Everyone is taking pictures. But most are not weighed down by DSLRs or point-and-shoot cameras dangling from the wrist. The iPhone changed the way we interact with our environment and encouraged users to become (better) photographers. Many have, in fact, taken up photography after seeing their efforts on the iPhone. The domino effect will be felt again but this time with a new device — Apple Watch Ultra.
Much more than a smartwatch and a big progression from the Apple Watch Series, Watch Ultra will prove to be a watershed moment for smartwatches. At a time when the term ‘game-changer’ gets thrown around like loose change, I would emphasise and re-emphasise on the word ‘watershed’ for several reasons.
Emphasis is on ‘Ultra’
History has taught us something important. Consumers will spend, no matter the shape of the economy. What is more important is the need to have the right product at the right time, something that creates an emotional resonance. When we are trying to leave the pandemic days behind, health is something everyone is focused on.
So far we have seen the Apple Watch spread the right vibes in the smartwatch segment (luxury or otherwise), making every rival brand become a follower. There have been plenty of updates and new features arriving on the Apple Watch since 2015 but chapters need to change, the story needs progression. That progression is being seen with the Watch Ultra.
Instead of charging more with a fashion-driven upgrade, Apple has gone the other way by offering features that are close to anybody driven by fitness… anybody who is an athlete… anybody who wants to be a fitter version of himself.
Ultra is about endurance sports, which includes marathons, scuba diving, snorkelling, swimming, mountain climbing…. All these things have challenges that are not easily addressed by smartwatches. This is where it gets interesting.
There is a brand called Garmin, which tries to market itself as a companion of athletes. It is a good brand but, at the same time, its watches come with compromises, especially when it comes to design, app accessibility and display. Working in favour of Garmin smartwatches is long battery life and easy access to maps. (On a side note, Casio G-Shock will not be affected because of its design philosophy and what its customers want from the watch.)
So far, Apple has been making great smartwatches but it wasn’t enough to attract athletes. The obvious offering is longer battery life of 36 hours or 60 hours enabled by low-power update. Now, 36 hours may not appear to be the best offering when it comes to sports-focussed smartwatches.
But for most fitness enthusiasts 36 hours is a big deal. I am talking about the average marathon runners in our circle of friends. I am talking about that two or three friends who go scuba diving once a month. Or the hiking enthusiast who likes to take off for the weekend. It’s a starting point for Apple and give it a year or so, we will surely be talking of bigger battery figures.
Where Apple excels with the Watch Ultra is the hardware they are delivering as well as its top-of-the-line app ecosystem, something a Garmin doesn’t offer. The Cupertino-based company already makes the best smartwatch for the casual fitness and health enthusiast but now it delivers a multi-sport watch that comes with an eSIM for cellular data.
Aerospace-grade titanium and the flat sapphire front crystal protect the up to 2000 nit display, which is 2x brighter than any Apple Watch yet. Picture: Apple
The features that make a difference
GPS accuracy is a very important feature for anybody associated with endurance sports. Apple Watch Ultra includes a new multi-band/dual-frequency GPS chipset, across both L1 and L5. What this means is if you are in the midst of tall buildings or cliffs where GPS signal can prove to be problematic, get the Ultra for excellent GPS track accuracy.
The second big feature most are not talking about involves the revamped compass app. It’s no longer a simple compass app because it has the ability to save waypoints, navigate back with a Backtrack, and, of course, keep track of where you’ve been using GPS when on a hike/walk. I saw the feature at work at Apple Park and it’s stunning. You can add waypoints and the Watch will remember them. Getting lost will be something of the past.
Third, the entire waterproofing technology had to be reworked for Watch Ultra. For scuba divers, there is now a WR100 rating, including a new depth gauge app showing water temperature, underwater time, and current depth. Plus, it’s certified EN13319 for dive computers.
Fourth, and this is not a tech feature, but an important element — the Watch bands. There are three of them and each is for a different activity — Ocean Loop, Trail Loop (middle) and Alpine Loop.
There is also an important safety feature — a loud emergency siren that could be set to alert people if you're down. When the feature was demonstrated at Apple Park, I was more than pleased as the 86-decibel sound pattern can reach up to 600 metres.
Beyond fitness enthusiasts
The great thing about the product is that it may appear big in pictures but once you strap it on, it’s a snug fit and more surprising is its weight. You expect a bigger watch to weigh a lot. Not this one. It’s doesn’t weigh you down or feel uncomfortable.
Apple has a massive fan following and the company has always delivered products that are aspirational. This is one of those products. Simply get your strap game right and you will be pleasantly surprised by how it can meld into an office environment as much as it does at parties. Ensuring Apple users enough room, if you have a 45mm band meant for the non-Ultra model, you can use it with the Apple Watch Ultra since Apple says the 45mm straps work with 42mm, 44mm, and 49mm cases.
Apple really has nothing to lose here. If you look at Garmin, its biggest weakness is that its watches are too focussed on one section — fitness enthusiast and has little recall value among most casual smartwatch users. On the other hand, the Apple Watch is known to all. It’s a style statement and a health-focussed product. Plus, it works very well with the iPhone. Really, Apple didn’t have to do much beyond coming up with a great product that fits into its time-tested ecosystem.
Consumers have increasingly become impact-oriented and ask for transparency into the way their items function. And Apple has managed to come up with a unique product using which the company can communicate and engage with a new user base.
Apple watch Ultra on display at Apple Park Picture: The Telegraph
At a glance
- Made from aerospace-grade titanium, Apple Watch Ultra provides the perfect balance of weight, durability, and corrosion resistance. The case rises up to surround all edges of the flat sapphire front crystal, protecting the Retina display, which is up to 2,000 nits — 2x brighter than any Apple Watch display yet.
- It has three built-in microphones to significantly improve sound quality in voice calls during any conditions.
- Endurance sports and elite athletes are the focus. For the first time ever in an Apple Watch, the precision dual-frequency GPS integrates both L1 and the latest frequency, L5, plus new positioning algorithms.
- It is powered by WatchOS 9, which includes new advanced running metrics to measure performance, like Stride Length, Ground Contact Time, Vertical Oscillation, and Running Power. New Workout Views, such as Segments, Splits, and Elevation, provide important metrics at just a glance, and thanks to the larger display, Apple Watch Ultra is the only Apple Watch that can show six metrics at once.
- Turning the Digital Crown reveals an additional view that includes latitude, longitude, elevation, and incline, as well as an orienteering view showing compass waypoints and Backtrack.
- The on-wrist operating temperature was designed to help explore the most extreme and remote locations, from freezing cold mountains at-20° C to the blazing desert heat at 55° C.
Pricing and availability
Customers can order Apple Watch Ultra with availability in stores beginning September 23. The device is prices at Rs 89,900. WatchOS 9 will be available for Apple Watch Series 4 and later on September 12, and requires iPhone 8 or later and iPhone SE (2nd generation).