by If you thought the Apple Watch Ultra was big with its 1.92-inch screen, then you haven’t seen anything as a future Apple Watch Ultra could have an even larger display according to this latest leak.
This comes from DigiTimes (opens in new tab)which claims (via BGR (opens in new tab)) that in 2024 Apple will release a version of the Apple Watch Ultra with a 2.1-inch screen. It will also apparently use micro-LED display technology instead of OLED.
This latter change would potentially make the screen brighter, display more vibrant colors and be easier to view from an angle than the current OLED display. According to a January 2023 report by Mark Gurman – a respected leaker – making the same micro-LED claim, it would also make the display look almost like it was painted onto the glass.
As for the size increase, a move from 1.92 inches to 2.1 inches might not sound dramatic, but for reference, the Apple Watch 8 only has a 1.69-inch screen, and we’ve got in our Apple Watch Ultra Test found it can feel gigantic when moving from an older, smaller model. So a further increase in size is certainly remarkable.
Of course, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, as we considered the Ultra’s display to be a highlight overall, as its size makes it easy to use and clear to see.
Whether this will happen, well, it looks pretty likely. As noted above, the micro-LED bit has been rumored elsewhere as well, while analyst Jeff Pu (via MacRumors (opens in new tab)) recently made exactly the same claim as DigiTimes, both in terms of size and tech changes.
However, 2024 is still a long way off, so we would still take these claims with a pinch of salt.
Analysis: The Apple Watch Ultra 2 or 3?
One question we have is whether these supposed upgrades are planned for the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or the Apple Watch Ultra 3.
The original Apple Watch Ultra landed in September 2022, so September 2023 seems like an obvious launch date for the Apple Watch Ultra 2, especially since standard Apple Watch models have been launching in September every year since the Apple Watch 2.
But this isn’t a standard Apple Watch – it’s rather the beginning of a new line, so we can’t be sure Apple will treat it the same way.
In fact, there’s reason to believe that we may not see an Apple Watch Ultra 2 until 2024. For one, the leaks we’re hearing so far are talking about a 2024 model, and you should think we’d have heard about the 2023 release as well, if one was planned.
Also, the Apple Watch SE line isn’t available annually as the Apple Watch SE 2 lands two years after the original model, so Apple may do something similar with the Apple Watch Ultra.
Based on the first Ultra, these are big, flashy watches with huge price tags, so Apple might need to find some significant upgrades for a new one to justify their existence, again suggesting we could be waiting more than a year between them.
One thing is for sure though, whenever the Apple Watch Ultra 2 lands, it’s likely to be one of the very best smartwatches out there – especially if it includes the upgrades mentioned above.
