The Series 11 offers longer battery life than its predecessor and adds 5G cellular support without a price increase over the Series 10. These welcome upgrades make the best Apple Watch for most people better than ever.
The Apple Watch Series 11 doesn’t rock the boat, but it doesn’t need to. Apple’s latest Series smartwatch is identical in many ways to the Series 10, with the same display, measurements, processor, and sensors. On the other hand, the changes it offers are important, especially a bump in battery life. Other upgrades for this generation include a harder glass screen cover for improved scratch resistance, 5G for faster cellular connectivity, and a wealth of new software features via watchOS 26. Starting at the same $399 as the last generation, it’s a polished upgrade and remains ahead of the competition in terms of quality and performance, earning it our Editors’ Choice award as the best smartwatch for most iPhone users. Price and Materials: Same Cost, More Variety
Starting at $399, the Series 11 is the middle option in Apple’s smartwatch lineup. The Apple Watch SE 3 (starting at $249) is a compelling alternative for those shopping on a budget, as it has an always-on display and the same chip as Series 11, though it still lacks features like the ability to provide blood oxygen levels and ECGs. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 ($799) has satellite connectivity for emergency communication and even longer battery life, making it the best-suited model for adventurers.
The Series 11 is arguably the nicest-looking of the bunch, with an excellent 2,000-nit LTPO3 wide-angle OLED display for improved brightness and off-angle visibility compared with the SE 3, and a sleeker design than the bulky Ultra 3. The Series 11 also offers the widest variety of colors and case options of the lineup. It’s available in 42 or 46mm sizes with the cases made of either 100% recycled aluminum or 100% recycled titanium. For comparison, the SE 3 is available with a 40mm or 44mm aluminum case, while the Ultra 3 only comes in one 49mm titanium case option.
For this review, I tested the 46mm aluminum Series 11 in the Space Gray colorway. The aluminum version also comes in Jet Black, Rose Gold, or Silver, and the titanium version in Gold, Natural, or Slate.
Of the Series 11 models, the 42mm aluminum is the most affordable at $399, while the 46mm variant starts at $429. You’ll need to pay a $100 premium for cellular connectivity in addition to GPS. Pricing for titanium Series 11 models skews much closer to the $799 Ultra 3. In titanium, the 42mm Series 11 starts at $699 and the 46mm size at $749. As with the Ultra 3, cellular connectivity comes standard on the titanium Series 11.
In addition to case finish and size, you also get to choose from a wide variety of band materials and colors, including rubber, textile, and stainless steel. This year, Apple has added some new color options to the mix, including forest green, neon yellow, anchor blue, and purple fog. The sporty Nike bands come in new colors as well, and the premium Apple Watch Hermès collection has been refreshed with new band designs and colors and a matching watch face that evokes the Hermès store in Paris.
While the Series 11 doesn’t get a price increase over the Series 10, Apple’s flagship is more expensive than the Android competition. Both the Google Pixel Watch 4 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 start at $349.99, with similar price increases for cellular options and bigger sizes. Design and Specs: Comfortably Familiar
For the most part, the Series 11 retains the sleek design of last year’s Apple Watch Series 10. The previous generation shaved off a full millimeter of depth compared with the Series 9, and introduced the LTPO3 display with a wider viewing angle, more active area, and smaller bezels. The Series 10 also switched the material for the premium versions from stainless steel to lightweight titanium. The results earned positive marks from us across the board.
For the Series 11, Apple has updated the display cover to Ion-X glass, which the company says is twice as scratch-resistant as the glass on the previous generation. Otherwise, the Series 11 design matches the Series 10 exactly, including IP6X dust protection and water resistance to a depth of 164 feet.
It measures 1.65 by 1.41 by 0.38 inches (or 42mm by 36mm by 9.7mm, HWD) for the smaller version and 1.81 by 1.53 by 0.38 inches (46mm by 39mm by 9.7mm) for the larger variant. The display area and resolution match last year as well: The 42mm version has 374 by 446 pixels with a 989-square-millimeter display area, and the larger holds 416 by 496 pixels with 1,220mm^2.
Aside from the new bands and color options, you’d have a hard time telling the Series 10 and the Series 11 apart, but both are attractive watches with slick performance and beautiful screens.
On the inside, the similarities continue. The Series 11 carries forward the S10 chip with a 64-bit dual-core processor, a quad-core neural engine for machine learning tasks, and 64GB of storage. I would have expected Apple to update the processor this generation, but the S10 chip still performs smoothly.
Connectivity comes via dual-band Wi-Fi and optional 5G cell service, upgrades from the Series 10, which only has 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and LTE cellular. Otherwise, the wireless toolkits are identical between the watches: Bluetooth 5.3, L1 GPS, NFC for Apple Pay, and second-generation ultra-wideband for precise location tracking. Both have a built-in microphone with noise isolation for calls and a speaker for media playback.
The Series 11 has the same sensor suite as the last generation, including Apple’s third-gen optical heart rate sensor plus an electrical heart sensor for ECG. It also packs an altimeter, ambient light sensor, compass, gyroscope, underwater depth gauge, and water temperature sensor. Setup and Controls: Easy as Ever
The Series 11 comes packaged with your watch strap of choice as well as a puck-shaped charger. The strap ends easily slide into place on the side of the watch and secure with a satisfying click. You can remove them to swap in a new one with the buttons on the bottom of the watch.
Getting started with the Apple Watch hasn’t changed much in a while, which is fine, as the process is quick and easy. Press the side button on the watch to turn it on, and then it’ll ask you to select your language and region. Next, open the Apple Watch app on your phone, and it’ll walk you through the pairing and setup process. You can set a passcode and default text size, and Apple will ask for your demographic details, such as age, weight, and sex, information it uses to calibrate your health metrics.
During setup, you can also set activity goals, configure Siri, and optionally set up cellular service. You also have the option to enable safety features, including fall and crash detection, and easy access to Emergency SOS via a press and hold of the side button.
After setup, the Apple Watch will install updates and walk you through tips and tricks. Once the watch is up and running, you can press the crown button to open your app drawer from the watch face, or to quickly return to the watch face from any other screen. Press and hold the crown button to access Siri. The side button opens the Control Center (where you can check your connection, battery life, and more) with a single press, or you can double-tap it to open Apple Pay.
Swipe down from the top of the watch face for notifications or swipe up to see your Smart Stack. Press and hold the watch face to customize its look and complications or to switch to a different one.
The iOS Watch app offers even more options for your watch face. You can also use it to configure settings for any of your apps, customize your Smart Stack, check for updates, and manage notifications.
The iOS Health app lets you set up a Medical ID so first responders can quickly find relevant information via your phone and watch.
