Before You Buy an Apple Watch, Read This

As WIRED’s residentwearable tester, I’ve tried enough smartwatches to know there’s life beyond the Apple Watch. I just apparently don’t want it. Maybe it’s because I joined the Apple ecosystem at 10 years old and have been indoctrinated ever since. I’m fluent in iOS, macOS, and watchOS, and for better or worse, the Apple Watch is my default wearable.

But what’s the best Apple Watch to buy? There are now three models, each with its own set of features, and the differences between them can appear minor even when the prices aren’t. Fortunately, I’ve tested them all; Here’s how the current lineup stacks up.

For more recommendations, check out our guides to theBest Apple Watch Bands, theBest Apple Watch Accessories, and theBest Smartwatches.

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• Compare Top 3 Apple Watches
• Honorable Mentions
• Avoid These Apple Watches
• How I Test Apple Watches

Best Apple Watch Overall

• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane
• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane
• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane

Apple

Watch Series 12

TheSeries 12is Apple’s flagship watch. Its biggest upgrade is the newHealth Sensing System, which improves the breadth, accuracy, and frequency of its health tracking. The ECG now uses 32 electrodes for better skin contact, up from two on theSeries 11, while improved optical sensing and more efficient LEDs deliver more accurate heart-rate readings. TheSeries 12also tracks your heart rate every five seconds throughout the day and HRV as often as every five minutes, compared with every five minutes for heart rate and roughly every two hours for HRV on theSeries 11.

TheSeries 12also introduces Apple’s Readiness score, which gives you a snapshot of how prepared your body is for the day based on your recent health and activity data.Audio Intelligenceis another major addition, though two of its headline features (Live Rewind and Siri Recap) won’t arrive until later this year.

Battery life remains rated for up to 24 hours, but charging is faster. Fifteen minutes delivers up to 12 hours of normal use, and five minutes get you up to 10 hours of sleep tracking. Just about the only feature theSeries 11lacks is satellite connectivity, but if you don't go off the grid, then it has everything else you need.

Specs

42 mm or 46 mm

Wide-angle OLED, Always-on Retina display, up to 2,000 nits

Up to 24 hours (up to 38 hours in Low Power Mode)

Precision L1 GPS

Dark Bronze, Light Gold, Black, Space Gray;

Radiant Gold, Natural;

Pearl White, Night Blue

Best Battery Life

• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane
• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane
• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane
• Photograph: Boutayna Chokrane

Apple

Watch Ultra 4

TheUltra 4’s biggest upgrades are its longer battery life, faster charging, and new health-tracking capabilities. It lasts up to 50 hours on a charge—up from 42 hours on the Ultra 3—and up to 84 hours in Low Power Mode. Fast charging gets a boost, with 15 minutes on the charger providing up to 18 hours of normal use and five minutes offering up to 10 hours of sleep tracking. A newHealth Sensing Systemand faster S11 chip enable frequent background heart-rate and HRV tracking, the Readiness score, and Apple’s suite ofAudio Intelligencefeatures.