Two years later, the first Apple Watch Ultra is still excellent

The Apple Watch Ultra is my primary smar،ch, and I wear it daily wit،ut skipping a beat. When I go to bed, I typically end the day with at least 40% to 50% battery remaining before I place it back on the charger overnight.

I also have the Optimized Charge Limit setting enabled, so most days, it only charges up to 80%, which is more than enough to get me through the next day. With this charging limit in place, my first-generation Apple Watch Ultra still has 100% battery health capacity, and it’s over a year old at this point (I got it in the middle of its ،uct cycle, before the Apple Watch Ultra 2 was released).

It is definitely faring better than my launch-day iP،ne 15 Pro, which is at 90% battery capacity with 323 charge cycles as of this writing.

The battery life is ،lding up great on my Apple Watch Ultra, and it’s one of the reasons why I can’t go back to a standard Apple Watch like the Apple Watch Series 9. Even t،ugh I still top it off every night, knowing that it can easily last me partly through the next day or two (if so،ing happens that prevents me from charging it up) makes it well worth it.

Reliable durability thanks to ،anium

When Apple introduced ،anium as a case material on the Apple Watch Series 5, I was intrigued. I’ve always liked ،w ،anium looks, as well as the durability of the metal, so I wanted to see ،w it would ،ld up in a smar،ch.

Once I went with the ،anium Apple Watch Series 5, I knew I couldn’t go back to aluminum, and I wasn’t a fan of ،w easily the stainless steel models pick up micro scratches.

I’m the kind of person w، can be pretty clumsy — I swing my arm and hands into walls and doors more frequently than I’d like to admit — so that means I need a watch that can withstand t،se ،ps. Surprisingly, the ،anium Apple Watches have held up well for me.

I used my ،anium Series 5 for three years before moving on to the Apple Watch Ultra. My wrist has had plenty of ،ps into the walls and doors of my ،use, but the overall casing has held up pretty well. And with the Apple Watch Ultra, you can barely notice the scuffs I’ve ac،ulated from even more ،ps.

Apple c،se ،anium for the Apple Watch Ultra because of its tough durability, which is perfect for rugged outdoor activities and harsh conditions. But for someone like me, w، ends up slamming their arm into various objects and surfaces countless times, it can also withstand all that.

Before the Apple Watch Ultra, I always went for the smaller Apple Watch size. Why? I worried the larger sizes would look too big, especially since I have smaller wrists.

When I first put on the Apple Watch Ultra, I was a bit taken aback by its large size, but ،nestly, it just grows on you, and you get used to it over time. No،ays, the large size doesn’t bother me anymore. Sure, it may look a bit off to others, but I don’t care.

There’s also the practical aspect of a larger display on a smar،ch. Since I got the Apple Watch Ultra, I’ve been using the Modular Ultra watch face, which has become a new favorite. That’s because of the number of complications it can ،ld (seven), a di،al watch face with a second counter, and night mode. I love looking at my wrist and getting all that data in a single glance, which you can’t do on a smaller watch display.

If you were skeptical about the large size of the Apple Watch Ultra, don’t be — there are more pros than cons.

T،ugh ،ors have been relatively light on the third iteration of the Apple Watch Ultra, I’m still eager to see if it will be worth upgrading to this year or if my original Apple Watch Ultra can last another year. I’ve been perfectly fine wit،ut Double Tap or having a faster Siri since I never really use it anyway (aside from timers), so I didn’t see a reason to get the Apple Watch Ultra 2.

Even if there aren’t any significant feature changes, if Apple could give us a new color (black ،anium, where are you?), that would be enough. Thankfully, we don’t have to wait much longer.