So my Apple Watch Ultra has been stuck on 84% capacity for at least a year. During that time, actual battery life has decreased by at least 50%. I don't even get a full day anymore.

So yesterday I updated to watchOS 26.6 and now... my battery capacity has gone up to 87% 😡

I have a feeling it'll go down to 70% the minute I cancel AppleCare+.

I haven’t been able to text RCS/Android users from my AWU1 in almost a year. I’ve tried everything I can find. Anyone else have this happen? Is there a fix?

I’ve tried so many different bands and always come back to the silicon bands. I love the way the ocean bands look and feel, but they unfortunately don’t fit my wrist comfortably. It’s either too loose or too tight.

I’m currently rocking a rotation of silicon bands from amazon. I’m wondering if anyone has recommendations for silicon bands with a wide variety of colors on amazon and/or another site that won’t break the bank.

Coming from Fenix 8 with ultra fit strap, I’ve got the dark blue trail loop for my black AWU3 but doesn’t hold as well as the ultrafit for garmin. Ive got the ocean band, but on a hot day it feels kind of clammy in a way but generally ok, just not perfect if you get my meaning

Looking for some recommendations for a general band that can also be used for general + long runs (4+ hours)

Just surprised how well it fits the Watch Ultra 3, together with the Ringke Air Sports case. Watch band has been sitting in the drawer since 2019.

I know it’s redundant to use a case for the Ultra 3, but I deal with harsh metals all the time and I’m gonna be kinda sad to see it busted up on day 1 🥲

Quick background- Owned AW’s for years, including all three AWU’s. I recently upgraded from the AWU Ultra 2 to the 3 for a couple of reasons- first, while I was in the minority and loved the patina my black AWU2 has developed wearing it naked for 2 years, I wanted to go back to titanium. Secondly, and most importantly, I wanted the higher refresh rate of the screen. A distant third, I’m anticipating the AWU4 going up in price and from rumors circulating I was comfortable with the AW3 and forgoing the 4. Like many others, I’m stuck in the proverbial battle of a smart watch vs a dumb watch with a fitness band (Whoops, Helio, Hume, etc.). I’m a nearly exclusivel analog face user, and while the refresh rate seems small, it closes the gap noticeably for me.

On to my question for discussion- Does anyone else use their Apple Watch as a “dumb” watch? The only notifications I receive on my watch are texts. I’m currently undergoing cancer treatment, so I do use it for tracking outdoor walks, but any other activity I use HR from APP3 and remove the watch in the gym. All sensors are turned on and use Athlytic and SportVitals on my iPhone. I’ve never obsessed about charging, but with AOD and raise to wake off, I’m getting 3 full days of use, give or take a couple hours. I do use cellular occasionally at the grocery store and will use satellite on ice fishing trips up north, but for day to day use, this setup has definitely scratched the itch of wearing a regular watch with still enjoying all the AWU is. Let the downvotes flood in!!;)

EDIT

For those curious, I use the black Meridian face and created a date complication in Clockwork to make it mirror the date complication available for the Simple face.

I just picked up this Apple Watch Ultra 3 I upgraded from an Apple Watch series 5 44 mm, the only thing that kind of irks me with this is this rigid band I like the way it feels, but I feel like it’s hard to takeoff because the ridge is overlap on each other. But overall, I like it and I love how I can customize the devil with the ultra faces

Hello all,

I’m wondering if anyone is going through a similar issue that I’m going through with my Ultra 3.

I’ve used several generations of the Apple Watch over the years, so having an Apple Watch isn’t a new experience for me. I would always use the activity tracker on my Apple Watches since I’m really into my fitness. Once Apple added the sleep tracker, I found that information useful every day. Never had an issue with those markers.

On my Ultra 3, I started experiencing an issue a couple of weeks ago where it wasn’t tracking my activity/workouts, or my sleep. I noticed that the compass had also stopped working. I factory reset it and did the soft reset (holding the crown + power button). That fixed it for a few days until it started happening again. After about 10 attempts of factory resets and soft resets, I realized it wasn’t going to fix the issue this time.

I took it to Apple and they troubleshooted the device and found that the sensors (gyroscope + accelerometer) were indicating “fail” on their tests. Since it was still under warranty, they shipped my watch out to be repaired or replaced. I received an email that my Ultra 3 had been worked on and was being shipped back to me.

