out rather quickly. So you better order yours as quickly as possible!

Apple showed off a number of cool features for Apple Watch, including interacting with Siri by voice commands alone, receiving phone calls, using Apple Pay, using voice dictation for text messages and location-based notifications that can (for example) pop up with your hotel confirmation number when you get to your destination.

Can You Use the Apple Watch With the iPad?

One neat feature of the Apple Watch is the ability to sync the touch between two watches, so you can draw on one watch and have the end result "drawn" on the receiving device exactly how you drew it. This should take doodle art to a whole new level.

While the biggest audience for Apple Watch will be health enthusiasts -- Apple Watch will do everything from measuring how much energy you expend to measuring your heartbeat -- Apple has been careful not to ignore the fashion side of watches, an area that many smartwatch makers forget. There are number of different styles and bands from which to choose, and you can even change the clockface from simple and elegant all the way to fun and goofy, such as an animated Micky Mouse.

Read More About the Apple Watch

HBO Now coming to Apple TV, iPad and iPhone

HBO recently made the news with an Internet-only version of its service. Cord-cutters rejoice: you will soon be able to ax your cable and still stream the most recent episodes of Game of Thrones. HBO Now is actually cheaper than ordering HBO on Direct TV ($14.95 vs $17.99), though HBO Now doesn't come with three months of free Cinemax. (Nor will they make you call in to cancel the service in hopes of talking you out of your decision.)

The service will be exclusively available on the iPad, iPhone and Apple TV at launch, with more devices no doubt being added in the future.

The World's Thinnest MacBook...*

Apple also announced a new MacBook. This 12-inch version is 13.1 millimeters thick, which is 24% thinner than any other MacBook available. The redesigned laptop has a brand new keyboard that is both thinner and more accurate than other MacBook keyboards, and a new touchpad that can detect the amount of force you use when you tap it, allowing a brand new "force click" gesture to be used as a shortcut in various apps, such as bringing up a Wikipedia entry for a word or phrase in a book or bringing up a map when force clicking an address.

Another major change to the MacBook is the inclusion of a USB C port. The only port on the new MacBook, the USB C can be used as a power adapter, a USB port and an HDMI port. The new MacBook will start at $1,299 with 256 GB of SSD storage sapce and 8 GB of RAM. It will also be available in silver, space gray or gold.  Read more about the newest MacBook...

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