Along with the unveiling of the iPhone Duo, AirPods 5, iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max, and the Apple Watch Series 12, the Cupertino giant also unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra 4. There were no price increases, no major design changes, and no changes in color options.
It’s a very similar update to the Series 12, which you can read about here – it has a redesigned back as part of a new health detection system, there’s a new S11 chip inside with Secure Enclave and a separate always-on processor, a new readiness score that looks set to compete with Oura and Whoop, two new AI features will start rolling out later this year, and it can provide HRV (heart rate variability).
But one key change is a larger battery: Apple Watch Ultra 4 has a 5% larger battery than Apple Watch Ultra 3, as well as greater efficiency to deliver Apple’s promised battery life. This means the Ultra 4 can really go all out, promising up to 50 hours of normal use, up to 84 hours in Low Power mode, and up to 45 hours in Max Extended Workout mode.
Latest videos fromTechRadar
Those are strong numbers, and so far it’s been running toe-to-toe with the Ultra 3, offering more than one day of use and approaching two full days. I’ll need more time before I can tell whether the larger battery and efficiency gains will result in a meaningful real improvement, but there’s plenty of staying power here for now.
The box also contains a new charger for the Apple Watch. It looks the same as the previous one, but the cable uses new technology that allows it to charge even faster: Apple promises up to 18 hours of battery life with a 15-minute charge. This has mostly been the case in my testing so far, but I want to run a few more charge cycles before I can say for sure how much of a difference it makes.
And, as with Episode 12, I’ll hold off on giving a full verdict for now. The new Readiness Score is one of the biggest changes to how Apple Watch works, and I want to give it plenty of time to get a feel for its data before jumping to any conclusions. Apple says it typically takes seven nights of wear to calculate the score.
Image 1 of 3
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
The upgraded health detection system and more frequent heart rate and HRV tracking are already interesting additions, especially for a watch designed for fitness and endurance. It comes with full activity tracking, dual-band GPS, hypertension notifications, blood oxygen level tracking, and satellite connectivity. The ability to measure heart rate in real time and read that data back from the watch more frequently should make the Ultra 4 even more useful for training, and HRV adds another metric that brings it closer to competing devices.
There is also an AI side, although that story has not yet been fully revealed. Audio recognition and faster Shazam are already available, and Live Rewind and Siri Recap are due out later this year, initially in beta, and in the US I’ll need more time with them once they launch to see if they really change the way I use the Ultra 4 day to day. And of course, the Ultra 4 may have an advantage over the Series 12 when using these features thanks to a larger battery – time will tell.
So, at this point, the Apple Watch Ultra 4 is more of an evolution of the Ultra 3 than a new invention, but the larger battery is a really nice surprise. The changes are mostly hidden, with some attention paid to health detection, data processing, battery life and charging.
I’m going to spend more time on this before I give a full verdict, especially when it comes to preparedness. But after a few days, the Ultra 4 already turns into the familiar Apple Watch Ultra with a little more endurance and a lot more data stored under the surface.
The Apple Watch Ultra 4 is available to pre-order now at the same price of $799 / £749 / AU$1,349 and will officially go on sale on September 18, 2026.
Follow TechRadar on Google News. And add us as your preferred source to get our expert news, reviews and opinions in your feeds.
