The biggest, baddest and boldest Apple Watch is back for its third generation, adding a bigger screen, longer battery life and satellite messaging for when lost in the wilderness.
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The Ultra 3 is Apple’s answer to adventure watches such as Garmin’s Fenix 8 Pro while being a full smartwatch for the iPhone with all the trimmings. As such, it is not cheap, costing from £749 (€899/$799/A$1,399) – £50 less than 2023’s model – sitting above the £369-plus Series 11 and £219 Watch SE 3.
From the outside it doesn’t look like a lot has changed for the Ultra 3 over its two-year-old predecessor. Available in natural or black titanium, it is exactly the same size but squeezes in a slightly bigger screen with smaller bezels making it the largest on an Apple Watch.
The display is much brighter when viewed at an angle, which makes seeing it at a glance a lot easier, and now shows ticking seconds when idle like the Series 10 and 11. It is very bright, covered by super-hard sapphire glass and has one of the very best screens on a watch.
The chunky crown and armoured side button help prevent accidental presses during workouts while still making them easy to use with gloves. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Ultra 3 has the same S10 chip as the Series 11 and the same excellent touch-free gestures. Double tap your thumb and index finger to press buttons or scroll, or flick your wrist quickly away from you and back to dismiss alarms, notifications or return to the watch face.
Apple has managed to fit a 6% larger battery into the Ultra 3, which lasts a good three-plus days between charges with general usage and sleep tracking over night. Most people will need to put it on the charger every third night, which is a good day longer than any other Apple Watch, although some way behind the week-long battery of adventure watch rivals from Garmin and others.
The watch fully charges in about two hours, hitting 50% in 30 minutes via the included USB-C magnetic charging puck.
Satellite and 5G
The watch supports 5G, if you have a compatible phone plan, and has noticeably stronger cellular reception in weaker signal areas for 4G. Apple has also brought its free satellite SOS messaging from the iPhone to the Ultra 3, which allows you to contact the emergency services via text using satellites when out of cellular signal range. Satellites can also be used for Find My location tracking and messages to friends and loved ones, although the latter is only available in the US, Canada and Mexico, and both need a compatible cellular data plan.
The Ultra 3 runs the same recent watchOS 26 software as the Series 11 and other Apple Watches, which introduced a revamped design and some new watch faces. In addition, the Ultra 3 has an attractive new Waypoint watch face, which has a live compass that shows points of interest around you. It joins a few other information-dense Ultra-exclusive faces, including the Wayfinder and Modular Ultra.
A selection of faces for the Ultra 3, including the new Exactograph (top left), Waypoint (top middle) and Flux (top right) and a shot of the always-on display off angle. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
Specifications
Case size: 49 x 44mm
Case thickness: 12mm
Weight: 61.8g
Processor: S10
Storage: 64GB
Operating system: watchOS 26
Water resistance: 100 metres (10ATM)
Sensors: HR, ECG, spO2, temp, depth, dual-band GPS, compass, altimeter
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3, wifi n, NFC, UWB, satellite, optional 5G/eSIM
Top-notch sport and health tracking
The domed sapphire glass sensor cluster on the back records most of the health metrics, sitting comfortably on the wrist. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Ultra supports the same comprehensive health and fitness-tracking capabilities as the standard Apple Watch. That includes a wealth of heart health monitoring, such as ECG, abnormal rhythm notifications, blood oxygen tracking, and new hypertension alerts that analyse 30-days of readings for signs of high blood pressure.
It has Apple’s new sleep score metric, which makes it easier to understand your tracked sleep, plus wrist temperature monitoring, cycle tracking with ovulation estimation and many other tools.
The Ultra builds on the workout tracking of the standard Apple Watch in a couple of ways. The extra action button in the side can be used to quickly start a workout, but unlike Apple’s other watches you can wait until you have a GPS lock before starting the exercise by pressing it again.
The precision start feature is exclusive to the Ultra, but should be on the standard Apple Watch, too. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The best bit is a dual-band GPS system that boosts tracking accuracy in tricky environments, such as dense urban areas with tall buildings or in woods. It’s a feature found on the top running watches and has been improved since the initial Ultra to become one of the most accurate on the market, matching or beating the very best in urban GPS stress tests.
It also tracks a good number of metrics including the usual distance, pace and cadence, plus running power and dynamics, training load and heart rate zones. It can be loaded with structured workouts such as intervals, and it has a very good track detection mode for doing laps. The Ultra has similarly good cycling, swimming and triathlon profiles, plus diving to 40-metre depths and at least 22 other activities.
The bright orange action button can be customised to trigger different features, including workouts, a torch, stopwatch, voice memos or other actions. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
Combined with the large and bright screen, and the decent 11 to 14-hour battery life when tracking running at its highest accuracy levels, the Ultra 3 makes for a surprisingly good sports watch.
The Ultra also supports Apple’s new Workout Buddy AI coach, which works with walks, runs, hikes, cycling and various other training workouts, giving you pep-talks before, during and after activities via Bluetooth headphones. But it requires you to carry an iPhone 15 Pro or later for it to work, which is a drag.
Sustainability
Apple says the battery should last more than 1,000 full charge cycles with at least 80% of its original capacity and can be replaced for £95. Damage repairs cost £489.
The watch contains more than 40% recycled material, including cobalt, copper, gold, lithium, rare earth elements, steel, titanium and tungsten. Apple offers trade-in and free recycling for devices, and breaks down the watch’s environmental impact in its report.
Price
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 comes in a choice of two colours and multiple bands costing from £749 (€899/$799/A$1,399).
Verdict
The Ultra 3 is the biggest, baddest and best Apple Watch the company makes but it isn’t a massive leap over previous models.
Other than satellite SOS messaging, which could genuinely save your life in an emergency, the rest of the watch is simply a refinement of the Ultra 2.
But the added battery life is very welcome, so is a bigger and fancier screen in the same size watch. New software features are great and the wrist-flick gesture for dismissing things is the best thing added to any Apple Watch in recent memory.
The Ultra is still a rarer sight than other models, so if you wanted a less ubiquitous Apple Watch this is it. While those looking for a dedicated top-priced sports watch might overlook it in favour of a Garmin or similar, the Ultra 3 has all the ingredients to be a first-rate training companion – as long as you can charge it more frequently – while still being the best smartwatch you can get with an iPhone.
The Ultra 3 is the best Apple Watch. Just don’t expect it to be a massive upgrade over older Ultra models.
Pros: fantastic screen, rugged yet sophisticated design, double-tap and wrist-flick gestures, three-day battery life, 5G and satellite SOS/messaging, top health tracking, great activity tracking with dual-band GPS, extra action button, 100-metre water resistance and 40-metre dive-ready, long software support.
Cons: very expensive, only works with an iPhone, no third-party watch faces, no big upgrade on previous Ultra models, shorter battery life than adventure watch rivals.
The Ultra 3 is a big Apple Watch, but fairly compact and easy to slip under cuffs compared with the adventure watch competition. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
