Apple Watch Ultra 3 rumors suggest it could be a seriously underwhelming upgrade

The next Watch Ultra could look very familiar

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

The launch of anApple Watch Ultra 3this year has been in the balance, according to the rumor mill – and fresh speculation suggests that, while it’s now on track for a September reveal, it could be a very minor upgrade.

The largely reliableAppleanalyst Ming-Chi Kuo has apparently toldMacRumorsthat the Watch Ultra 3 will have “almost no” hardware upgrades from the currentApple Watch Ultra 2.

Unfortunately, the analyst didn’t share any more details, but that speculation follows a recent theme that’s seen the prospect of amicroLED screen boost look increasingly unlikelyfor Apple’s most powerful smartwatch.

Of course, we don’t know what software upgrades Apple could be planning forwatchOS 11. Or if Apple could yet sneak in a hardware tweak, like a new smaller alternative to the current model’s rather beefy 49mm case.

It’s also possible that the Watch Ultra 3 could come with an S10 chip (most likely, a rebranded version of the S9), as would qualify as a very minor hardware change. But overall, it sounds like Apple’s next flagship smartwatch will be a somewhat underwhelming upgrade – particularly ifSamsungdoes, asit’s been hinting at lately, launch a Galaxy Watch Ultraat its nextGalaxy Unpacked event, which is expected to be on July 10.

Have we hit peak Ultra?

Not long ago, it looked more likely that we wouldn’t see anApple WatchUltra 3 at all this year, with analyst Ming-Chi Kuo stating in October 2023 thatthe odds on it making an appearance in 2024 were “decreasing”.

This was apparently due to delays for new features like a micro-LED display and “innovative health management features”. Well, it now sounds likely that those bigger upgrades won’t arrive this year, but that Apple is planning to launch a mildly updated Ultra model anyway.

Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.

Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.

That isn’t exactly a disaster if you’re looking for a powerful, tough smartwatch that can handle most outdoor adventures – ourApple Watch Ultra 2 reviewcalled it “the best Apple Watch ever” with “the smartwatch world’s best screen”.

But considering that the Ultra 2 was itself only a minor upgrade, it’d be slightly disappointing to see Apple repeat the trick again this year. It does appear, as TechRadar’s Fitness & Wearables Editor Matt Evans recently argued, that weare reaching peak smartwatch, when it comes to hardware, with thebest smart ringsnow the more exciting wearables.

Still, that hasn’t stopped Samsung fromstating that it’s looking to launch “new premium models"in the smartwatch category in the second half of this year, with theGalaxy Watch 7 even tipped to get blood sugar monitoring.

Given that Apple recently had tostart shipping the Watch Series 9 in the US without its banned blood oxygen sensordue to a patent dispute, the company’s wearables could be in for their toughest battle so far this year.

You might also like

Mark is TechRadar’s Senior news editor. Having worked in tech journalism for a ludicrous 17 years, Mark is now attempting to break the world record for the number of camera bags hoarded by one person. He was previously Cameras Editor at both TechRadar and Trusted Reviews, Acting editor on Stuff.tv, as well as Features editor and Reviews editor on Stuff magazine. As a freelancer, he’s contributed to titles including The Sunday Times, FourFourTwo and Arena. And in a former life, he also won The Daily Telegraph’s Young Sportswriter of the Year. But that was before he discovered the strange joys of getting up at 4am for a photo shoot in London’s Square Mile.

Fitbit Charge 6 is back down to under $100 in Amazon’s pre-Black Friday sales

Get the Fitbit Versa 4 for a record-low price at Amazon ahead of Black Friday

Quordle today – hints and answers for Saturday, November 9 (game #1020)