Apple unveils Watch Ultra

Apple last night revealed a new sub-category of its watch range, with the Watch Ultra introducing a new bold design and new features built for “endurance, exploration, and adventure”.

The watch was released alongside the latest iPhone 14 range, which has had a Plus model added and the lower-cost Mini edition dropped. The line-up now comprises the 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, and 14 Pro Max.

The Watch Ultra, most notably, claims the brightest Apple Watch display yet, a customisable Action button on the side, and up to 36 hours battery life in normal use. This may not sound amazing to users of the likes of Samsung, Huawei and Fitbit bands, but addresses one of the major drawbacks of Apple watches. A low-power setting extends it up to 60 hours.

A new Wayfinder watch face is designed specifically for the larger Apple Watch Ultra display and includes a compass built into the dial, with space for up to eight complications. 

Apple provided the following information on the Apple Watch Ultra:

Made from aerospace-grade titanium, Apple Watch Ultra provides the perfect balance of weight, durability, and corrosion resistance. The case rises up to surround all edges of the flat sapphire front crystal, protecting the Retina display, which is up to 2000 nits — 2x brighter than any Apple Watch display yet. The new Action button in high-contrast international orange is easily customized for instant access to a variety of features, including Workouts, Compass Waypoints, Backtrack, and more.

The Apple Watch Ultra has three built-in microphones to significantly improve sound quality in voice calls during any conditions. An adaptive beamforming algorithm uses the microphones to capture voice while reducing ambient background sounds, resulting in remarkable clarity. In challenging windy environments, it uses advanced wind noise-reduction algorithms, including machine learning, to deliver clear and intelligible audio for calls.

The Apple Watch Ultra is an incredible tool for endurance athletes or those who aspire to push beyond their limits. For the first time in an Apple Watch, the precision dual-frequency GPS integrates both L1 and the latest frequency, L5, plus new positioning algorithms. The Ultra delivers the most accurate GPS of any Apple Watch to date, providing users precise distance, pace, and route data for training and competing.

It is powered by watchOS 9, which includes new advanced running metrics to measure performance, like Stride Length, Ground Contact Time, Vertical Oscillation, and Running Power. New Workout Views, such as Segments, Splits, and Elevation, provide important metrics at just a glance, and thanks to the larger display, it is the only Apple Watch that can show six metrics at once. Users can take their training to the next level with features such as Heart Rate Zones, Custom Workouts, Pacer, and, coming later this year, Race Route. For triathlons, duathlons, or activities with any sequence of swimming, biking, or running, the new Multisport workout includes autodetection to easily switch between workouts.

The Action button can instantly begin workouts and move users to the next interval of a Custom Workout or the next leg of a Multisport workout. It can also be used to mark segments, complementing the new Track running experience, which automatically provides the ultimate pacing and distance estimates for runners at a track.

Finding your way

The completely redesigned Compass app in watchOS 9 surfaces more in-depth information and three distinct views. The app displays a new hybrid view that simultaneously shows both an analog compass dial and a digital view. Turning the Digital Crown reveals an additional view that includes latitude, longitude, elevation, and incline, as well as an orienteering view showing Compass Waypoints and Backtrack.

Compass Waypoints are a quick and convenient way to mark a location or point of interest directly in the app. Pressing the Action button or tapping the Compass Waypoint icon drops a waypoint that can be edited by tapping the icon that appears. The Compass Waypoint complication updates dynamically in real time with both the direction of the waypoint as well as the approximate distance.

Backtrack uses GPS data to create a path showing where the user has been, which is useful if they get lost or disoriented and need help retracing their steps. It can also turn on automatically in the background when off the grid. With a single press of the Action button, users can quickly drop a Compass Waypoint or start or view a Backtrack. An 86-decibel siren is designed for emergencies, should users become lost or injured, and can help draw attention to a location. The unique sound signature incorporates two distinct alternating patterns, which can repeat for up to several hours. The first pattern suggests distress, while the second mimics the universally recognized SOS pattern. For multi-day backpacking trips, battery life can be extended to reach up to 60 hours using Low Power Mode plus an additional low-power setting that reduces frequency of GPS and heart rate readings.

The on-wrist operating temperature was designed to help explore the most extreme and remote locations, from cold mountains at -4° F (-20° C) to the blazing desert heat at 131° F (55° C).4 Apple Watch Ultra is certified to the relevant aspects of MIL-STD-810H, used for military equipment and popular among rugged equipment manufacturers. Testing includes Low Pressure (Altitude), High Temperature, Low Temperature, Temperature Shock, Contamination by Fluids, Rain, Humidity, Immersion, Sand and Dust, Freeze/Thaw, Ice/Freezing Rain, Shock, Vibration, and more. To optimize for evening conditions, turning the Digital Crown makes the interface red for better visibility in the dark when using the Wayfinder face.

The Ultra is designed for water sports, including extreme activities like kitesurfing and wakeboarding, along with recreational scuba diving to 40 meters with the new Oceanic+ app. To support these underwater adventures, it is certified to WR100. It is also certified to EN 13319, which is an internationally recognized standard for dive accessories, including depth gauges that are relied upon by recreational divers around the world.

Utilizing a new depth gauge, the Ultra features a Depth app designed with an intuitive user interface. With just a glance, the Depth app displays time, current depth, water temperature, duration under water, and max depth reached. Users can program the Action button to instantly launch the Depth app.

Additional Features

The Apple Watch Ultra includes all of the connectivity, activity, and health features that have made Apple Watch the best-selling smartwatch in the world — from heart rate monitoring and the ECG and Blood Oxygen apps, to Activity rings and Mindfulness, along with additional health, safety, and navigation features.

It features innovative new temperature-sensing capabilities that enable further insights into women’s health. The unique two-sensor design reduces bias from the outside environment and the body itself. Utilizing the new capabilities, users can receive retrospective ovulation estimates, which can be helpful for family planning. Temperature sensing also enables improved period predictions for users who menstruate. With iOS 16 and watchOS 9, Cycle Tracking users can now receive a notification if their logged cycle history shows a possible deviation, which can be a symptom of underlying health conditions.

Using two new motion sensors and an advanced sensor-fusion algorithm, Apple Watch can detect a severe car crash with Crash Detection. When Apple Watch detects a severe car crash, the device will check in with the user and dial emergency services if they are unresponsive after a 10-second countdown. Emergency responders will receive the user’s device location, which is also shared with emergency contacts.