Apple Watch Ultra 3: All the leaks and rumors so far, and what we want to see
A lot has changed since the Apple Watch Ultra 2 launched in September 2023 – not least the introduction of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra as one of the best smartwatches available – and that means there’s plenty of interest in what the Apple Watch Ultra 3 has to offer.
Here, we’ve collected all the leaks and rumors we’ve heard about the wearable so far. Apple hasn’t officially revealed anything yet, but we have a pretty good idea of what the 2024 edition of this premium smartwatch will offer.
We’ve also put our heads together to create a list of features and upgrades we’d like to see in the Apple Watch 3. While we gave the current model 4.5 out of 5 stars in our Apple Watch Ultra 2 review, there’s still room for improvement with the new edition.
Get to the point
- What is it? A new Apple Watch Ultra
- When is it coming out? Probably September 2024
- How much will it cost? Probably at least $799 / £799 / AU$1,399
Apple Watch Ultra 3: release date and price rumors
Whatever you can say about Apple, the company certainly does launch its products on a schedule. We’re expecting the Apple Watch Ultra 3 in September 2024, following the Apple Watch Ultra 2 in September 2023 and the original Apple Watch Ultra, which launched in September 2022.
Like before it, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 will almost certainly launch alongside new iPhones. This year, that includes the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Oh, and don’t forget about the Apple Watch 10 (we might even see an Apple Watch SE 3).
As for pricing, we haven’t heard anything specific yet. We do know that the Apple Watch Ultra 2 starts at $799 / £799 / AU$1,399, and Apple typically aligns its new devices with the ones they replace. So expect the Apple Watch 3 to be around the same price, if not a little more.
Apple Watch Ultra 3: Leaks, Rumors and watchOS 11
While we’d love to say that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is a revolutionary and innovative upgrade over the current model, in reality it may not be all that different from the smartwatch it replaces. Sources close to the matter suggest that the 3rd-gen version will be more or less the same as the 2nd-gen.
That apparently applies to the internals and the design – good news if you liked the Apple Watch Ultra 2, but less good news if you were hoping for a little shake-up in 2024. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is powered by the same Apple S9 chip as the Apple Watch 9, better than the Apple S8 in the equivalent smartwatches launched in 2022.
One rumored upgrade is a switch to a microLED display, from the current OLED technology. This would make the screen on the new watch both brighter and friendlier to the battery – a real win-win. However, it’s unclear which Apple device will be the first to get microLED displays, which could also appear on iPhones and iPads.
In fact, more recent reports suggest that the microLED tech may not be ready in time for September 2024 – we may have to wait until the Apple Watch Ultra 4 to see it on an Apple smartwatch. There has been speculation that we might not see the Apple Watch Ultra 3 this year at all, but it now seems like it could be coming.
It’s all a little disappointing, especially since rumors have suggested design and form factor changes for the Apple Watch 10 (or should that be the Apple Watch X?). It’s possible that Apple is saving any major updates to the Apple Watch Ultra for 2025, rather than overhauling both watches at the same time.
What we do know is that watchOS 11 will launch alongside the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch 10, and it will bring a more intelligent widget stack, a new Vitals app for displaying key health stats, more customization options, and a Training Load feature for assessing the impact of workouts on your body.
Apple Watch Ultra 3: What we want to see
All indications are that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 won’t be a huge technological leap over the Apple Watch Ultra 2, but we still have a few ideas about how Apple could improve its most capable smartwatch.
1. A cheaper price
Lower prices are always welcome, and while we understand that the high-quality materials used on the Apple Watch Ultra don’t come cheap, surely Apple can find some compromises to offer a cheaper version of the Ultra? There’s a not-insignificant $400 / £400 / AU$750 difference between the starting prices of the Apple Watch 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2, and an additional smartwatch model would go a long way to closing that gap nicely.
2. More design options
Right now, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is available in just one case: the standard silver titanium. The three bands (each available in three colors) give you some customization options, but we’d like to see more options when it comes to both the housing surrounding the display and the bands that come with it. If not much changes to the specs or design of the watch, then Apple could at least give users a bit more personalization options. Perhaps an all-black option?
3. More exclusive features
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a number of exclusive features to distinguish it from the Apple Watch 9, including an action button and a siren button that you can use to call for help. We’d like to see more of these upgrades to make the hefty price jump from the standard model worth it – perhaps in the form of exclusive apps for more advanced outdoor activity tracking, or a more advanced suite of sensors for deeper health insights.
4. An improved Siri
We’ve heard a lot about the Apple Intelligence upgrades coming to Siri on iPhones, iPads, and Macs later this year, but there’s nothing for the Apple Watch or watchOS 11 yet. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 could be the perfect showcase for a smarter Siri that can provide better answers and provide more information – a significant upgrade for a device where voice control is often preferred to tapping the screen with your fingers and thumbs.
5. Better battery life
The 36-hour battery life on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 isn’t bad by any means, but it wasn’t an upgrade over the original Apple Watch Ultra in this department, and it still falls short if you want to take the wearable to the mountains or the middle of nowhere for a few days. A combination of a larger battery capacity, a more efficient chipset, and some software optimizations should be able to improve battery life even further.
