Apple presented the new Apple Watch Ultra 4 during the official Surprise and shine event. The device maintains an exterior design practically identical to the previous Apple Watch Ultra 3 while incorporating the new S11 processor to replace the older S10 chip first introduced in 2024 on the Apple Watch Series 10. This updated hardware increases speed to prepare the wearable for watchOS 27 and an upgraded Siri system revealed at WWDC.
Apple integrated revamped optical and electrical cardiac sensors alongside larger, energy-saving green LEDs to improve the precision of electrocardiograms and daily heart pulse tracking during workouts. Greater efficiency enables heart rate monitoring every 5 seconds, representing a frequency up to 60 times higher than prior generations. The unit also captures heart rate variability intervals every five minutes to evaluate physical strain and recovery.
These metrics power Readiness. The feature assesses recent physical activity, biological metrics, and sleep quality to generate a score ranging from zero to 10 accompanied by direct suggestions such as recover, pace yourself, ready, or go for it.
Apple applied the extra compute capacity toward voice functions categorized as Audio Intelligence. A built-in Sound Recognition tool tracks environmental noises including crying, doorbells, sirens, and sounding alarms. The watch alerts deaf or hard of hearing users directly on their wrist without requiring a connected iPhone.
Through Live Rewind, double-pressing the Digital Crown displays the final 15 seconds of an in-person discussion as readable text, allowing wearers to seek extra context from Siri or store the excerpt in the dedicated application. Another utility named Siri Recap summarizes conversations with titles and key bullet points during scheduled working hours or full days, debuting in a test phase with English language support before expanding internationally.
The company stated that Audio Intelligence processes microphone data locally inside the Secure Exclave of the S11 processor without saving or distributing recordings across watchOS or to external servers. Immediate file deletion follows analysis, with summaries omitting sensitive financial data or official identification numbers and attributing no statements to distinct speakers. An audible tone sounds whenever Live Rewind activates to notify nearby people.
Power reserves reach up to 50 hours during regular usage and extend to 84 hours when engaging Low Power Mode. Athletic routines run for 25 hours with continuous location and pulse tracking under Extended Workout mode, while Max Extended Workout maintains outdoor tracking for up to 45 hours.
Customers across the US, Canada, the UK, and 50 other territories can place preorders in natural or black titanium finishes ahead of retail store deliveries on September 18. Base units retail at $799, whereas the luxury Apple Watch Hermès Ultra 4 in natural titanium costs $1,499 with rubber Scub’H Diving or En Mer straps. The Hermès version paired with a Grand H titanium bracelet costs $3,149.
The product succeeds the Apple Watch Ultra 3 from the preceding year. That previous smartwatch introduced 5G cellular connectivity, satellite emergency messaging, and a larger screen surrounded by thinner bezels.