At Apple’s event on Monday, September 9, many were surprised when the new Apple Watch Series 10 was announced without the Apple Watch Ultra 3. A new report says the Watch, along with the Apple Watch SE which was also missing will be released next year.
It made sense to expect the Apple Watch Ultra 3 soon, given that there was only a one-year gap between the first and second models, suggesting yearly updates. The Apple Watch SE has never followed an annual release cycle. Instead, Apple introduced a new color for the Watch Ultra 2, with a sleek and appealing black finish.
According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from TFI Securities, both the Apple Watch and SE 3 will be part of Apple’s 2025 lineup. Kuo, who posted on X, accurately predicted in October 2023 that the chances of an Apple Watch Ultra update in 2024 were slim. In a recent post, Kuo reiterated that the absence of Ultra 3 at this year’s event matched his earlier prediction. He also confirmed that the 2025 Watch models will include the Ultra 3 and an upgraded SE version.
There’s some flexibility in this prediction. Apple has always released new Watch models in the fall, except for the original Watch, which was announced in the fall of 2014, exactly 10 years before the latest keynote. This suggests that we might have to wait another year for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and the 3rd generation Apple Watch SE.
There’s a chance the Apple Watch SE could be released in the spring, possibly alongside a new iPhone SE. However, it seems likely that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 will debut in about 12 months, potentially featuring its own design upgrade.