Apple Watch Series 11, Ultra 3, and SE 3 review: Which one is right for you?

For the first time since 2022, and for only the second time in the Apple Watch’s storied history, the company has graced us with three brand new wearables in a single year. The Apple Watch Ultra 3, Series 11, and SE 3 represent the culmination of wrist-worn tech in each of their respective categories to date.

But picking between them may be tougher than ever before. The punchy Apple Watch SE, the favourite of budget buyers and generous gift givers since its launch, is arguably the most impressive upgrade of the lot, sporting improved Always-On display tech and even the 5G of its big brother, the Series 11.

At the other end of the scale, the Ultra 3 is undeniably Apple’s finest smartwatch to date, but Ultra 2 owners will be hard-pressed to find reason to upgrade after just one year. The Ultra 3 is decidedly more impressive than the Series 11, however, which sits in the lineup as one of the more purely iterative upgrades in recent Apple memory, across any product category, not just Watch.

So no matter your budget or your need, here’s a rundown of everything new in this year’s Apple Watch lineup, and how the models stack up on the wrist following their release.

Apple Watch Ultra 3: In short…

• As tough and rugged as ever: Can handle everything you throw at it, with bulk to match
• Uprated display: 24% thinner bezels yield a 5% real estate increase without increasing form factor
• Safe as houses: 5G and satellite connectivity promise the safest experience yet
• Battery life king: The best Apple Watch battery ever, now promising 42 hours of normal use
• Health features: Debuts for Hypertension detection and sleep score, but they’re not exclusive to new models
• Pricing and availability: £799 ($799). On general sale from 19th September

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 has been my daily driver for over a year, supplanting the Series lineup as my go-to for the last 12 months. The Ultra 3 on paper promises some key upgrades inside the same faithful form factor. Onlookers might be disappointed that three iterations of Ultra are yet to yield a design change, but honestly, I think the design is pretty much spot on. The Digital Crown is still big and chunky, the Action Button satisfyingly clicky for whatever need you can conjure. Despite its size, the Ultra 3 is a pretty comfortable wearable, if noticeably weightier than its less capable siblings.

Mercifully, Apple hasn’t made the watch any bigger despite the larger screen. The new LTPO3 OLED display comes with 24% thinner bezels, which gives you an increase of around 5% in terms of display real estate. Even side-by-side, the change is difficult to notice compared to last year, but every little helps, and in a form factor this small, an upgrade is an upgrade. Bigger changes to the display come in the form of the wide-angle viewing of last year’s Series 10. Last year, Apple touted brightness increases of up to 40% when viewing your watch from an angle, and like that attempt, the new Ultra 3 is noticeably more vibrant at a glance. The higher always-on refresh rate, which adds ticking seconds to over 20 watch faces when the watch is in Always-On mode, i.e, down at your wrist and darkened.

A huge noticeable upgrade in early testing is the battery life, improved to 42 hours of normal use (the low power mode is still good for 72 hours). That means almost two days of use on a single charge if you’re wearing the watch 24/7 for sleep tracking, or days of usage if you take the watch off at night. While a Sleep Score feature arrives on the Ultra 3 for this year, it’s not an exclusive feature, and in my humble opinion, the Ultra series is simply too bulky to wear comfortably during sleep. A final word on charge — the UItra 3 charges faster than its predecessor, and you can get 12 hours of usage from just 15 minutes on the included fast charger.

The other health upgrade is Hypertension, which can detect the warning signs of heart attacks, strokes, and more before they happen. However, like sleep score, this feature is also coming to some older models, so it isn’t a cause for an upgrade.

The Ultra 3 shines on the trails and out in the wilderness, and this year, users will benefit from two big connectivity upgrades. 5G means zippier cellular connectivity for streaming podcasts and music, as well as making calls or sending texts. More reassuringly, the iPhone’s Emergency SOS feature and satellite communication are now included, meaning you can reach help in the most remote locations even if you don’t have your phone handy, or it’s run out of charge.

Under the hood, the S10 chip isn’t a stonking leap, but quietly hums away, providing some of the aforementioned battery life improvements mentioned above.

Apple Watch Series 11: In short…

• Familiar design: The same chassis as previous years, rolled out once more
• Battery gains: 24 hours, up from 18 in the previous model
• Connectivity: 5G provides the best wireless connectivity yet
• One new color: Space gray
• Health features: Debuts for Hypertension detection and sleep score, but they’re not exclusive to new models
• Pricing and availability: £369 ($399) or £649 ($699 for titanium), prices increase for larger sizes, cellular, and premium watch bands. On general sale from 19th September

The Apple Watch Series line continues to be the middle-of-the-road “one for most people” option in 2025; however, in terms of upgrades, it’s a pretty safe outing. To its credit, it delivers an increase of around 33% battery life over its predecessor, now rated to around 24 hours of use compared to just 18 in the last model. That stacks up in testing, but as with all models, your mileage may vary. When you run out, charging is faster, too. Apple touts that 15 minutes of charging will get you eight hours of battery life, perfect for a quick charge on the nightstand before you head to bed.

Historically, every Apple Watch Series model I’ve owned has scratched pretty easily, so the new Ion-X glass is a welcome reassurance in this year’s release. It’s purportedly up to 2x more scratch-resistant compared to previous models, thanks to a shiny new ceramic coating bonded to the glass at an atomic level.

