Forget Apple Watch X — 3 reasons I'm excited for Apple Watch Ultra 3

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Apple's next sporty watch could be the ultimate score

Apple Watch Ultra on a person's wrist displaying the time
(Image credit: Future)

Don't get me wrong — there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the Apple Watch 10 (or Apple Watch X, depending on however Apple plans to market it's next smartwatch.) It's rumored for a significant redesign, plus it might offer better battery efficiency and new health features like sleep apnea detection.

But I'm looking forward to the Apple Watch Ultra 3 more than the next Series watch, at least in certain respects. As an Apple Watch Ultra user, there are benefits to using Apple's largest, longest-lasting smartwatch that are hard to give up once you've experienced them.

Although there aren't very many rumored upgrades over the Apple Watch Ultra 2, the next-generation Apple Watch Ultra should still be one of the best smartwatches of the year.

Whether you're starting to plan your next smartwatch purchase, or are simply curious about how this year's Apple Watch family will shape up, here are the ways I expect the Apple Watch Ultra 3 to be a big deal.

Sports participation is about to surge

According to a global study conducted by Statista, 80% of those asked said they believe the Olympics inspire sports participation. With the Paris Olympics 2024 taking place this summer, the world's best athletes will be all over our screens.

Although the average person isn't going for gold, it's very likely more people will be playing sports than before, and the Apple Watch Ultra 3 will be primed to track their activity. With its rugged titanium design, sapphire glass display, IP6X dust resistnance and water resistance up to 100m help it keep up with almost any sport. 

And you probably know at least a dozen people who recently took up pickleball, and a study from FairwayIQ found golf participation grew significantly last year, with nearly one-third of the U.S. population now engaging with golf in some way.

Marathon season and the tennis U.S. Open are also on the horizon. That's just all my way of saying people are going to be motivated to play sports in some capacity, and the Apple Watch Ultra 3 will be the perfect Apple Watch to meet the display, battery and GPS demands that comes with outdoor activities. 

Battery life can't be beat

A major advantage the Apple Watch Ultra 3 should have other other Apple Watch models is battery life. As it stands, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 lasts up to 36 hours, while the Apple Watch Series 9 lasts up to 18 hours (though both estimates may vary due to things like GPS use and screen brightness.)

With low-power mode enabled, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 gets up to 72 hours of battery, increased from 60 hours offered through the original. Even if Apple doesn't offer any battery improvements, the Apple Watch Ultra's battery life still can't be beat.

That said, there is a rumor that Apple is exploring using low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) thin-film transistor (TFT) technology for the next Apple Watch display, which could significantly improve the watch's battery efficiency.

The great thing about the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is that it'll get all the new upgrades announced for the Apple Watch 10/Watch X. Although we don't know much at this time what those features will be, we should expect upgrades to fitness, communication and safety at least.

What's more, it's likely the Apple Watch Ultra 3 will get at least one feature the Apple Watch 10 doesn't. Past examples include the Dive app and the Siren feature, accessible from the Apple Watch Ultra's Action Button.

We're still a few months away from finding out what the Apple Watch Ultra 3 has in store. Check out our guide to the Apple Event 2024 if you're interested in learning more and to keep up with the latest rumors and possible launches later in the year.

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Kate Kozuch
Kate Kozuch

Kate Kozuch is the managing editor of social and video at Tom’s Guide. She writes about smartwatches, TVs, audio devices, and some cooking appliances, too. Kate appears on Fox News to talk tech trends and runs the Tom's Guide TikTok account, which you should be following if you don't already. When she’s not filming tech videos, you can find her taking up a new sport, mastering the NYT Crossword or channeling her inner celebrity chef.