Apple Launches Black Unity Braided Solo Loop With 'Unity Lights' Watch Face

Apple today announced the Black Unity Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch, as well as a new downloadable watch face, to celebrate Black History Month.

Apple Watch Red Yellow Green Feature 1
Following the launch of the limited edition Black Unity Apple Watch Series 6 and Sport Band in 2021, Apple today launched the Black Unity Braided Solo Loop as part of its celebrations for Black History Month this year.

Apple is launching a special edition Apple Watch Black Unity Braided Solo Loop and matching Unity Lights watch face inspired by Afrofuturism, a philosophy that explores the Black experience through a narrative of science, technology, and self-empowerment. As part of this launch, Apple is supporting organizations focused on advancing inclusion in science and technology for communities of color through its Racial Equity and Justice Initiative.

Designed by members and allies of the Black creative community at Apple to celebrate Black history and culture, the Apple Watch Black Unity Braided Solo Loop and matching Unity Lights watch face honors generations of Black people across the African diaspora. This design symbolizes a communal belief in the necessity for a more equitable world. The vibrant red and green colors of the Pan-African flag appear like speckled light across the black band.

apple watch black unity braided solo loop
To accompany the Black Unity Braided Solo Loop, Apple today released the special edition "Unity Lights" watch face. Like many of Apple's other watch faces, Unity Lights comes in full screen and circular dial versions, and includes a black and white option, tick marks, up to four complications, and a monogram.

The band is complemented by the Unity Lights watch face, which is designed using 2D ray tracing, a technology never before implemented for a watch face. Each pixel on the screen simulates the light and shadow falling across it and the movement of the clock hands simultaneously reveal and hide the light, changing dynamically throughout the day.

The Black Unity Braided Loop is available to order today for $99, and it will be available in select retail store locations starting Tuesday, February 1. The Unity Lights watch face is available to all Apple Watch users with a Series 4 or newer in the Apple Watch app. Apple is also making a range of Afrofuturism-inspired wallpapers for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac available on its website.

The Black Unity Braided Solo Loop and Unity Lights face celebrate Black History Month alongside a number of other events across Apple's services and platforms, including a campaign on Apple Music and ‌Apple Music‌ TV, workouts in Apple Fitness+ and Time to Walk, Apple Podcasts, the App Store, Apple Books, Apple Maps, the Apple TV app, Apple News, and the company's latest Shot on ‌iPhone‌ campaign titled "Our Stories."

Related Roundups: Apple Watch 10, Apple Watch SE
Related Forum: Apple Watch

Popular Stories

CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
tvOS 18 Thumb 1

Apple Releases tvOS 18.4.1

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....
iPhone Security Feature 25

Five iPhone Security Features You Should Be Using

Wednesday April 16, 2025 4:15 pm PDT by
Apple has quite a few security features that it's added to iPhones, iPads, and Macs over the years. Now more than ever, it's important to make sure you're taking advantage of the built-in security tools that are available to keep yourself and your data safe, so we've rounded up a list of the most important options. If you don't already have these enabled, you might want to consider turning...
vision air cable

Images of Apple 'Vision Air' Power Cable Emerge Online

Thursday April 17, 2025 5:55 am PDT by
More images of a redesigned power cable allegedly for a future Apple "Vision Air" headset were today shared online by the prototype collector and leaker known as "Kosutami." Yesterday, the leaker explained that the Apple "Vision Air" will feature a thinner design and switch the battery enclosure and several of its internal structures to titanium to reduce the device's overall weight. Most of ...

Top Rated Comments

macintoshmac Avatar
42 months ago
Looks neat!





The Solo Loop is quite nice, too!



EDIT: Don't know which mod edited the post to take up less vertical space, but thank you! Looks better, and thank you for that helpful note, too!

Attachment Image

Attachment Image

Attachment Image

Attachment Image

Attachment Image
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
elvislives Avatar
42 months ago
Looks great but wish Apple would design more digital faces!
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jxdawg Avatar
42 months ago
One of the best looking Watch faces yet!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IIGS User Avatar
42 months ago

Apple pushed the watch face to my Watch app.
This happened to me as well. First time I ever recall it happening.

I'm wondering if a U2 album follows.....
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vercordio Avatar
42 months ago
Sometimes Apple can still impress - saw this article, thought "that's cool, how do I get it?", looked down at my phone to see a notification about it. Probably lucky timing, but felt pretty magical.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HeavenDynamic Avatar
42 months ago
Last year's was terrible but this one is beautiful!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)