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Apple Watch Series 3 vs Apple Watch Ultra 2

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

AppleWatch Series 3AppleWatch Ultra 2
Overview
ReleasedSeptember 2017September 2023
Display
Case sizes38 mm or 42 mm49 mm
PanelOLEDLTPO OLED
Peak brightness1,000 nits3,000 nits
Always-on displayNoYes
Display detailRetina OLED with Force Touch; 38mm 272 x 340 pixels and 563 sq mm; 42mm 312 x 390 pixels and 740 sq mm; wake by wrist raise or tap (Wareable)Always-On Retina LTPO2 OLED display; 410 x 502 pixels at 326 ppi; 1,185 sq mm display area; 1 nit minimum brightness; Night Mode with the Modular Ultra or Wayfinder watch face
Screen protectionIon-X glass on aluminium; sapphire crystal on stainless steel and ceramic (PhoneArena)Flat sapphire crystal front
Health and fitness
ECGNoYes
Blood oxygenNoYes
Skin temperatureNoYes
Sleep apnoea alertsNoYes
High blood pressure alertsNoYes
Body compositionNoNo
Fall detectionNoYes
Crash detectionNoYes
GPSSingle-bandDual-band (L1 and L5)
Water resistance50 m100 m
SensorsOptical heart sensor, barometric altimeter, accelerometer up to 16 g-forces, gyroscope and ambient light sensorElectrical heart sensor; third-generation optical heart sensor; temperature sensor; depth gauge to 40 m (±1 m accuracy); water temperature sensor; compass; always-on altimeter (–500 m to 9,000 m); high-g accelerometer (up to 256 g); high dynamic range gyroscope; ambient light sensor
Health featuresHeart-rate monitoring including resting and recovery measurements; alerts for elevated heart rate while inactive in watchOS 4Vitals app (heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, blood oxygen and sleep duration); irregular rhythm notifications; high and low heart rate notifications; low cardio fitness notifications; sleep stages and sleep score; Cycle Tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates; Medications; Mindfulness with state of mind tracking; Noise
Fitness featuresGPS, GLONASS, Galileo and QZSS; elevation gain and flights climbed; pool and open-water swimming, HIIT workouts and GymKitCustomisable Action button with Precision Start; custom workouts; Training Load; Heart Rate Zones; Race Route; Pacer; stride length, ground contact time and vertical oscillation; automatic track detection; multisport workouts; offline maps with custom route creation; elevation alerts; swimming with custom pool workouts, stroke type tracking and SWOLF; recreational diving to 40 m with the Depth app or a dive computer app from the App Store; cycling power zones and cadence with Bluetooth accessories; GymKit
Safety featuresEmergency SOSEmergency SOS; international emergency calling; Siren; Last Emergency Call Availability Waypoint; Check In; Backtrack; torch; noise monitoring
Battery and connections
Battery life (maker's claim)Up to 18 hoursUp to 36 hours
In low-power mode–Up to 3 days
Mobile data optionYesYes
Works withiPhoneiPhone
ChipS3S9
Storage8 GB64 GB
Battery life detailBuilt-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery; cellular performance depends on coverage and usageMulti-day figure tested over 36 hours with 600 time checks, 180 notifications, 30 minutes of app use and a 60-minute workout with music, including 8 hours on LTE; built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery
ChargingUSB-A magnetic charging cable; Apple lists a USB power adapter for the cellular model onlyFast charging to 80% in about 1 hour
ConnectivityW2 wireless chip; Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n at 2.4GHz; Bluetooth 4.2; cellular versions add LTE, UMTS and eSIM with a compatible carrier plan. At launch GPS required iPhone 5s and cellular iPhone 6, both with iOS 11; updated Apple support requires iPhone 6sL1 + L5 precision dual-frequency GPS (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS and BeiDou); 4G LTE and UMTS; Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n); Bluetooth 5.3; second-generation Ultra Wideband chip; Apple Pay
Storage8 GB on GPS models; 16 GB on GPS + Cellular models–
Design
Weight (lightest version)26.7 g61.4 g
SoftwarewatchOSwatchOS
Case materialsAluminium GPS models have a composite back; cellular models have ceramic and sapphire crystal back; steel and ceramic cases sold with cellular only; water resistance under ISO 22810:2010 for shallow-water swimmingGrade 5 titanium case (95% recycled titanium) with ceramic and sapphire crystal back; water resistant to 100 m (ISO 22810:2010); EN13319 recreational scuba diving to 40 m; IP6X dust resistant; tested to MIL-STD 810H
SizeAluminium 38mm 38.6 x 33.3 x 11.4 mm, GPS 26.7 g or cellular 28.7 g; 42mm 42.5 x 36.4 x 11.4 mm, GPS 32.3 g or cellular 34.9 g. Steel uses the same dimensions at 42.4 g and 52.8 g. White ceramic 38mm 39.2 x 34.0 x 11.8 mm, 40.1 g; 42mm 42.6 x 36.5 x 11.4 mm, 46.4 g. Weights exclude bands49 x 44 x 12 mm; 61.4 g (natural) or 61.8 g (black)
BandsSport Band or Sport Loop on aluminium; Sport Band or Milanese Loop on steel; Nike Sport Band or Nike Sport Loop on Nike+; leather and additional Sport Band on Hermès; Sport Band on Edition. Nike+ reached limited availability 5 October 2017Fits 130–210 mm wrists; Alpine Loop, Trail Loop and Ocean Band, plus Titanium Milanese Loop from September 2024
ColoursSilver, Space Grey and Gold aluminium; Silver or Space Black stainless steel; White or Grey ceramicNatural titanium; Black titanium from September 2024
In the boxWatch and band, USB-A magnetic charging cable; cellular models include USB power adapter and Hermès includes an additional Sport BandApple Watch Ultra 2, strap, Apple Watch Magnetic Fast Charger to USB-C Cable (1 m)

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