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In this video Kate has all three new Apple Watch devices and breaks down the differences between Apple Watch Series 11 vs. Apple Watch Ultra 3 vs. Apple Watch SE 3. You've got new features like the longer battery life and hypertension alerts to consider, but also improvements to the SE watch with an Always On Display and on-device Siri. With all watches offering similar fitness tracking, software with watchOS 26 and performance from the S10 chip, how do you determine which is the best Apple Watch for you in 2025?
Not only does this video explain the Apple Watch 2025 lineup in terms of design, pricing, sensors, display, and other features, but it also gives a top-level review of how to choose the right watch. Between Apple Watch 11 vs. SE 3 vs. Ultra 3, let us know which one you're planning to pick up.
Not only does this video explain the Apple Watch 2025 lineup in terms of design, pricing, sensors, display, and other features, but it also gives a top-level review of how to choose the right watch. Between Apple Watch 11 vs. SE 3 vs. Ultra 3, let us know which one you're planning to pick up.
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00:00Hey guys, normally you know I'd just do a dedicated review of the Apple Watch Series 11,
00:05Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch SE 3 all individually. And to be clear, I did write those,
00:11they're linked in the description. But in this video, I'm going to be giving you a summary of
00:16all three watches side by side in kind of a review format. Because while I think it's great
00:22that there are options, options can also be confusing. In my opinion, it's not necessarily
00:27clear what the benefits of each watch are, or the reasons to buy or skip each based on all the
00:32different features for all the different prices. If after watching this video, you do want to see
00:37anything more in depth, or you have any questions, you guys know I'm active in the comments section.
00:41But for now, let me know, are you here as a first time Apple Watch buyer? Or are you upgrading
00:46to a
00:47new one? Starting with price, because ultimately, that is a huge factor. The good news, there are no
00:54price hikes compared to last time. So if you're upgrading, you're probably going to end up paying
00:58the same price as you did for the watch you currently own. And just a reminder, a good reminder,
01:04if your old watch is in good condition, you should definitely look at trade-in offers. Apple's program
01:09is probably the easiest to navigate, but Best Buy would be my second recommendation for trade-ins.
01:15Now, let's throw a chart up on the screen for clarity on pricing. The Apple Watch Series 11 starts
01:21at $499. The Apple Watch SE 3 starts at $249. Apple Watch Ultra 3 is a flat $799. There are
01:30premiums
01:31for sizes and cellular connection on the Series 11 and SE 3, but not for the Ultra because it supports
01:38cellular by default and only comes in one size. And yes, speaking of cellular, it is upgraded to 5G
01:45for this family of watches, but I'll come back to that later. Since we've got all three of them here,
01:49let's take a closer look at design. Starting with Series 11. It comes in jet black polished aluminum,
01:56rose gold like I have here, silver, and a new space gray that I tried in my hands-on video.
02:02Honestly, I really liked that color in person. There are also three titanium options you can pay more for
02:08if you like the traditional metallic look. I personally have never felt compelled to do that,
02:13but hey, it's your watch, your style. The Series 11 has the same subtle redesign that we got with the
02:19Series 10. That means a slightly bigger display if you're coming from a watch older than that,
02:23with sizes shifting from 41 millimeters and 45 millimeters to 42 and 46 millimeters. But do not
02:30worry. All of your older bands are still compatible. The Series 11 also has the same wide-angle OLED
02:36screen from the Series 10, but this one is two times more scratch resistance. So if you've ever had an
02:42Apple Watch, you know day-to-day it's just going to get marked up, scratched up eventually. So for me,
02:47this is a pretty nice quality of life upgrade. If you're a little rougher on your gear, that's where
02:52the Ultra 3 comes in. It's made from a more durable titanium, either in natural titanium like this or
02:59black titanium. And it comes in one size, I already mentioned that, 49 millimeters. But the flat display
03:05is actually slightly bigger than before thanks to 24% thinner bezels with the upgrade to the LTP-03
03:11and wide-angle OLED display. The chassis itself hasn't really changed, except it's now made from
03:17100% recycled titanium using a new 3D-printed process that reduces waste. That might not matter
03:23so much to you, but I think it's pretty cool. Not new, but still a big difference for comparison
03:28purposes. Here on the side, the action button. It's basically a quick launcher for any app or shortcut.
03:35For me, it's usually a flashlight. It's up to you what you want to use, though. Also worth noting that
03:40this watch has double the water depth rating compared to the other watches. It has full dive
03:45computer functionality and also the brightest display of the lineup, up to 3,000 nits compared to
03:512,000 nits on the Series 11 and just 1,000 nits on the SE3. Speaking of the SE3, it
03:57still has a bit of
03:58the older Apple Watch design dating back to Series 4. It comes in 40 and 44 millimeters in either
04:05Starlight or Midnight Aluminum, just two colors. This watch is more durable now than before. The cover
04:10glass is four times more resistant to cracks than the SE2 was, at least that's according to Apple.
