What is the newest Apple Watch in 2025? Plus, the updates you can expect

The Apple Watch is one of the top devices among fitness enthusiasts and lifestyle coinsseurs who want to track their steps and sleep in style. Even though there are plenty of models to choose from, it's always the newest Apple Watch that catches our attention - and for good reason.

The Apple Watch sits high on the list of best fitness trackers. Not only does this watch offer all the essentials in fitness tracking (with plenty of workout modes, statistics, and metric measurements on offer, along with links to Apple Fitness+) and health monitoring (including sleep monitoring), but the latest models work to make daily life easier too. With new processors speeding up the device, new features, and minimal changes to the much-loved design, there's no better time to take the plunge.

While we're big fans of the Apple Watch Series 9 at woman&home, it's no longer the newest Apple Watch in the brand's lineup. The Apple Watch Series 10 was launched late last year with some impressive new features.

What is the newest Apple Watch 2025?

The Apple Watch Series 10 is the newest Apple Watch, available in a range of sizes, colours, and materials. It's the watch with the largest display - yet thinnest design yet - offering enhanced functionality, advanced health tracking, and more seamless connectivity with other devices in the family, such as AirPods and the iPhone.

The Series 10 was released in September 2024, approximately a year after the previous model. It's available to buy directly from the retailer, as well as stores like Argos, Amazon, John Lewis, Very, and many more.

Apple Watch Series 10

At the unveiling last year, Apple said this new watch was the largest one yet - even larger than the Apple Watch Ultra, which was also released last year. It also has the brightest display and thinnest design yet, measuring just 9.7mm - which is 10% thinner than the previous Apple Watch Series 9. The aluminium casing is also 2.4g lighter than the previous version.

While battery life remains the same at 18 hours, this is the "fastest-charging Apple Watch ever" and is "extremely power efficient", according to Apple. Battery life is one of the reasons why some people like to weigh up other brands like Garmin vs Apple Watch before buying the newest Apple Watch.

The new Apple Watch Series 10 now has a speaker too, so users can play music and podcasts out loud, and make and receive calls without needing headphones.

It's also available in a new material: titanium. This is lighter and stronger than the aluminium, which the standard watch is made from - though choosing this alternative material comes with an additional £300 on the £399 price tag, putting it in line with some of the best Garmin watches. It's also available in two new colour options: polished "jet" black and rose gold, along with the brushed silver we've seen on previous models.

There are plus points for sustainability too, with a carbon-neutral design and manufacturing process made with 100% renewable energy.

Features-wise, reviewers have been getting excited about a new one that claims to detect sleep apnea - a condition where some people temporarily stop breathing in their sleep. Up to 90% of people with the condition go undiagnosed, per the Cleveland Clinic, and it's thought to affect more than a billion people around the world.

Other top new features on the Apple Watch Series 10 worth shouting about include:

• Pause your Activity Rings: The Activity Rings are the fitness tracking feature the Apple Watch became famous for all those years ago now. In the latest model, you can adjust and pause your rings and take a rest day, week, month, or custom period if you're under the weather or just want a break.
• Training Load: These days, many fitness trackers offer a Training Load feature, where users can see the impact exercise is having on their body. The latest Apple Watch now has that too, bringing it up to speed with running watches like the Garmin Forerunner 165 and Coros Pace 3, for example.
• Remote camera controls: One of the lesser-known apps on the Apple Watch is the remote camera control, where you can set up your iPhone and take a picture remotely through your watch. In the latest upgrade, you can pause the video recording as well.
• Check In: The Check In feature allows users to virtually "check in" with a friend or family member when arriving at a destination.
• Translation app: The Translate app is now available on the Apple Watch, thanks to the introduction of the speaker. You can speak your word or phrase into your watch and the device will play back the translation in your chosen language.

Apple Watch SE

The Apple Watch SE (Generation 2) is another newer release from the brand, coming out late last year, soon after the Apple Watch Series 10. It sits on the more budget-friendly end of the spectrum as a simple fitness tracker designed for those who love to get 10,000 steps in and learn how to sleep better but aren't too bothered about advanced features.

This one looks almost identical to the previous version of the Apple Watch SE, with the thick bezel and multiple customisation options. It comes in various sizes (40mm or 44mm) and is made of 100% recycled aluminium, much like the Series 10. Colours-wise, you'll find it available in a deep navy blue called Midnight, champagne-like Starlight, or Silver, with both silicone and nylon sport loop straps available.

