I didn’t expect to be all that impressed with the Apple Watch Ultra. Here’s why Apple’s presentation of it blew me away.
Everything you need to know about the new king of the Apple Watch line.
Apple Watch is one of my favorite Apple products, so you might expect that I was always going to be thrilled with the just-announced Apple Watch Ultra. But going into this event, I wasn’t all that interested in it. I sometimes wish that leaks and rumors didn’t exist (as I’m sure Apple does as well) so that we could go into these events genuinely not knowing what Apple was going to announce. But that’s not the world we live in. There had been rumors that Apple was working on a “rugged” version of the Apple Watch since at least March 2021. I wrote about it back then and I was fairly dismissive of the idea at the time. (Or at least uninterested in it.) I think I just felt like this would be a product that wouldn’t be aimed at me. All that changed when I watched Apple’s “Far Out” event Wednesday. Frankly, Apple’s presentation of Apple Watch Ultra blew me away.
The realized product looks way cooler than the CAD renders that leaked on the eve of the event. The durable titanium case looks great, both in terms of the grain and color of the metal, and also in its pleasingly chunkiness. There’s also something intangibly satisfying about the way the flat display surface sits on a raised plateau above the bulbous main case. If all of the previous Apple Watch models did their best to hide their bulk, Apple Watch Ultra revels in it.
Here’s a summary of many of the things that make Apple Watch Ultra so… ultra:
The flat display surface makes the sapphire crystal much more resilient to cracking than the curved screen found on other Apple Watch models.
On the left side is a new Action button, finished in “high-contrast international orange” which can trigger a state change in a workout app without having to use the touch screen. Apple lists a few use cases in their press release including, “Workouts, Compass Waypoints, Backtrack, and more.”
The Digital Crown and the right-side button sit on a surface that protrudes from the Apple Watch Ultra’s main case, rather than sitting flush with it. The Digital Crown also has more aggressive teeth and the right-side button protrudes out beyond the pedestal it sits on. All of the buttons are designed to be far easier to operate if you’re wearing gloves. Even if you’re not wearing gloves, it’s often difficult or impossible to interact with a touch-based display during a workout or activity, so this will be welcome for avid outdoors enthusiasts.
It has an 86-decibel siren built in to aid you in calling for help should you need it in the wilderness.
The aforementioned Backtrack feature is new to the Compass app and tracks your walk so you can find your way back should you get lost. Though this feature is common to all Apple Watch models, Apple Watch Ultra’s Action button lets you create a waypoint with a single press.
Apple Watch Ultra is a certified dive computer. While prior Apple Watch models were rated to be water resistant to 50 meters, they weren’t rated for diving. Apple Watch Ultra is built for diving at up to 40 meters. It includes a new Depth app, which launches automatically when you take the watch under water and provides you with the water temperature, your depth, and your elapsed time underwater. A third-party app, highlighted during the event, will add even more diving capabilities.
The audience: Based on the way Apple presented this product, it’s clearly aimed at serious outdoor and exercise enthusiasts. Apple’s marketing materials showed people hiking across a snowy plain, running across desert dunes, competing in a triathlon, or climbing a mountain. It’s impossible not to think of Garmin watch buyers. Many of them have looked over at Apple Watch with interest, but specifically found it lacking in physical buttons, battery life, and activity features. Let’s cut to the chase: there are a lot of Garmin watch buyers who will still be completely disinterested in this product. The battery life is much improved. At 36 hours of battery life, Apple Watch Ultra has double the battery life of any previous Apple Watch, and it can stretch up to 60 hours with watchOS 9’s new low power mode enabled. That’s up to two-and-a-half days of usage, but still significantly less battery life than many of the Garmin watches get. Adding the Action button is going to satisfy many Garmin buyers, but some Garmin watches feature even more buttons for dedicated tasks.
But that’s ok. Apple Watch Ultra was never going to convert every single Garmin wearer. But it’s going to bring a lot of them over to Apple Watch. There’s enough here that many will find the tradeoffs now lean more in favor of Apple Watch for their needs. And let’s be honest: the overwhelming majority of Apple Watch Ultra buyers are going to buy one because it’s cool. I have no interest in participating in extreme sports. I do not need an Apple Watch Ultra. My Apple Watch Series 6 is perfectly well suited to my needs. But do I want an Apple Watch Ultra? After that presentation, you bet I do. A Rolex Submariner was designed to be a tool watch for serious divers, but almost everyone who buys one buys it for its looks and for its status appeal. That’s going to be the case here too. That it’s a serious tool watch for outdoor extreme sports is just the cherry on top.
The price: This is where Apple honestly benefits from the rumor mill, because everyone was expecting Apple Watch Ultra to retail for $999. So it was an extremely pleasant surprise when Apple revealed the actual price is $799. There are Garmin watches that cost $1300. And there are no customization options that will drive the price point up beyond that unless you want multiple wristbands. You get everything for $799. That’s a price that will bring in a lot of buyers. If you were already considering an Apple Watch Series 8 with cellular at $499, it might not feel like a giant stretch to walk out of the store with an Apple Watch Ultra instead.
The name: The rumor mill was certain Apple would call this product “Apple Watch Pro.” Although Apple does use the word “Pro” in many of its product names, that never felt right to me for what this product was rumored to be. Apple Watch Ultra makes way more sense. There’s something somewhat cheesy about the name, but it also nicely conveys what type of customer this watch is capable of satisfying. “Apple Watch Explorer” would have been another good choice, but I think Apple chose the name well here.
The bands: Apple debuted three new watchbands specifically for Apple Watch Ultra, and they look phenomenal and also perfectly well-considered for a device of this type. The best news? They didn’t break band compatibility with other Apple Watch models. You can still use your existing Apple Watch bands, both from Apple and third-parties, with Apple Watch Ultra.
I came into Wednesday’s event curious, but not excited about this new product. I left Wednesday’s event drooling over the Apple Watch Ultra. Well done, Apple. Well done.