Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: a worthy upgrade?

When it comes to the best smart watches, Apple leads the pack with its much beloved Apple Watch line. In 2022 it launched the popular Apple Watch Ultra, then followed that up with the improved Apple Watch Ultra 2 in 2023. This is more of an incremental update than a huge jump forward, but it’s worth looking at the features of both to decide whether you need the upgrade and whether you’re willing to pay more for it.

With the biggest and brightest Apple Watch display yet and a new S9 chipset, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 makes a tempting option — especially with popular features like Double Tap, also found on on the Apple Watch Series 9.

But if you want a Apple Watch Ultra 2, then you’ve got an extra headache on your hands, as one version of the device (along with the Apple Watch Series 9) was banned in the U.S. in December 2023 following a patent dispute over the blood oxygen sensing technology. Apple currently sells a version of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 without the blood oxygen features, but if this is something important to you then you might want to wait and see if Apple can reach an agreement that would allow it to offer this technology in the U.S. again.

Here we’ll run down the differences between the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 so you can see which one will meet your need the best.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: specs

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: design

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is a smartwatch almost identical in design to its predecessor, right down to its natural titanium case. The only noticeable difference is the new bands that come with it. The good news is that these new bands work with the Ultra 2 and the first-generation Ultra.

The launch of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 introduced a unique watch face that quickly became the talk of the town. The highlight of this model is the way the outer edge of the device is utilized to display real-time data such as seconds, altitude, and depth. The watch face has been thoughtfully designed to offer more customization options than any other digital face from Apple. This means you can personalize it to your liking, whether you’re into sports, outdoor activities, or water-based pursuits.

The good news? The new watch face is also compatible with the original Apple Watch Ultra. So, if you love the look of the new watch face, but don’t feel like spending another $799 just to get it, you won’t have to.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: display

Both models have a sleek 49mm titanium case and a stunning Retina display that is always on. The display has a resolution of 410 by 502 pixels, and the same display area is available on both models. However, the new Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a brighter display than the previous model. It offers 3,000 nits of brightness, which is 50% more than the 2,000 nits that was previously offered.

This is a significant improvement, and it’s the brightest display ever included on an Apple Watch. This means that you can easily read the screen even in bright sunlight, which is great if you spend a lot of time outdoors.

Moreover, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a unique feature that allows the screen to lower its brightness to just one nit in dimly lit rooms. This feature is perfect for not disturbing someone else in the room early in the morning. In addition, you can temporarily double the brightness of the screen by rotating the Digital Crown of the Apple Watch Ultra 2. This feature is pretty cool and useful.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: internal hardware

The Apple Watch Ultra 2, much like its cousin, the Apple Watch Series 9, is loaded with the advanced S9 chip, providing various system improvements. Thanks to Apple’s 4-core Neural Engine, the S9 chip unlocks new features for your enjoyment. Among them is the ability to use Siri on the device itself, allowing you to securely and privately access and store your health data straight from your Apple Watch. What’s even more impressive is that requests that don’t require an internet connection will still be processed without Wi-Fi or cellular data.

According to Apple, the upgraded Neural Engine results in a 25% boost in accuracy for speech recognition. A new double tap gesture gives you the power to execute various everyday actions with just one hand using your index finger and thumb. That’s right, without even touching the watch’s display! And as if that wasn’t enough, the double tap gesture also allows you to access the Smart Stack from the watch face, while another double tap allows you to scroll through the widgets in the stack smoothly.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 also has an extra feature that teams up with the watch’s second-gen Ultra Wideband chip called Precision Finding. This feature works with the Find My app and helps you locate your lost iPhone or other gear in a jiffy. When you activate Precision Finding, you get visual, haptic, and audio cues, plus details on how far away and which way to go to find your lost tech. No more tearing up the house looking for your stuff!

