Watch Series 12

Released September 2026

The Apple Watch Series 12 is Apple's main smartwatch for 2026, in 42 mm and 46 mm aluminium, titanium or ceramic cases, suited to iPhone owners who want Apple's full set of heart and health features without the size and price of the Ultra.

Model history · 12 models, 2015–2026

Type: Smart and sports
Sizes: 42, 46 mm
Movement: –
Power reserve: –
Display: LTPO OLED
Battery: 24 h
Water: 50 m
GPS: Single-band
Weight: 31.5 g

Mobile data

What reviewers say

Reviewers agree it is a worthwhile upgrade, with the faster S11 chip, a redesigned sensor array that improves continuous heart rate tracking and a more useful Siri. Both note the design, display and 24-hour battery life are unchanged; The Verge added that many new features weren't available at launch and advised Series 9 and later owners not to upgrade.

From tomsguide.com and theverge.com

Product links

Specifications

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Display

Case sizes: 42 mm or 46 mm
Panel: LTPO OLED
Peak brightness: 2,000 nits
Always-on display: Yes
Display detail: Always-On Retina display with wide-angle OLEDs and LTPO3; 1Hz refresh; 374 x 446 pixels (42mm) or 416 x 496 pixels (46mm) at 326 ppi; 970 or 1,196 sq mm display area; 1 nit minimum brightness
Screen protection: Ceramic Shield 2 (aluminium cases); sapphire front crystal (titanium and ceramic cases)

Health and fitness

ECG: Yes
Blood oxygen: Yes
Skin temperature: Yes
Sleep apnoea alerts: Yes
High blood pressure alerts: Yes
Body composition: No
Fall detection: Yes
Crash detection: Yes
GPS: Single-band
Water resistance: 50 m
Sensors: Health Sensing System with third-generation electrical heart sensor, always-on optical heart sensor, blood oxygen sensor and temperature sensor; compass; always-on altimeter; high-g accelerometer; high dynamic range gyroscope; ambient light sensor; depth gauge to 6 m; water temperature sensor
Health features: Readiness app; Vitals app (heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, blood oxygen, sleep duration and HRV); Recovery HRV; high-frequency background heart rate tracking; ECG app; Blood Oxygen app; irregular rhythm notifications; high and low heart rate notifications; hypertension notifications; sleep apnoea notifications; sleep stages and sleep score; Cycle Tracking with fertile window and retrospective ovulation estimates, perimenopause and menopause support; Medications; Mindfulness; Noise
Fitness features: Custom workouts; Training Load; customisable heart rate zones; VO2 max; Race Route; Pacer; cadence, stride length, ground contact time, vertical oscillation and running power; automatic track detection; multisport workouts; offline maps with custom route creation; Backtrack; pool and open-water swimming with SWOLF; cycling power zones with Bluetooth accessories; GymKit
Safety features: Emergency SOS; international emergency calling; Fall Detection; Crash Detection; Check In; Backtrack; Last Emergency Call Availability Waypoint; torch; noise monitoring

Battery and connections

Battery life (maker's claim): Up to 24 hours
In low-power mode: Up to 38 hours
Mobile data option: Yes
Works with: iPhone
Chip: S11
Storage: 64 GB
Battery life detail: Up to 24 hours of normal use; up to 38 hours in Low Power Mode; up to 10 hours of outdoor workout
Charging: Fast charging to 80% in about 30 minutes; 15 minutes for up to 12 hours of normal use; 5 minutes for up to 10 hours of sleep tracking
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) at 2.4GHz and 5GHz; Bluetooth 5.3; second-generation Ultra Wideband chip; NFC for Apple Pay; Precision L1 GPS (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS and BeiDou); GPS + Cellular models (A3582, A3587) with 5G RedCap and LTE

Design

Weight (lightest version): 31.5 g
Software: watchOS
Case materials: 100% recycled aluminium or 3D-printed 100% recycled titanium case with zirconia back, or ceramic case; water resistant to 50 m (ISO 22810:2010); IP6X dust resistant
Size: 42mm is 42 x 37 x 9.7 mm (ceramic 43 x 37 x 9.85 mm); 46mm is 46 x 40 x 9.7 mm (ceramic 47 x 41 x 9.85 mm); lightest is the 42mm aluminium GPS + Cellular at 31.5 g, heaviest the 46mm Night Blue ceramic at 52.9 g
Bands: Fits 130–200 mm wrists (42mm) or 140–245 mm wrists (46mm)
Colours: Aluminium in Dark Bronze, Light Gold, Black and Space Grey; titanium in Radiant Gold and Natural; ceramic in Pearl White and Night Blue
In the box: Apple Watch Series 12, strap, Apple Watch Magnetic Fast Charger to USB-C Cable (1 m)

Pros and cons

Pros

ECG, blood oxygen, hypertension notifications and sleep apnoea notifications, all available in the UK
15 minutes of charging gives up to 12 hours of use; up to 10 hours of outdoor workout tracking
Sapphire front on titanium and ceramic models, Ceramic Shield 2 on aluminium

Cons

Up to 24 hours of normal use, the same as Series 11
Single-frequency (L1) GPS; dual-frequency GPS is kept for the Ultra
Works only with an iPhone

Closest rivals

Model	Type	Sizes	Movement	Power reserve	Display	Battery	Water	GPS	Weight	Released
AppleWatch Series 11	Smart and sports	42, 46 mm	–	–	LTPO OLED	24 h	50 m	Single-band	29.7 g	Sept 2025
AppleWatch Series 10	Smart and sports	42, 46 mm	–	–	LTPO OLED	18 h	50 m	Single-band	29.3 g	Sept 2024
AppleWatch SE 3	Smart and sports	40, 44 mm	–	–	LTPO OLED	18 h	50 m	Single-band	26.3 g	Sept 2025