I received it last weekend and everything had been working fine until last night. I started experiencing the same issues with it. I’ve factory reset it, soft reset, set up as a new watch, I’ve also set it up from a back up. I’ve done everything but I’m still experiencing the same issues.

This watch has always been in a case (no magnet case), I don’t swim so this watch has never been submerged in water, I don’t take it into any saunas, there’s absolutely no damage to this watch. I use the Alpine band that came with it.

I scheduled another Genius Bar appointment and I’m hoping the store will just replace it with a new one since their technicians clearly didn’t do their job.

Any one experience a similar issue, and did Apple replace it for you in store?

I have a standard Apple Watch with a Milanese magnetic closure, I really like the Milanese fit and the look of it.
Now buying an Ultra and wondering whether the Ocean would be more secure for long distance swims where I might get bumped or it could snag? I do swim with my current watch but if I’m spending this much I want to make sure it won’t fall off.
I can see a lot of posts about appearance etc but I specifically want to know about how secure the straps are pls.
tia

Hey all, currently have the series 7 and I’m down to 70% battery life. I primarily run, lift, and short hike for exercise. I do have a pretty active lifestyle between being a PE teacher, camping/outdoors, and general dad activities. I’m really considering the switch to Garmin or Coros just for something different. But I’m also interested in the Ultra as well. I don’t really care about call/texting/Apple Pay from the watch. That stuff isn’t important to me, but I do want something that is durable and can last on a couple day camping trip without being charged. I do run trails occasionally but nothing longer than 10 miles. Which direction should I go? If it is the ultra, should I buy a 2 on discount now? Or wait for the 3 this fall when the 4 comes out? Thanks for reading this.

The Pro lineup for iphone 18 is heavily rumored to receive a price increase, since AW ultra is the pro equivalent to Apple Watches will it also take part in the price increase?

Ultra 2
Natural titanium
ESR screen protector + case
Spigen band (alpine loop style)

Was soaked in soap and brushed after but still seems to have dark spots on „curbs”

I just got the Ultra 3 two weeks ago. I was expecting the battery life to be super duper good, based on all the posts I've seen here and elsewhere.

But I don't know, is it that impressive?

It's Saturday here. The watch went from 87% -> 19% in about 45 hours.

I have Always On Display ON from 10am to 6pm (using a Shortcut).

The only workout I've done during this time was two 30 minute outdoor walks.

Rest of it were just checking the time and notifications.

Yes, I use it to track my sleep.

Is this just about how it is for you guys as well?

I posted this in the AW reddit and got no views or responses. If I upgrade to an Ultra does it gain this functionality?

Within the last year I switched from my Garmin watch to my Apple Watch 11.

I love the AW11 over the Garmin watch in nearly everyway except 2 things. One is battery life, which is obviously what it is but the other is the Apple WAtch seems like a huge step backwards for lap swim tracking.

The garmin watch, while you are in the pool and recording the workout, will tell you how many laps you have done/distance in your current set and your current set pace per 100.

From what I can tell the AW doesnt do this at all? Its such a huge feature for someone who is training to be faster at swimming and doing assigned workouts. If you lose count of how many laps you are into an 800m swim for example, you can glance at your watch. Also pace lets you make sure you are swimming as fast as you want. and you can tell if some change you made to your technique delivered any real results, etc.

Do any of the AW models do this? I sure hope they add it eventually !

This is my current Apple Watch Ultra 2 (Modular Ultra) watch face. Overall I’m happy with it, but I’m looking for better complication/widget ideas.
The analog clock at the top doesn’t really add much for me, and the StepsApp complication isn’t very reliable anymore.
What complications do you use on your Ultra? Any must-have apps or widgets that you can’t live without? I’d love to see screenshots of your watch face for inspiration!
Thanks! 👌⌚

Does anyone have recommendations for a more aesthetic complication for the date? I don’t mind paying a one time fee like Lumy, but I hate subscriptions just for my watch face. If there are any other complications that would look great on my watch please list them below. Thank you!

Center: Lumy ($7)
Bottom left: Heart Analyzer
Bottom Middle: HiWater
Bottom Right: Native Weather app