Apple has unveiled the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, with this year’s upgrades putting more emphasis on health monitoring, recovery and battery life than simply changing how the watches look.
Both models introduce Apple’s new Health Sensing System alongside the new S11 chip, bringing more frequent heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV) measurements, a new Readiness score and deeper health insights. The Ultra 4 takes those foundations and adds substantially longer battery life and features aimed at endurance athletes and outdoor users.
Health Becomes the Headline Feature
The biggest change across both watches is the new Health Sensing System, which combines redesigned optical and electrical heart sensors with the S11 chip.
Apple says the new system provides its most accurate heart rate measurements yet, following testing involving more than 1,000 participants and comparisons against competing wearables. Heart rate can now be measured every five seconds throughout the day, while HRV can be measured up to 24 times more frequently than before.
That extra data feeds into updated daytime and overnight vitals. Apple is also separating HRV into recovery HRV, designed to help identify daily stress and recovery, and overall HRV for longer-term trends.
Perhaps more useful for everyday users is the new Readiness feature. Similar in concept to recovery metrics already offered by some dedicated fitness wearables, Readiness combines recent activity, training load, vitals and sleep information into a score between zero and 10.
Rather than simply presenting another number, Apple Watch translates the score into one of four recommendations: Recover, Pace Yourself, Ready or Go For It. The score can also change throughout the day as new activity or health data is recorded.
Later this year, Apple is also redesigning the Health app on iPhone with a new Longevity section. This will include Health Age, which compares health metrics against what would typically be expected for the user’s age.
Apple Watch Series 12 gets tougher and faster to charge
For Series 12, Apple has retained the familiar thin and lightweight approach rather than dramatically redesigning the watch.
Aluminium models now use Ceramic Shield 2, which Apple claims is 60 percent tougher than the Ion-X glass used on previous aluminium models. Series 12 will be available in dark bronze, black, light gold and space grey aluminium, alongside radiant gold and natural titanium finishes. Apple is also offering ceramic versions in pearl white and night blue.
Battery life remains rated at up to 24 hours for normal use, but workout endurance has improved. Apple says Series 12 can now manage up to 10 hours during an outdoor workout, around 25 percent longer than its predecessor.
Charging should also be considerably more convenient, with a 15-minute charge providing up to another 12 hours of battery life.
Ultra 4 battery pushes beyond two days
Apple Watch Ultra 4 receives many of the same health improvements as Series 12 but combines them with considerably more endurance. Apple now rates the Ultra 4 for up to 50 hours of normal use or as much as 84 hours using Low Power Mode.
For longer activities, Extended Workout mode provides up to 25 hours of tracking with full GPS and heart rate measurements. A Max Extended Workout mode stretches that to as much as 45 hours for outdoor running, walking and hiking while continuing to take GPS readings every second. Apple says that’s enough battery life to cover a typical 100-mile endurance race.
Charging has improved too, with 15 minutes connected to a charger adding up to 18 hours of battery life.
Apple has also redesigned its pedometer algorithms for the Ultra 4, using machine learning and the S11 chip to improve step counting and indoor distance measurements. There’s finally a dedicated Steps complication as well, allowing step counts to be displayed directly on the watch face.
The Ultra 4 continues to use a titanium case and will be offered in natural and black finishes.
Apple Intelligence moves onto the wrist
The S11 chip isn’t only being used for health monitoring.
Both watches will support new Audio Intelligence features later this year, designed to help users remember important moments from conversations and remain aware of significant sounds around them.
Apple says the system has been built with privacy in mind and doesn’t create or retain audio recordings. On the Ultra 4, Apple details a hardware-isolated Secure Exclave within the S11 that processes audio separately before immediately deleting the raw audio.
watchOS 27 also brings Apple’s new Siri AI experience to compatible Apple Watch models, giving Siri access to personal context and broader knowledge.
Other watchOS 27 additions include a redesigned dynamic app grid, smarter Smart Stack suggestions and a new single-tap finger-and-thumb gesture for interacting with widgets one-handed. Cycle Tracking is also expanding to include support for perimenopause and menopause.
Pricing and Availability
The Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are available to pre-order in Australia now, with both models arriving in stores from Friday, 18 September.
The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at RRP A$649, with 42mm and 46mm sizes available across aluminium, titanium and ceramic case options. Pricing increases depending on the case material, size, connectivity and band selected.
The more adventure-focused Apple Watch Ultra 4 starts at RRP A$1,349 and is available in natural or black titanium.
New bands for both models are also available to order now, while watchOS 27 will roll out to compatible Apple Watch models from Tuesday, 15 September.
Conclusion
Apple hasn’t dramatically reinvented the Apple Watch with Series 12 and Ultra 4, but the changes suggest the company is increasingly interested in what it can do with the huge amount of health data already being collected from our wrists.
The new Health Sensing System, more frequent heart rate and HRV measurements and particularly the introduction of Readiness move the Apple Watch beyond simply recording workouts, sleep and activity. Instead, it’s starting to interpret those measurements and provide some context around what they might mean for the day ahead.
For most people, the Series 12 is likely to be the more sensible choice. It delivers the headline health and intelligence features, improves durability and charging, and retains the smaller and lighter design that makes the regular Apple Watch easy to wear around the clock.
The Ultra 4 remains a more specialised proposition, but its improvements are arguably more significant for its intended audience. Up to 50 hours of everyday battery life, 84 hours in Low Power Mode and as much as 45 hours of outdoor workout tracking address one of the biggest limitations of using a smartwatch for genuinely long adventures or endurance events.
More broadly, Series 12 and Ultra 4 show where Apple sees the Watch heading next. It’s still a smartwatch and fitness tracker, but increasingly it’s becoming a device designed to help users understand what their body is telling them rather than simply collecting another day’s worth of data.
