The Apple Watch Ultra 4 has finally attacked the complaint that follows every capable smartwatch around like a parking ticket: the battery is never quite as adventurous as the owner.
Apple rates the new Ultra for up to 50 hours of everyday use, up to 84 hours in Low Power Mode, and as much as 45 hours of outdoor workout tracking in its most extended setting. A 15-minute charge can add up to 18 hours. Those numbers will vary with cellular use, signal strength, and configuration, naturally, but they move the Ultra closer to a weekend watch instead of a nightly bedside ritual.
The other serious upgrade is Apple’s new Health Sensing System paired with the S11 chip. The watch measures heart rate every five seconds throughout the day, records heart-rate variability more frequently, and rolls activity, training load, sleep, and vital signs into a 0–10 readiness score. That score can tell you to recover, pace yourself, get ready, or go for it. In other words, the watch may now confirm what your knees tried to explain yesterday. The 49mm titanium case returns in natural and black finishes, with a 3,000-nit display, precision GPS, cellular connectivity, and satellite safety features still part of the package.
What You Need to Know
- Price: Starts at $799 in the U.S.
- Availability: In Apple stores and online now
- Battery: Up to 50 hours everyday, 84 hours in Low Power Mode, or 45 hours of extended outdoor workout tracking
- New health tools: Five-second heart-rate sampling, expanded HRV data, and a daily readiness score
- Case: 49mm titanium in natural or black
Why It’s Cool
The Ultra 4’s best improvement is not a novelty app or another color with a California-weather name. It is freedom from the charger, backed by better recovery data for people who actually use the watch to train, hike, ride, or disappear into the woods for a while. The price remains stout, but the hardware now makes a clearer case for it.
Man And Gear 