It has significantly more battery life though, matching the Apple Watch Series 10 with 18 hours of use between charges.

Along with many of the same features of the Apple Watch Series 10 linked to watchOS11 - like the Training Load feature, the ability to pause and adjust activity rings, and the Translate app - that the previous model didn't have, this watch has an upgraded motion sensor. This means that previously premium features, such as Crash Detection, are now available on the more budget-friendly model.

What's missing from the Apple Watch SE compared to the Apple Watch Series 10 in terms of health metrics is the Blood Oxygen app and the ECG app, which can measure irregularities in your heart rate.

Is the newest Apple Watch worth buying?

Whether you're deciding between the Apple Watch Series 10 compared to previous models, it may well be worth upgrading if you find the newer features contribute positively to your daily life. Much like how it's always worth buying the newest Fitbit, opting for the latest model of any fitness tracker guarantees (99% of the time) a better working product with up-to-date features and software. Plus, the newer the model, the longer it should last.

For those considering the Apple Watch Series 10, the improvements in screen brightness, speed, and health features make it a winner. It also offers better interconnectivity between other Apple devices, so if you're an Apple fanatic at home and on the move, it's worth opting for the Series 10.

Price-wise, the RRP of the Series 10 release is the same as the Series 9 when it launched last year: £399. Given that it's been a few months since the device was released, you'll likely find it on sale during the big shopping seasons and over Black Friday. But, for the newest Apple Watch, this £400 price tag is fairly standard and other advanced fitness trackers and smartwatches can set you back a lot more. As always though, consider what you need to know before buying a fitness tracker before making a decision.

What are the other recent releases from Apple like?

Apple Watch Ultra 2

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is the brand's most advanced fitness tracker, offering more than ever before in terms of features, fitness tracking, health monitoring, battery life (up to 72 hours on low power mode), and navigation. With the 2024 release of the Apple Series 10, the Ultra 2 comes in a new colourway.

Along with all the features Apple Watch lovers are used to seeing, such as quick and accurate GPS, health monitoring, and sleep tracking, the Ultra 2 comes with some updates. The main upgrades on this newer version of the Ultra include a brighter screen (double that of the previous model), a faster processor (as also featured on the Series 9), the same Double-Tap feature as the Apple Watch Series 9, and better altitude and depth sensors for hikers, climbers, and divers among us, and watersports tracking features for the scuba divers and freedivers. Many users also report that the GPS is quicker to sync, making heading off and recording a walk, run, or hike even quicker and easier. It also comes with the same carbon-neutral credentials as the Series 9.

Needless to say, the extensive advanced features, rugged design, supreme outdoor focus, and premium pricing mean this isn't a standard Apple Watch. I'd advise opting for the Series 9 over the Ultra 2 unless you're someone who relishes the thought of a 36-hour battery life and spends more time outdoors on the move than inside.

Apple Watch Series 9

The Apple Watch Series 9 was launched in September 2023. When it comes to using the watch for daily life and monitoring health and fitness, all the essentials are there: heart rate tracking, including notifications for high and low heart rate; a wide variety of workout types, everything from yoga and strength training to dance and customised options; automatic workout detection, in case you forget to start your workout; mindfulness options like breathing exercises and mood logging; and advanced health tracking around sleep, ECG monitoring, irregular heart rate, and blood oxygen.

Those interested in potentially upgrading can expect the Series 9 to work faster than other models (up to 30%, the brand says), so swiping through the best workout apps, tapping out a text, and pressing to send the device to sleep will all elicit a quicker response on the screen.

There are a couple of new features which set the Apple Watch Series 9 and previous versions apart, including better screen brightness, eco-friendly credentials (the case is produced from 100% post-consumer aluminium), double the storage (64GB compared to 32GB), and more accurate, sensitive tracking, along with another colourway (pink).

However, perhaps the biggest change is the introduction of a new processor and something called a U2 ultrawide-band chip, which offers a pretty useful feature to users who often have their hands full. When wearing the watch, you can double tap your index and thumb (on the hand wearing the watch) together to access some features, including answering and ending phone calls, launching widgets in the new Smart Stack feature (you'll know it from changing the home screen on the iPhone), ending a timer, snoozing an alarm, or playing and pausing music.

Will there be a new Apple Watch released in 2025?

Following the pattern of previous years, we can expect to see the Apple Watch Series 11, the Apple Watch Ultra 3, and the Apple Watch SE 3, with the first release in the autumn of this year.

These updates cover the entire range, offering a watch for various price points and lifestyles.