Apple has announced two new smartwatches: Apple Watch Series 6 and Apple Watch SE. Usually, every new Apple Watch sits at the top of the company’s lineup, making older ones a little cheaper as a result, but this year’s pace is different. The new Apple Watch SE looks a lot like the new $399 Series 6, but lacks a few standout features to make it to $279 less.
So which one should you get and how do these smartwatches compare to each other? Should you switch to Series 6 instead of SE? What happened to Series 5 that came out last year? And are you really missing out if you buy the cheapest Series 3 Watch? It’s getting more and more complex to spot the differences, so we’ll explain the features below to make your buying decision a little clearer.
Apple offers a comprehensive look at all the features of each model right here, but if you want a quick look at the specs, check out the table below. Let’s also point out: we haven’t used the Series 6 or Apple Watch SE yet, so don’t let these specs just guide you; Numbers don’t always tell you everything you need to know about technology.
Apple Watch specs comparison
| categories | Apple Watch Series 6 | Apple Watch SE | Apple Watch Series 5 | Apple Watch Series 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| categories | Apple Watch Series 6 | Apple Watch SE | Apple Watch Series 5 | Apple Watch Series 3 |
| starting price | $399 | $279 | $399 | $199 |
| Processor | S6 dual core processor | S5 dual core processor | S5 dual core processor | S3 dual core processor |
| watchOS version | watchOS 7 | watchOS 7 | watchOS 7 | watchOS 7 |
| water resistance | Water resistant up to 50 meters | Water resistant up to 50 meters | Water resistant up to 50 meters | Water resistant up to 50 meters |
| connection | Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 5.0 | Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 5.0 | Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 5.0 | Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 4.2 |
| LTE | Yes, $499 | yes, $329 | yes but hard to find | yes but hard to find |
| Built-in microphone and speaker | Yup | Yup | Yup | Yup |
| W-series Wireless chip | W3 | W3 | W3 | W2 |
| U1 Ultra Wideband support | Yup | Number | Number | Number |
| Always-on altimeter | Yup | Yup | No, but it still has an altimeter | No, but it still has an altimeter |
| Compass | Yup | Yup | Yup | Number |
| Digital Crown haptic feedback | Yup | Yup | Yup | Number |
| heart sensor | second generation optical heart sensor | optical heart sensor | second generation optical heart sensor | optical heart sensor |
| Case dimensions | 44mm, 40mm | 44mm, 40mm | 44mm, 40mm | 38mm,42mm |
| view | Always-on OLED Retina display | OLED Retina display | Always-on OLED Retina display | OLED Retina display |
| Screen size (approx.) | 44mm: 1.78″, 40mm: 1.57″ | 44mm: 1.78″, 40mm: 1.57″ | 44mm: 1.78″, 40mm: 1.57″ | 42mm: 1.65″, 38mm: 1.5″ |
| Screen resolution | 44mm: 368 x 448, 40mm: 324 x 394 | 44mm: 368 x 448, 40mm: 324 x 394 | 44mm: 368 x 448, 40mm: 324 x 394 | 42mm: 312 x 390, 38mm: 272 x 340 |
| to store | 32GB | 32GB | 32GB | 8GB |
| battery life | up to 18 hours | up to 18 hours | up to 18 hours | up to 18 hours |
| Family Setup support | Yes, with cellular version | Yes, with cellular version | Yes, with cellular version | Number |
| Fall detection? | Yup | Yup | Yup | Number |
| Emergency SOS | Yup | Yup | Yup | Yup |
| ECG app | Yup | Number | Yup | Number |
| Blood Oxygen application | Yup | Number | Number | Number |
| Noise monitoring | Yup | Yup | Yup | Number |
| High, low, or irregular heart notifications | Yup | Yup | Yup | Yup |
| optical heart sensor | Yup | Yup | Yup | Yup |
