The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is my go-to smartwatch whenever I'm heading out on a run or about to hit the gym. But despite it being Apple's most expensive watch, there are still some areas where it's outperformed by the cheaper Apple Watch Series 10. These are the things Apple needs to fix for the upcoming Apple Watch Ultra 3.
Case in point: the Series 10 actually has more screen real estate than the Ultra 2. The 46mm model of the Series 10 boasts a 1,220 mm² display compared to just 1,185 mm² on the Ultra 2. If you want as much screen as possible, you're better off picking the larger Series 10.
Now, let's be clear. I'm not talking about things that would be nice to have on the Apple Watch Ultra 3. My colleague Dan Bracaglia wrote about that here and listed things like a blood pressure alert and daily sleep score. No. I'm talking about fundamentals that Apple has to bring to the table to make sure the Ultra 3 really is the best Apple Watch you can buy.
1. LTP03 OLED screen
We're getting into the nerdy details here, but if you're going to be paying $800/£800 or more for a smartwatch, you deserve the best. The Series 10 made the upgrade to an LTPO3 OLED display, while the current Ultra 2 remains with an LTP02 OLED.
This refers to the backplane of the screen and, specifically, the ability to combine the electron mobility of the pixels, which is crucial for high refresh rates, with low power consumption. The better the LTPO OLED screen on the device, the more responsive it'll seem without impacting battery, especially when it's always on. And if the Watch Ultra 3 is going to be a true multi-day adventure watch, it needs to have the latest screen tech up front.
2. Wide-angle OLED
Along with the larger screen I mentioned up top, the Apple Watch Series 10 also benefits from a wide-angle OLED screen, which means you get better viewing angles from the sides. I can't begin to describe how important it is on a watch to get the widest visibility possible.
If I were a marketing guy, I'd tell you a wide-angle OLED screen on the Ultra 3 would come in useful when you're hanging off El Capitan by your fingertips and only able to tilt your wrist a fraction to check the display. But, in reality, it's more likely you'll be schlepping bags of groceries from the supermarket to your car and need to just glance at your watch to see if you'll be late picking the kids up after school.
Regardless, more visibility is always better, and the Watch Ultra 3 needs to surpass the Series 10 in this regard.
3. S11 SiP
This one's a bit of a no-brainer, but again, the Series 10 launched last year with a more powerful chipset than the supposed "Ultra" watch in Apple's line-up. I'll put this one down to just release cadence. Of course Apple is going to bring out a more performant chip each year and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is a 2023 device.
Still, a jump to S10 or, more likely, S11 for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is an absolute baseline upgrade Apple has to offer. Making these essential improvements will mean the Ultra option really is the best device Apple customers can buy.
Bottom line
The above points are what I would consider essential for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and current rumors seem to agree we'll be getting these updates and then some. In addition to the above, some of the claims suggest the Ultra 3 will include 5G cellular, high blood pressure detection, and even satellite messaging support for emergency situations.
The best news of all is that, with Apple's rumored iPhone 17 event likely less than a month away at this point, we really don't have long to wait until we see the Apple Watch Ultra 3 for real. It's been two long years without an Ultra upgrade but I for one think it'll be worth the wait.
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