Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4: What to expect

Apple will announce its next-generation Apple Watch lineup in September, including the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4. Here’s the latest on what to expect from this year’s updates.

In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports that Apple is in “late-stage testing” of three new Apple Watch models. That includes Wi-Fi-only and cellular versions of the Apple Watch Series 12, as well as the Apple Watch Ultra 4.

According to Gurman, this year’s Apple Watch models will not get a “major design overhaul.” Instead, Apple is focused on health and fitness updates and speed improvements:

None of this year’s watches is expected to get a major design overhaul, I’m told. Apple is more focused on what’s inside: There will be health and fitness-tracking improvements, along with a long-awaited bump in chips and speed.

Notably, the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are expected to feature a new chip with better performance this year.

The last time Apple introduced an actually new processor for the Apple Watch was with the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in 2023. Even though Apple has rebranded the chip each year, every new Apple Watch since then has offered the same performance.

DigiTimes has reported Apple is working on a new version of the Apple Watch’s high blood pressure notification feature. Beyond that, it’s unclear what new health and fitness features this year’s Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 could feature.

Gurman also reports that a new Apple Watch SE model isn’t planned for this year, at least based on what he’s heard so far. Apple announced the Apple Watch SE 3 last year, with big updates including an always-on display and better performance.

There are bigger changes ahead, Gurman reports:

Looking ahead, I have heard there is ongoing work on a bigger rethink to the Apple Watch, but I wouldn’t expect that to arrive for another year or two. And the company is still moving toward getting a blood-sugar detection feature to the market sometime later this decade, making good on a project first conceived in the Steve Jobs days.

What do you think of the current state of the Apple Watch lineup? What new features do you hope Apple is working on? Let us know down in the comments.

My favorite Apple Watch links:

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