The Apple Watch Ultra 4 arrives four years after the original Apple Watch Ultra, bringing a series of incremental hardware and software changes — a brighter, larger display, new health sensors, improved chips, longer battery life, and expanded connectivity. The Ultra 4 starts at $799 in the U.S.; Apple discontinued the first-generation Ultra in 2023 and that model no longer supports the latest major watchOS release.
Both watches keep several core Ultra features: a 49mm titanium case, an Action button, a siren, dual-frequency GPS, and support for recreational diving to 40 meters.
Key differences between Apple Watch Ultra 1 and Ultra 4
The Ultra 4 uses a Wide-angle LTPO3 OLED display with 1Hz always-on updates that allow supported faces to show ticking seconds; it is about 5% larger (422 by 514 pixels; 1,245 sq mm) with thinner borders and reaches up to 3,000 nits of brightness with a 1-nit minimum. The first‑generation Ultra has an LTPO2 OLED display with always-on updates once per minute, up to 2,000 nits, and a 410 by 502 pixel panel covering 1,185 sq mm.
Performance and storage are upgraded: the Ultra 4 has the S11 chip, 4GB of RAM, a 4-core Neural Engine, a Secure Enclave for isolated audio processing, and 64GB of storage. The original Ultra ships with the S8 chip, 1GB of RAM, a Neural Engine, and 32GB of storage.
On-device Siri and dictation are expanded on the Ultra 4: it supports on-device Siri for supported requests (including access to and logging of health and fitness data) and improved on-device dictation. The original model relies on Siri processed in the cloud for many requests.
Gestures and interaction: the Ultra 4 retains Single Tap, Double Tap, and wrist flick gestures and adds a flashlight boost via the Digital Crown. The first-generation Ultra includes Single Tap, Double Tap, and wrist flick gestures and a standard flashlight.
Wireless and location upgrades include a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip in Ultra 4, which adds Precision Finding for compatible iPhone models, AirTag 2, and the AirPods Pro 3 charging case with distance and direction guidance. The earlier Ultra has a first-generation Ultra Wideband chip and can play a sound to locate an iPhone and locate accessories using Find Devices and Find Items.
Health and sensors: Ultra 4 introduces a Health Sensing System with new electrical and always-on optical heart sensors, while the original model includes an electrical heart sensor and a third-generation optical heart sensor. Background heart-rate measurements on the first Ultra occur at unspecified intervals, whereas Ultra 4 provides background heart-rate measurements every five seconds and more frequent overall HRV and Recovery HRV measurements. Ultra 4 adds Overnight and daytime Vitals views (the original offers an Overnight Vitals view), Readiness, sleep apnea notifications, and hypertension notifications. Blood Oxygen readings remain viewable on the watch, but on affected U.S. models those readings are analyzed on the paired iPhone and viewed in its Health app.
Fitness and workouts: Ultra 4 offers more accurate all-day step tracking, improved estimated indoor workout distance, and a Steps watch-face complication. Workout Buddy on the original requires a nearby Apple Intelligence–enabled iPhone; Ultra 4 provides an enhanced Workout Buddy with additional insights and Spanish support. Live Translation in Messages is available on Ultra 4 when paired with a compatible Apple Intelligence–enabled iPhone.
Connectivity and audio: the original Ultra supports LTE and UMTS; Ultra 4 supports LTE and 5G with improved weak-signal reception via simultaneous use of both antennas. Both models support Emergency SOS, Messages, and Find My via satellite. Ultra 4 introduces Audio Intelligence features such as Sound Recognition, automatic music identification, Live Rewind, and Siri Recap. Built-in speakers on Ultra 4 handle calls, alerts, Siri, and media playback; the original supports calls, alerts, and Siri.
Battery, charging and weights: Apple quotes up to 36 hours of normal use for the first-generation Ultra and up to 50 hours for Ultra 4. In Low Power Mode the original can reach up to 72 hours (per Apple’s current comparison page) and Ultra 4 up to 84 hours. For outdoor workout tracking the original offers up to 12 hours of standard tracking versus up to 18 hours on Ultra 4. Ultra 4 adds a Low Power Mode during workouts and two Extended Workout modes: up to 25 hours with full GPS and heart-rate readings, and a Max Extended Workout mode up to 45 hours with GPS readings every second. Charging times improve: the original charges from 0 to 80% in about one hour; Ultra 4 charges from 0 to 80% in about 45 minutes, with 15 minutes of charging providing up to 18 hours of normal use and five minutes providing up to 10 hours of sleep tracking. Weights differ slightly: the first-generation Ultra is 61.3 grams; Ultra 4 is 63.0 grams in natural titanium and 63.1 grams in black titanium.
Other technical notes: both watches support dual-frequency GPS; the original lists support for GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, and BeiDou, while Ultra 4 lists GPS, Galileo, QZSS, and BeiDou. The original supports watchOS 26; Ultra 4 supports watchOS 27, which includes the Siri app, a dynamic app grid, new Smart Stack suggestions, Call Context, and a consolidated Find My app.
Should Apple Watch Ultra owners upgrade?
Owners of the first‑generation Apple Watch Ultra can reasonably keep the watch for another year if its battery still covers their usual days and workouts. Although losing support for watchOS 27 is significant, it does not prevent the original Ultra from continuing to handle notifications, activity tracking, navigation, and its existing features; owners satisfied with those capabilities may prefer to wait and see whether next year’s model offers a larger upgrade.
Upgrading to Ultra 4 is recommended for users already running into the original model’s limitations. The Health Sensing System delivers more detailed heart‑rate and recovery insights, plus sleep apnea and hypertension notifications, which are most valuable if you will use the additional information to monitor daily condition or adjust training. Longer battery life and improved satellite and cellular connectivity are practical reasons to upgrade for people who record extended workouts or frequently travel beyond cellular coverage. If an original Ultra struggles to finish an outing without charging, the Ultra 4’s battery and charging improvements are a clear advantage. The larger, brighter display, updated gestures, Audio Intelligence, and expanded Precision Finding support also make the cumulative upgrade more noticeable in everyday use.
Software support remains a major factor: the original Ultra cannot run watchOS 27, so it misses Siri AI and the latest operating system’s other additions. If those features would materially change how you use the watch, waiting another year means accepting those limitations in the meantime.