Finally, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 also includes double the storage compared to the original Apple Watch Ultra; instead of 32GB, you’ll receive 64GB. That means you can store more photos, music, and podcasts directly on your wrist.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: battery

When the first Apple Watch Ultra was launched, one of its standout features was its significantly improved battery life. While the regular Apple Watch could only last for 18 hours, the original Apple Watch Ultra promised an impressive 36 hours between charges. With the release of the Apple Watch Ultra 2, the maximum battery life remains the same. However, there’s a new change to the low-power mode. Apple promises 72 hours this time instead of the previous 60, which is quite impressive.

Although it’s unfortunate that the maximum battery life hasn’t increased for normal usage, it’s worth noting that it’s still twice what the Apple Watch Series 9 can deliver, which is only 18 hours. Both Apple Watch Ultra models support fast charging, which makes charging relatively pain-free.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: health and fitness

The original Apple Watch Ultra was built to handle all types of outdoor workouts, while the latest version, the Apple Watch Ultra 2, offers even more features for those who enjoy water sports and mountain climbing. Like its predecessor, the new wearable device is perfect for kitesurfing, wakeboarding, and recreational scuba diving, with the ability to go as deep as 40 meters. The updated Oceanic app also includes freediving as a new option.

Additionally, the Depth app on the new watch lets you save logs of your sessions and review them later, complete with GPS coordinates accessible through the Fitness app on your iPhone. The new watchOS 10 update has several health and fitness features available on both versions of the Apple Watch Ultra. This includes better cycling workouts with Live Activity on iPhone, an updated Compass app that shows your elevation and a 3D view of waypoints, new topographic maps in the Maps app, mental health support tools, and more.

The important thing to remember is that all of the Apple Watch Ultra 2’s new fitness features are software-related — meaning they’re coming to the first Apple Watch Ultra via watchOS 10 updates. No matter which Ultra you have, you’re getting the same health/fitness tools.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: environmental impact

Apple has announced its ambitious goal to attain carbon neutrality for all its products by 2030. The company has already made significant progress in this direction by achieving this feat for its Apple Watch, with certain case and band combinations for the Apple Watch Ultra 2 now being carbon-neutral. Apple has utilized 95% recycled materials in the titanium case to achieve this. Moreover, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 uses several materials, including tungsten in the Taptic Engine, rare earth elements in all magnets, and tin in the solder of multiple printed circuit boards crafted from 100% recycled materials.

Other materials in this new watch with this distinction include gold in the plating of several printed circuit boards, foil in the main logic board, copper wire in the Taptic Engine, and cobalt in the battery. For your Apple Watch Ultra 2 purchase to be carbon-neutral, you must purchase one with one of Apple’s new Alpine Loop or Trail Loop bands.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: price and availability

You can order the Apple Watch Ultra 2 from the Apple website or through a third-party retailer. If you’re hoping to get your hands on the original Apple Watch Ultra, unfortunately, it’s no longer available for purchase through Apple.

However, don’t lose hope just yet. You may still be able to find one at discounted prices from retailers such as Best Buy and Amazon for the foreseeable future. Both Apple Watch Ultra models are priced at $799.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs. Apple Watch Ultra: a worthy upgrade?

Before Apple introduced the Apple Watch Ultra 2, the rumor mill said the biggest difference between it and the original model would be the case color. As the story went, the new watch would feature a dark titanium finish versus the natural titanium finish found on the older model. That didn’t happen.

Instead, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is packed with modest changes compared to its predecessor. Most of these changes are internal and center around its new S9 processor, though other upgrades — like double the storage and a 50% brighter display — are also nice to see.

Do these changes justify upgrading from the Apple Watch Ultra to the Apple Watch Ultra 2? For most people, probably not. Faster performance, a brighter display, and new gestures are very cool indeed. But is that all worth spending another $799 this year? We don’t think so. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is absolutely worth it if you’re buying your first Apple Watch Ultra, but for anyone rocking the first model, you’re better off waiting to see what Apple has to offer next year.