Why the Apple Watch Ultra 3 Deserves a Spot on Your Wrist for $699.99

In a world where most smartwatches feel more like fragile extensions of our phones, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 comes along as the rugged one that can take a pounding and keep rolling. For $699.99 (was $799), you get a device that can handle everything from weekend hikes to daily commutes without missing a beat – or so the promise goes. But does it really live up to that tough-as-nails reputation, especially for people like you and me, and not just hardcore trail runners?

From the get-go, the ruggedness of the Ultra 3 starts with the hardware, and Apple does a great job of getting the basics spot on without over-complicating things. The 49mm titanium case weighs a mere 61 grams – slightly lighter than before actually, thanks to refined milling. And you know what? It shrugs off scratches from your phone keys, keys in your pocket or branches on a run. The sapphire crystal that covers the display is now a decent 1.93 inches diagonally, which is bigger because Apple has slotted in some slimmer bezels. Water resistance is pretty impressive too – we’re talking 100 meters, which is certified for all those high-speed water sports and even recreational scuba diving down to 40 meters.

But let’s talk about the real hero of the Ultra 3: battery life. This has been the secret sauce of the Ultra series so far, and Apple has now managed to turn it into a genuine multi-day companion. They’re quoting 42 hours of normal use, but from my early tests, it easily gets 60 hours with a bit of activity going on – sleep tracking one night, a run in the morning, and a few calls later on in the day. What’s behind it all? A six percent boost in capacity to 2.31 watt-hours, paired with a few tweaks to the S10 processor to make it more efficient, that’s what. As a result, you can go from a full charge to hardly any charge over the course of a couple of days – or, if need be, you can just switch to Low Power Mode and it’ll stretch that out to 72 hours – though your screen will be a bit dimmer and you’ll lose a few bits and bobs like notifications, but your fitness features will still work.


And then there’s the safety features which take the Ultra 3 from being just a fitness tracker to being a guardian angel on your wrist. It’s got built-in satellite comms that let you send messages when you’ve got no phone signal – and this is no one way street, you can send up to 15 texts a day via two way iMessage, which is a nice step up from the one way SOS on the older models. And if you pair that with Crash Detection which uses the accelerometer and the gyroscope to figure out when you’ve had a nasty tumble, then you’ve got a setup that’ll get you help when you need it most. Fall Detection adds another layer, which is great, as it’ll alert your contacts if it thinks you’ve fallen and then aren’t moving about.



Health monitoring on the Ultra 3 goes deeper into your vitals with gentle nudges rather than loud alerts. The optical heart sensor gets readings spot on even during high intensity intervals, while the electrical one does ECG checks for irregular rhythms right on your wrist. New hypertension notifications flag potential high blood pressure trends based on overnight readings so you can go to the doctor without false alarms. Sleep apnea detection looks at breathing disturbances and the Vitals app compiles overnight data into a simple daily summary: heart rate variability, respiratory rate and wrist temperature for cycle tracking. Blood oxygen saturation rounds it out, measured passively during rest. After a month of wear these insights caught a dip in my recovery score after a string of late nights and steered me towards better sleep.


Everyday use keeps the Ultra 3 from feeling like overkill for non-adventurers. The always on display is 3,000 nits bright – readable in direct sun – and wide angle OLEDs keep colors true from the side. watchOS 11 runs smooth on the S10 chip, with Double Tap gestures for pinch-to-scroll or dismiss without touching the screen. The Action Button customizes for quick starts: one press launches a dive timer or flashlight, which blasts 3,000 lumens in strobe mode for night visibility. Cellular connectivity via 5G means you can make calls, stream music to AirPods and use Apple Pay without your iPhone nearby.