At least, that’s the cheaper aluminium version (pictured). Owners of the more premium titanium models get sapphire, which is harder still. However, the more expensive models in my book take the Series 11 well into Apple Watch Ultra 3 pricing territory, so unless your purchasing decision is a style statement, I’d push the boat out for a more expensive Ultra, or stick to an aluminium Series 11 where the model’s true value is found.

The new space grey colour pictured here is a bit of a letdown in my opinion; it feels washed out and cheap compared to my favoured black options of previous years, and as with any watch purchase, I’d strongly encourage buyers to visit their local Apple store and get hands-on if you’re able. Notably, the lighter chassis really overemphasises the bezels on the display, making the display appear smaller.

5G is a nice upgrade here and will benefit users of the cellular variety who want to stream music or take and make calls without an iPhone to hand, but it’s hard to imagine the material impact will be that noticeable, and of course, to users who don’t buy cellular, it’s of no consequence.

A special word must also go to the new Series 11 Apple Watch face, Flow. This monstrosity greets you when you set up a Series 11 from new, and in my nearly 20 years of following Apple, it must rank as one of the company’s worst-ever designs. The Flow face, which Apple says “beautifully refracts swirls of colour that also respond to the movement of a user’s wrist,” is completely unintelligible, requiring you to decode the fractured animations as though it were an Enigma message before you can establish the time.

The Series 11 is the best mainstream Watch Apple has made yet, but there is almost nothing that will see Series 10 users casting a jealous eye over this year’s model. The Series 11 stands out as the ideal purchase for users buying for the first time, but who want to take a step beyond the budget pick of the SE 3. Speaking of...

Apple Watch SE 3: In short…

• Aging design: Older form factor sticks out alongside the sleek Series 11
• Battery gains: No change in battery life, but fast charging is a welcome addition
• Connectivity: 5G a surprising inclusion for a budget model
• Under the hood: features the same S10 chip as the Apple Watch Ultra
• Health: Doesn’t get Hypertension from more expensive models, but does include sleep score and a host of other upgrades
• Pricing and availability: £219 ($249) for the smaller version or £249 ($279) for the larger model, add £10 ($10) for cellular on any given model. On general sale from 19th September

As noted, the Apple Watch SE 3 is a bit of a dark horse this year, adding an impressive array of new features and hardware that make it a standout budget pick in the lineup this year. The SE 3 is the perfect choice for anyone who wants to get on the Apple Watch ladder but doesn’t know where to start.

It’s even a tempting upgrade over the SE 2, but not in terms of design. Like the Apple Watch 3 before it, which Apple kept around for just a bit too long, the SE 3 design is starting to look a bit long in the tooth.

The Digital Crown, Side Button, and aluminium chassis all exude the same premium feel as the Series 11, but the shape and finish just aren’t quite there. Returning to the SE 3 after years of using the Series and Ultra models was a bit jarring, like playing a nostalgic video game where the graphics of which haven’t aged quite as well as you’d remembered. A particular sore point is the bezels, which look extremely thick — a problem amplified if you choose a lighter colour like the Starlight pictured here.

There are plenty of positives; however, SE owners now finally get the Always-On display, which has been a key differentiator of the budget model in previous years. This means your watch will always be viewable at a glance so you can check the time, and is a welcome addition. This upgrade is powered by the S10 chip, which you’ll note is the same chip that features in both the Series 11 and Ultra 3.

Chip parity across the lineup is an impressive move from Apple, where the company could have quite easily skimped on the budget model. The chip unlocks gestures like the wrist flick and the double-tap gesture, which are still a little gimmicky but nice to have, as well as on-device Siri, which drastically improves using the virtual assistant on your wrist and is a real game-changer. S10 also brings 64GB of onboard storage, so more room for podcasts and playlists.

Also new to the budget lineup are vital health features like sleep apnea notifications and Sleep Score. The latter is new to Apple Watch across the board, and while a helpful metric for some, I find that you quickly become a slave to it, so this won’t benefit everyone.

Aboard the SE 3, you also get a better low-power mode and better fast charging - and the cover glass is purportedly more durable than ever. Like S10, 5G is another surprising inclusion, and Apple should get kudos for stuffing a couple of new features into the budget model that really wouldn’t have been a surprising omission. As with the Series 11, 5G boosts data for use when streaming music and making calls, but again, there’s no benefit for users who don’t go for the more expensive cellular option.

Which Apple Watch should you buy in 2025?

In short, the Apple Watch lineup for 2025 is generally impressive — if not as upgrades over previous generations, then certainly intrinsically.

The Apple Watch SE 3 deserves plaudits for its feature-rich spec sheet while retaining its low price, even if the design is a bit of a shame and looks more dated than ever next to the sleek Series 11.

The Series 11 is a great mainstream pick, but there’s nothing here to convince Series 10 users to upgrade, and this year marks a notably stunted upgrade.

Finally, the Ultra 3 is a brilliant bit of kit, albeit a fairly muted improvement on last year’s model.

Across the board, Apple is sticking with tried and tested form factors, tweaking and iterating rather than reinventing the wheel. It’s a formula that works well, and buyers will still be spoiled for choice. But the Apple Watch remains a long-term commitment across the board, rather than a device you’d cycle regularly the way you might an iPhone. Buy once, buy right, and you'll get years of good use out this year's line up — but don't turn your nose up on a previous generation if a good deal rears its head.

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