Apple launched the Watch Ultra 2 at the end of 2023 already, bringing new features Apple Watch, smartwatch and rugged fitness tracker fans such as its powerful S9 SiP, double tap gesture, the Cupertino-based company’s brightest display ever at that time, as well as expanded altitude range, and on-device Siri – all packed into a smartwatch offering up to 72 hours battery life in low power mode.
Coming in a stylish and tough Titanium case (Grade 5) that measures 49 x 44 x 14.4mm, whilst tipping the smartwatch scales at 61.4 grams and fitting wrist sizes of between 130 and 210mm wrists. It boasts Apple’s S9 SiP that sports a 64‑bit dual-core processor. This chip allows for systemwide improvements and brand-new features the likes of the double tap gesture and on-device Siri with the ability to access and log health data privately and securely. Apple Watch Ultra 2 also has a new 4-core Neural Engine that can process machine learning tasks up to twice as fast as the original Apple Watch Ultra.
With a new double tap gesture, users can easily control Apple Watch Ultra 2 using just one hand and without touching the display. Users can tap the index finger and thumb of their watch hand together twice to quickly and conveniently perform many of the most common actions on Apple Watch Ultra 2. Double tap will also open the Smart Stack from the watch face, and another double tap will scroll through widgets in the stack. Double tap controls the primary button in an app so it can be used to stop a timer, play and pause music, or snooze an alarm. The gesture can be used to answer and end a phone call, take a photo with the Camera Remote on Apple Watch, or even switch to the new Elevation view in the Compass app to see the relative elevation of saved waypoints.
The Always-On Retina LTPO2 OLED of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 still packs a scrumptious 326 pixels per inch making fine detail visible and legible while now sporting a maximum brightness level of up to 3,000 nits (50% more than the Apple Watch Ultra) enabling greater readability outdoors in direct sunlight or indoors under harsh office lighting while also being capable of a minimum brightness level of 1 nit which is handy in bed under no lights so that you do not get dazzled.
The tough tech gadget has been designed for extremes setting it apart from the regular Apple Watch Series 10 and has been tested for use across the largest range of altitudes ranging from 500 meters below sea level to explore the lowest valleys, and up to 9,000 meters to ascend the world’s tallest peaks. Consequently, this smartwatch is perfect for water sports, including extreme activities like kitesurfing and wakeboarding, along with recreational scuba diving to 40 meters and freediving with the updated Oceanic+ app from Huish Outdoors. The built-in Depth app now saves a log of each session so users can review the most recent sessions on Apple Watch Ultra or view the complete history of all dives with a GPS entry point in the Fitness app on iPhone.
Another feature that sets the second generation Apple Watch Ultra apart from its predecessor is the fact that for the first time on Apple Watch, Siri requests can be processed on device and not solely in the cloud. For requests that do not require information from the internet, like starting a workout or setting a timer, Siri does not rely on Wi-Fi or cellular networks, resulting in quicker and more reliable responses.
Ultimately, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is well worth it for Apple device fans and users and those smartwatch or fitness tracker users that want a highly durable device with best in class iPhone smartwatch connectivity features. If you are an Android user Garmin also makes the Fenix 8 range which packs far better battery life for more bucks, the ability to work on both Apple iPhone and Android smartphones, which the Apple does not do, and more easily accessible fitness and health data. But for iPhone users we still recommend the Watch Ultra 2 which goes for an RRP of R20 800 new from the iStore or for a special of around R18000 from local retailer takealot, or if you can haggle and deal with the sometimes dubious sellers on meta’s Facebook Marketplace, you can find more than a few second hand ones for about R14000.