04:16But the biggest design change here is the always-on display. You guys, this is huge. When I tested the
04:22SE2, the lack of always-on display really distracted me from the experience, especially coming from a
04:28Series model, which has had always-on back to Series 5. The only difference with the always-on
04:33functionality here compared to the Series 11 and Ultra 3, those have LTPO3 displays. Those can refresh
04:39every second without battery life draining. That's not the case for the SE3. Another small
04:44little upgrade, the SE3 also lets you play music straight from the built-in speaker now. Again,
04:49not life-changing, but still a cool addition. So yeah, maybe to trained eyes, this looks a little
04:54outdated, but overall, I think it still gives Apple Watch. I am going to talk about battery life next,
05:02since I know that for a lot of you watching this video, this is a deciding factor. This is also
05:08where the Garmin comparisons usually start to pop up in the comments, but just to be clear, I'm only
05:14comparing these three Apple Watches. So here's the good news. The Apple Watch Series 11 finally jumped
05:20from 18 hours to 24 hours of battery life. I honestly never thought this would happen, but those extra
05:27six hours really do make a difference when you factor in GPS use, overnight wear, and sleep
05:32tracking. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 goes even further. It now lasts up to 42 hours, and if you turn
05:38on low
05:39power mode, you can stretch it to around 72 hours. Low power mode also extends the Series 11 to about
05:4538
05:45hours, and the SE3 to about 32 hours. But the SE3's standard battery life estimate is still just 18 hours.
05:52The upside, the SE3 now charges faster. In fact, all of these watches can get about eight hours of use
05:58from
05:58just a 15-minute charge. Personally, I just top my watch off while I'm in the shower. It's usually that
06:04quick.
06:04Let's dig a little deeper under the hood. All three of these watches features Apple's S10 chip. That means
06:10performance-wise, responsiveness, processing speeds, you're getting the same experience across the board.
06:16The big win here is actually for Apple Watch SE3. It now supports on-device Siri processing just like
06:24the Series 11 and Ultra 3. It also gets wrist-based gestures like double tap and the new flick gesture.
06:30Flick might be a little self-explanatory. It basically just lets you quickly dismiss notifications
06:35or decline a call by flicking your wrist up. These are part of watchOS 26, which comes preloaded on all
06:42three models, but is also a free update available to Series 6 and newer. Some features are hardware
06:48specific, though, so just keep that in mind. Now, what else does watchOS 26 bring? Oh, duh. Liquid
06:55glass design language. This is Apple's new look across all of its devices that, fun fact, is inspired by
07:02VisionOS for Vision Pro. You'll see a lot of transparency effects, and it's really noticeable here on the new
07:08Flow watch face. Speaking of watch faces, some are exclusive to Ultra 3. Wayfinder, this new one,
07:15Waypoint, and my personal favorite, Modular. These are complication-heavy faces that really shine on the
07:21bigger screen. With watchOS 26, all of these watches also get Workout Buddy. This is basically the first
07:27real Apple intelligence-driven feature for Apple Watch. Now, do not get it twisted. The processing still
07:34happens on your iPhone, as long as it's Apple intelligence compatible, meaning iPhone 15 Pro
07:40or newer. Workout Buddy is like an on-watch coach. You can enable it during workouts, and it gives you
07:46real-time guidance, like if you're about to break a record, hit a milestone, or close your activity
07:51rings. It's always positive reinforcement, so don't expect criticism or tough love. Just little, little
07:58boosts of encouragement while you're exercising. Of course, beyond Workout Buddy, you can still track
08:04pretty much any type of workout you can think of. The Workout app lets you customize your views, monitor
08:09heart rate zones. That's one of my favorite recent additions, and take advantage of automatic workout
08:15detection. And of course, you cannot forget all the activity badges you can earn, you guys. These features
08:20are standard across all three watches, so if your main reason for buying an Apple Watch is activity
08:26tracking, you'll get a very similar experience no matter which one you pick. The only real exception
08:32to that is for water sports or scuba diving. For that, you definitely will need the Ultra 3. The
08:39other two just don't have the correct durability or depth ratings. Now, if I keep talking about health
08:43features, this is where things will get a little more divisive. The Apple Watch SE 3 simply does not
08:50have the sensors that the Series 11 and Ultra 3 offer. The Series 11 and Ultra 3 have the latest
08:57gen heart rate sensor. That's what's powering the new hypertension alerts. You might have heard this if
09:02you've been following with Apple Watch News. I need to make a very important distinction. These are not
09:09blood pressure monitors. Instead, Apple developed an algorithm that can detect possible high blood
09:16pressure based on AHA guidelines. It requires 30 days of wear to establish your baseline, so I'm not going
09:22to get a notification from just testing out for a few days. But if your watch does detect possible
09:28hypertension, it'll prompt you to see a doctor or use a real blood pressure cuff to confirm the readings.
