Apple Watch Ultra 4

Ultimately, Apple set out to make a watch that serves both extreme explorers and busy professionals. With the Ultra 4 hardware and S11 silicon, they have succeeded in building a wearable that manages the demands of your entire day, and with Siri Recap and Rewind, that will only improve.

If you have a limited budget, the $399 Series 12 will likely be a better pick than the $799 Ultra 4. Same if you have small wrists—some wearers still can’t square with the 49 mm case. But if you’re able to shell out a little more dough and you’re not worried about wearing a big watch, the Ultra 4 and its long-lasting battery will be the best pick. Over the last few years, the Ultra is the smartwatch I continue to find myself going back to, and I don’t expect that to change anytime soon. It just works.

I’m going to spend more time with it before I deliver a full verdict, especially when it comes to Readiness. But after several days, the Ultra 4 is already shaping up as a familiar Apple Watch Ultra with a little more endurance and a lot more data happening underneath the surface.

Taken as a whole, the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 offer the clearest indication yet of what the future holds for Apple’s most important wearable.