Apple Watch Ultra - First Impressions
My thoughts after spending a weekend with the new king of the Apple Watch line.
I picked up my Apple Watch Ultra Friday morning at my local Apple Store, and have spent the weekend putting it through its paces. In short, I absolutely adore this thing. For context, I’ve been wearing an Apple Watch daily since the original model was released. It’s one of my favorite Apple products. I honestly didn’t pay close attention to rumors about Apple releasing a “rugged Apple Watch” because it didn’t sound like a product for me. But when Apple unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra at its “Far Out” event earlier this month, I was surprised by how smitten I was with this thing. I wrote about that here. Here are a few thoughts after spending a few days wearing an Apple Watch Ultra:
The Size
It’s big, but it doesn’t immediately feel heavy. Titanium does wonders for keeping the weight down. I’d more describe it as feeling like it has mass. If I shake my arm back and forth I can absolutely feel the mass of this watch as it moves back and forth, but it feels quite comfortable to wear most of the time. I was struck by how much more aware of it I was the first night I wore it to bed though. I didn’t really notice it last night, so I’m definitely adjusting to it. A lot of what makes it feel so substantial is less about how much larger the display is, but about how thick the case is. Whether or not you think this would be too big on your wrist is going to depend entirely on your personal preferences, but I don’t find it a problem and I have fairly slender wrists.
The Display
Very much related to the overall size, the display makes a statement. The 2000 nit display is bright enough that it’s very readable in the sun. That combined with how large everything is makes it the most readable Apple Watch ever. That’s especially good for me as I get older and my up-close eyesight gets worse.
The Band
Apple created three different band styles for Apple Watch Ultra, but the Alpine Loop was the one that most appeal to me. It’s available in orange, a dark green, or Apple’s “Starlight” color. I’m not sure that any of those three would be the color I’d choose if I could choose any color, but out of the three the Starlight band suited my tastes the best. I’m really liking that color as I continue to wear this band. In some lighting it looks white and in others it looks more silver gray. I’m certainly concerned about how well it will stay clean over time. Beyond just the normal activities that could potentially mar the look, I have four kids, so messes are common around me. I will probably put a Sport band on it for situations where it’s likely to get dirty or wet.
The Alpine Loop comes in three different sizes: small, medium, and large. Since my watch was pre-ordered, I was worried that I may have chosen the wrong size. Fortunately I was able to try them all on at the Apple Store. I was surprised by just how much overlap there was between the sizes. I think I could actually wear any of the three fairly comfortably, but I had difficulty getting the small band over my hand. I definitely think medium was right for me.
The band is quite comfortable. It’s very different than the Apple Sport band I had before, so it’s taken me the weekend to get used to getting just the right fit. But once you get used to it, it’s fairly easy to adjust it to fit more loosely or more snugly as needed.
The Action Button
I suspect this won’t be the game changer for me that it might be for someone who is actually planning to use it for extreme outdoor activities. I don’t find I use it that much throughout my day. You can choose what its default action is in settings, and I set mine to open the Workouts app. I have found that a useful shortcut. I’ll be curious to see exactly how third-party app developers incorporate the Action button into their apps.
The Battery
Apple’s 36 hour battery life claims, if anything, slightly underselling the battery life of this thing, though to be fair I’ve only done short walking workouts this weekend. But I charged it to full around 10 or 11 Friday night and it still has 15% of that charge as I’m writing this around 5 o’clock Sunday evening. That’s great! With my two-year-old Apple Watch Series 6 I was getting about 24 hours of battery life after two years of use. I’d love to be able to charge the Ultra less frequently than once every other day, but it’s a definite improvement.
In summary, I love this thing. I like the way it looks on my wrist, I love the styling and the titanium case. I love the band, and I love the incredible display. Home run, Apple.
I only have one issue that I wanted to share. I don’t know if it’s my fault but the blue Alpine Loop watch band that came with my iWatch Ultra gives me a slight hassle when putting it on my charger stand. The fact that the watch band is not the open type I have to wrap the band on the watch to set it on the charging device. Did I install the band incorrectly or what?