Apple updated its entire lineup of Apple Watch models at its «awe dropping» event on Tuesday, with the Apple Watch Series 11 leading the pack. Although the design is the same as last year’s slimmer flagship model, this version increases battery life, adds 5G connectivity on cellular models and boosts its health offerings with hypertension notifications and Sleep Score analysis.
With a decade of upgrades and refinements, the Series 11 represents a big move for Apple as it leans further into its health and fitness features on its smartwatches. Alongside the Series 11, Apple also unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3, as well as the new iPhone 17 lineup, a brand new iPhone Air and the latest generation of AirPods (Pro 3).
The Series 11, SE 3 and Ultra 3 will ship with WatchOS 26, which Apple previewed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The update brings a cleaner «liquid glass» UI, live translation for text messages, a redesigned Notes app for your wrist and Workout Buddy; Apple’s new AI-powered companion that offers real-time motivation based on your personal metrics during certain workouts.
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Pricing and availability
The Apple Watch Series 11 is available for preorder now and will hit stores on Sept. 19. Pricing starts at $399 ( 369, AU$679) for the 42mm aluminum Wi-Fi model, while the cellular version of the same watch runs $499. The titanium cellular version of the 42mm model is priced at $699.
New Apple Watch health features
Apple continues to broaden the health features of the Apple Watch. The biggest addition is a notification if you’re showing signs of hypertension or high blood pressure. This isn’t a full blood pressure monitor, as some have hoped for, but a potentially important screening. The Apple Watch will send alerts if it notices consistent patterns over a 30-day period that could warrant a follow-up with a doctor, and then allow users to log their blood pressure on the Health app (from a cuff) to confirm. The day after the Apple event, the US Food and Drug Administration cleared the Apple Watch for the feature.
Another health upgrade is the new Sleep Score, which grades your sleep session on a scale of 1 to 100 or low to excellent. The watch doesn’t just hand you a number with no context. It breaks down your score by showing you specific factors that may have impacted your, like your bedtime, how much sleep you got total and the number of sleep interruptions and their durations.
And Apple isn’t gatekeeping, because these features are also arriving on older models beyond just the newer Series 11 and Ultra 3. Hypertension notifications will be available on the Series 9, Series 10, Ultra 2 and Ultra 3. Sleep Score will also be available on the SE 3 (out of the box), and come via WatchOS 26 update on September 15th to the Series 6 and later, SE 2 and later and all models of the Ultra. Sleep Score requires an iPhone 11 or newer running iOS 26.
Design updates
Visually, the Series 11 looks much like the Series 10, with the same thin profile and edge-to-edge display. But there’s a subtle, practical upgrade: the aluminum model now uses stronger, more scratch-resistant glass, making it more durable for everyday wear.
Under the hood, the Series 11 keeps the same S10 chip as its predecessor. It’s the same processor that’s now on the Ultra 3 and SE 3 models.
Connectivity and battery
For the first time, the cellular model of the Series 11 supports 5G connectivity, which Apple says is not only faster but also more efficient at conserving battery life when in use (it uses a flavor called 5G RedCap, or 5G Reduced Capacity, that requires less power than the 5G on your iPhone). That same 5G capability is also debuting on the Ultra 3 and SE 3, marking the first time either of those models have moved beyond LTE speeds.
Battery life has also received a bump beyond just the more efficient cellular use. The Series 11 now promises up to 24 hours on a charge, compared to the 18 hours of the Series 10. Apple tends to be conservative with its battery claims, so in real-world use, we may see it expand beyond the official promise. For example, I’ve consistently been able to stretch out the Series 10’s 18-hour claim to almost 30 hours with one workout and sleep tracking.
