The Apple Watch Series 12 just dropped, and you might be wondering whether to buy an Apple Watch Series 11 on sale or wait and pre-order the new watch. Both watches will run the new watchOS 27 software, both have the same battery life, and both look pretty much identical, but there are some key differences. We’ll dive into them below, so read this before adding either watch to your cart.
The Apple Watch Series 12 is Apple's newest smartwatch, available to pre-order now. It has a new heart rate monitor and a helpful daily readiness score.
The Apple Watch Series 11 is now Apple's older flagship watch. It won't get some of Apple's new longevity features or Audio Intelligence, but it's still a fantastic smartwatch.
Apple Watch Series 12 vs Apple Watch Series 11: 6 biggest differences
Heart rate monitor
They might look the same, but flip the watches over and you’ll spot the biggest difference from a health and fitness-tracking perspective: the newer watch has a completely redesigned heart rate monitor. Apple says it’s the most accurate heart rate sensor in a wearable, with larger, more power-efficient green LEDs that measure your heart rate every five seconds, compared to every five minutes in the Apple Watch Series 11.
But why does this even matter? Continuous heart rate monitoring lets the watch provide more accurate heart rate variability (HRV) data. On the Apple Watch Series 12, you’ll be able to see your Recovery HRV score, which shows signs of stress and recovery, as well as your overall HRV, which offers insights into your overall health.
The new heart rate monitor also allows you to use Apple’s new Readiness score. More on that below.
Daily Readiness score
Readiness provides a single score out of ten with one of four different recommendations: Recover, Pace Yourself, Ready, or Go For It. Readiness updates throughout the day as new data comes in, and is based on your overnight vitals, sleep score, recent physical activity, and training load.
Charging speed
Even with continuous heart rate monitoring, both watches have the same 24-hour battery life in smartwatch mode. That said, the Apple Watch Series 12 offers faster charging and slightly longer GPS-mode battery life — 10 hours instead of 8 on the Series 11.
With the Series 12, 15 minutes of charging gives you 12 hours of battery life, making it easier to ensure you don’t miss any sleep-tracking data.
Audio Intelligence features
The third huge difference between the two devices is that the Apple Watch Series 12 has Apple’s Audio Intelligence features on board. This uses Apple Intelligence to tell you what song is playing in the background in real time, detect important sounds you might have missed, get a transcript of the last 15 seconds of conversation with Live Rewind, and take notes of your conversations throughout the day with Siri Recap.
These features will drop later in the year, and you can read more about the Audio Intelligence features on the Apple Watch here.
Processor
The Apple Watch Series 12 has the new S11 chip. As well as the features above, Apple says this chip has redesigned algorithms to improve the distance accuracy of indoor walk or run workouts, as well as a more accurate pedometer. With the Apple Watch Series 12, you’ll also be able to see how many steps you’ve taken each day from your home screen.
Durability and cases
While the two watches look pretty much identical, the Apple Watch Series 12 watches with aluminum cases have a tougher screen.
Finally, you’ll also get new finishes with the Series 12 — there’s a new radiant gold titanium casing, as well as two new ceramic casings in pearl white and night blue.
Which should you pick?
So, should you pre-order the Apple Watch Series 12, or save your money and buy the Series 11 when it goes on sale? We’re yet to fully test the Series 12, so stay tuned for our full review dropping later this month, but from the heart rate sensor alone, this seems like a worthy upgrade from a health and fitness tracking standpoint.
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