09:34You can then log those readings in Apple Health, create a chart, and export that PDF to your doctor.
09:39And because people were probably already writing comments, yes, this is the same sensor that is in the
09:44Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2. So those watches will also get hypertension alerts via software
09:51update. In other words, you don't have to go trade in your Series 9 because you've been waiting for this
09:56hypertension feature for a while. The Series 11 and Ultra 3 also support ECG readings, which can detect
10:02AFib. I know this is like old news in the Apple Watch world, but I personally know multiple people who
10:08have actually discovered AFib thanks to their Apple Watch. It's also worth noting that most AFib
10:14diagnoses happen over the age of 60. So if you're buying for yourself or maybe for a parent, that is
10:22definitely a selling point for choosing Series 11 over SE3. The SE3 also misses out on the Blood Oxygen app.
10:30That feature is back and fully functional after being disabled due to a copyright lawsuit. You might not
10:36need SbO2 readings every day, but it is actually a useful sickness indicator. It can flag when your
10:43oxygen dips, which is often an early sign that you're getting sick. What the SE3 does get is a skin
10:49temperature sensor. Yes, that is new for the SE line. This isn't a thermometer to tell you if you're sick.
10:55Instead, it helps with better sleep and cycle tracking insights. It powers retrospective ovulation
11:01estimates, which can be helpful for pregnancy planning or just understanding your body a bit better.
11:05One step further, if you log a pregnancy in the Health app, the watch can track gestational age
11:11and adjust your activity goals accordingly. And if you're not comfortable with Apple Health tracking
11:16this data, you can totally opt out and delete your history at any time. I feel like I needed to
11:21make
11:21that very clear. Apple continues to evolve its sleep tracking features. We got sleep stages not too long
11:26ago, and now all three watches include a sleep score out of 100 every morning. The score breaks down into
11:34three main factors. How long you slept, how consistent your bedtime is, and how often your sleep was
11:39interrupted. I like this feature because it could give me specific areas to work on. For example,
11:45if my sleep score is low, I could see if it's my bedtime inconsistency dragging it down and make
11:50changes accordingly. Either way, I will still be checking my Vitals app every morning. Vitals app gives
11:55you an overview of your body's activity and sleep data from the day before. It's front and center on your
12:01Apple Watch stack when you wake up. Now, another huge pillar of owning an Apple Watch, connectivity
12:06and safety. The big news across all three watches, the cellular models now support 5G and not just LTE.
12:15That's thanks to a new antenna, which is also one of the reasons that battery life, which we already
12:19talked about, has improved. The antenna supports more bands, detects when you're in weak coverage, and
12:25merges connections to find the most efficient one. That means faster, more reliable communication. You
12:31know, you can text, call, whatever you're doing from your wrist. This optional 5G cellular connection
12:37is available from most major carriers. But what if you are really going off the grid? That's where the
12:43Apple Watch Ultra 3 maybe stands out the most compared to the other two watches. It has satellite
12:49connectivity in addition to 5G. You can use it to send your location and a text message to any contact
12:55that you've communicated with in the last 30 days. As long as you can align with the satellite overhead
13:01and the watch walks you through that, you're pretty much good for getting in touch. It's definitely
13:06designed with adventurous outdoorsy users in mind, but it could also be lifesaving. Safety features do not
13:14stop there. All three watches have emergency SOS, crash detection, and fall detection. These are the
13:20features that you hope you never need, but you're glad to have. The Ultra 3 also adds one more, an
13:2786
13:28decibel siren. This can be used to attract attention outdoors if you're stranded perhaps, but honestly it's
13:36just as useful in the city. As a woman, I will say this, having that option when walking alone at
13:42night
13:43gives me some peace of mind. Sometimes it's the reason I recommend the Ultra to friends they're
13:48budget permitting. Thank you for making it to the end of this video. I really, really wanted to be as
13:54comprehensive as I can. I'm very passionate about the Apple Watch clearly and I hoped I helped clarify
14:00which one is best for you. To recap, the Series 11, the sweet spot, all the health sensors, best design
14:08options, and the same price as before. SE3, the best value, great for first time users or younger users,
14:15always on display, gestures, 5G, packed with value. Ultra 3, the powerhouse, big screen, big battery, all the
14:23features. Not just for athletes, but for dedicated users, myself included. Let me know where your head's at in the
14:30comments. I'd love to hear your thoughts and if you found this video helpful, please consider subscribing
14:35and turning on notifications. We've got tons more Apple device videos, buying guides, and buyer skip
14:41reviews coming up. That's it for me, guys. I will catch you next time.
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