May 17 is celebrated as the International Day Against Homophobia, and June is celebrated as Pride Month. To commemorate these, Apple on Tuesday launched the 2022 edition of its Apple Watch Pride band. The band is accompanied by Pride-themed watch faces which can be installed on any Apple Watch.

Apple has been a vocal supporter of LGBTQIA+ rights through financial aid dispensed to support organizations and Apple product releases. The iPhone maker releases Apple Watch Pride bands every year so community members can join and show their support. This year’s Pride Bands release is special because the company has decided to release more than one.

New Pride Bands

Apple launched the Pride Edition Sport Loop. It is the Sport Loop everyone is familiar with. However, “Apple used a new technique to remove several of the double-layer nylon-woven textile loops on the band to reveal the word “pride” in a cursive style inspired by the original “hello” greeting — displayed on the first Macintosh in 1984 — giving the word a novel, three-dimensional look and feel.” Here’s Apple’s explanation of what the strap represents: 

“The team designed a color gradient that incorporates the original rainbow colors with those drawn from various pride flags, including light blue, pink, and white, representing transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals, and black and brown, symbolizing Black and Latinx communities. The colors also represent those who are living with or have passed away from HIV/AIDS.”

Apple also unveiled the Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop. Finished in a unique spectrum of rainbow colors, the band “incorporates black stripes, a design theme in Nike’s Be True campaign that promotes LGBTQ+ equality in sport.”

New Watch Faces

While you will need to shell out some money to acquire the new Apple Watch straps, you can install the new Pride-themed watch faces for free. The Pride Threads watch face is a dynamic face that responds to the digital crown’s movements. Here’s how Apple describes it:

“Inspired by multiple pride flags, this new watch face combines colors to represent the strength and mutual support of the LGBTQ+ movement. Mirroring the woven loops of the Sport Loop, each strand of vibrant thread contributes to the overall composition of the watch face. The colorful threads move as the Digital Crown on Apple Watch is rotated, the display is tapped, or the user’s wrist is raised. Apple is also including new App Clip functionality within the band packaging to deliver a simple and convenient way for customers to immediately access the new matching watch face.”

The Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop also comes with an accompanying watch face. It is the classic Nike Bounce watch face with a rainbow-colored gradient background. Apple says the strap and the face are a part of Nike’s “broader commitment to the LGBTQ+ community, which focuses on recognition, advocacy, inspiration, and education.”

Availability

The Pride Edition Sport Loop and Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop are both priced at $49 in the US. They are already listed and ready for purchase on the Apple Store website and app. Starting May 26, the Pride Edition Sport Loop will be available in retail locations as well. Both the bands are compatible with any Apple Watch.

To install the new watch faces, you would need an Apple Watch Series 4 or newer model running watchOS 8.6 and an iPhone 6s or newer model running iOS 15.5. If you meet the prerequisites, you can install the new watch faces by following the steps below:

Step 1: Open the Watch app on your iPhone.

Step 2: Tap Face Gallery on the bottom of the screen.

Step 3: Under the New Watch Faces section, select Pride Threads.

Step 4: Tap Add.