Apple has revealed a new color for the $799 Apple Watch Ultra 2, now available in a satin black titanium finish. It was announced alongside the Apple Watch Series 10Â at Apple's Glowtime event and sits at the top of the company's smartwatch portfolio, offering the longest battery life of any Apple Watch.Â
The watch also arrives with a matching black Milanese loop. Like the regular titanium Apple Watch Ultra 2, the satin black version is made from 95% recycled titanium. Apple says the coating was formulated to make it scratch-resistant. That's the main new thing coming in the Apple Watch Ultra 2, along with a handful of software upgrades in watchOS 11 -- but it's still one of the best smartwatches we've tested.
The original Apple Watch Ultra debuted in 2022 for $799 and was Apple's take on an adventure watch, going head-to-head with outdoor watches from brands like Garmin and Polar. Since then, the company has added even more tools that appeal to sports enthusiasts and athletes, like a Training Load in WatchOS 11 that helps measure workout intensity.Â
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New color
The only new color in the Apple Watch Ultra 2 (specifically, its case) is black titanium, which has the same durability protection and chromed finish as the standard silver titanium hue. There are no exclusive features or capabilities to the new color, but the new black Milanese loop matches the black titanium hue.
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 with its new Hermes brand watch band (called En Mer) and watch face (called Maritime).Â
Hermes partnership
There's another Apple Watch band from premium fashion brand Hermes, this time matching the Ultra 2. The En Mer band, as it's called, is a rich knit design in a deep blue with titanium silver fastenings, which is meant to evoke nautical themes. There's a matching digital watch face, Maritime, with stylish numerals and a custom Regatta timer feature added to the Action Button.Â
Apple Watch Ultra 2 pricing
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is the same price as it was when it first launched on Sept. 22, 2023: $799 to start for the standard bands (Alpine, Trail and Ocean), or $899 for the titanium Milanese loop option. Both the silver and black titanium finishes have color-matching titanium Milanese loop options. The Hermes band edition is priced at $1,399.
Read more: Best Apple Watch Ultra and Ultra 2 Deals: Get Money Off With Discounts and Trade-Ins
New features in WatchOS 11
While the Apple Watch 2 isn't getting any new hardware tricks, WatchOS 11 adds more features to the Action button, including a long-press. You can bring up a quick list of apps for Workout, Stopwatch, Waypoint, Backtrack, Shortcuts and more. Previously, you were only able to assign the Action button a single function like launching the workout app or the stopwatch.
Apple also added new black finish options for Alpine, Marine and Ocean bands that will match the new black case. These bands are specifically designed for the Apple Watch Ultra, though they can be used with other Apple Watch Series in the larger case sizes.
Like the Series 10, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will get sleep apnea detection through a software update later in September. It uses the watch accelerometer to monitor small wrist movements that may indicate disturbances in normal breathing patterns. You'll see a new Breathing Disturbances metric in the Health app.
The Ultra 2 also gets the ability to play music through the watch speakers, just like the Series 10.
Last year's Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 added a Double Tap gesture that let you pinch your finger and thumb together twice to control different aspects of the watch. WatchOS 11 adds more capability for Double Tap-compatible watches, which now include the Apple Watch Series 10, such as scrolling through almost any app.
The satin black Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be available Sept. 20 for $799 (£799, AU$1,399), the same price as the previous Apple Watch Ultra 2 with titanium finish and the first Apple Watch Ultra.