Apple Watch Series 10 review – this makes me want to ditch the Watch Ultra

Hands-on Apple Watch Series 10 review: Two-minute preview

Going into Apple’s September 9, 2024, “It’s Glowtime.” event, I wouldn’t have blamed you for potentially dismissing the rumored Apple Watch Series 10. I heard it would get a larger display, a new health feature, and a thinner build. On paper, that doesn’t do much, but I’ll admit I underestimated it.

Maybe, I should have checked the calendar as today (Sept. 9) marks the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch, and while the Series 10 casts a familiar look, it’s all in the details.

Ten generations in, it’s clear Apple’s sticking with this rounded square design, and they’re working on perfecting it – or, as my colleague Lance Ulanoff put it, Apple’s well-polishing the Apple.

To sum it up, the Series 10 does indeed resemble the Series 9, but it’s way thinner – Apple shaved off a whole 1-millimeter, which is a lot for something on your wrist – and packed in a way larger display. In fact, the 46-millimeter display is even bigger than the Apple Watch Ultra 2, and while that sounds like a behemoth, it’s not. The smartwatch didn’t feel massive at all on my wrist and looked rather elegant, especially in the Jet Black aluminum finish, which brings me so much joy as someone who waited for hours to get an iPhone 7 Plus in that same shade.

The screen here is the star, though, and it’s not just bigger for sheer numbers' sake. In Calculator, you can more easily hit buttons, and when viewing photos, you can pick out more details. Better yet, when reading text in an email or a news article, the screen's large enough to fit an additional line of text.

That’s super functional, but the display is also more visible, so you can make out what is on the display for off-axis viewing, even at extreme angles. Think of this as the second half of what Apple was aiming to do with the Series 7 that curved down the edges.

To accomplish the Apple Watch Series 10 has a “Wide Angle OLED” display with an LTPO-3 panel underneath. In practice, it’s a wicked bright (up to 2,000 nits) screen that offers crisp, vibrant details and can get down to a super low 1Hz refresh rate. Watch and timepiece: fans will appreciate just how good the ticking secondhands look on various watch faces.

You’d likely expect this from an Apple Watch, but the screen on the Series 10, seemingly a pretty simple upgrade, steals the show here and makes a much bigger impact or impression after you see it in real life. The 44-millimeter to 46-millimeter doesn’t sound massive, but it makes me want to ditch my Apple Watch Ultra. Of course, if you don't want the larger Apple Watch, you still get the thinner build and more expansive display with the smaller, 42-millimeter Series 10.

Second, while Apple is still promising the same 18 hours of battery life, they offer an enhancement in the charging realm. I’d call this battery adjacent, as it can let you stretch the life of the Series 10 with a simple charge. It still ships with the fast-charging USB-C Apple Watch puck that’s been in the box since the Series 7, but thanks to a new coil on the Series 10 it can hit 80% in just 30 minutes. That should make a big impact, and you can still get 8-hours of use in just 8 minutes.

That alone might sway you to wear the Apple Watch Series 10 overnight for sleep tracking, but Apple’s also adding a new health feature. Sleep Apnea detection will arrive on Series 10 the Ultra 2, and Series 9 once the FDA clears it. Essentially, it’s using the accelerometer and a custom algorithm to detect if you potentially have it, and if it detects it, you’ll get an alert in the Apple Health app. It doesn’t need to measure blood oxygen or employ other sessions, and Apple’s only rolling out this feature after extensive testing to root its process in science.

These three stand out as the most impressive feats Apple pulled off for the Series 10, which debuted on the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch. Inside, it’s powered by the S10 SIP, which performs similarly to the S9 (in the Series 9 and Ultra 2). Still, because the Series 10 is thinner, Apple had to engineer the inside, so it’s much flatter than the previous one.

Apple also redesigned the speaker, which is now larger and shaved off 1-millimeter of the Digital Crown on the inside. The red circle on the Digital Crown, which noted LTE connectivity, is gone, and the rear panel of the Apple Watch is now metal, matching the rest, which makes it seem like the Series 10 is one hull.

I had my skepticism going in, but I cannot wait to spend more time with the Apple Watch Series 10 and put it through its paces. Though, as I write this after a long, lengthy day at Apple Park, my mind keeps returning to the screen. It’s much more expansive, but it’s not overly large and doesn’t have an extensive bezel around the screen like the Ultra. It’s minimalist, classy, and still feels like an Apple Watch at its core.

If you're already sold, the Apple Watch Series 10 is up for order now, starting at $399 / £TBC / AU$649 and will begin shipping on September 20, 2024.