Apple Watch Ultra 4 Review: Free Readiness Score Wins
By @sharedot · · 6 pages
- Gadgets
- Apple Watch Ultra 4
- Wearables
The Apple Watch Ultra 4's free Readiness Score is the star, with battery past 50 hours — but Ultra 3 owners get little reason to upgrade.
The Ultra 4 is here: same titanium, smarter insides
Apple's rugged flagship keeps its 49mm Grade 5 titanium build, Always-On LTPO3 OLED display rated up to 3,000 nits and customizable Action Button, but TechRadar reports the real changes are inside: a new Apple-made S11 chip, a redesigned rear Health Sensing System with a wider layout of electrodes and diodes, and a larger battery promising up to 50 hours of normal use.
Priced at $799 / £749 / AU$1,349 — unchanged from the Ultra 3, which TechRadar calls great news amid a components-cost crunch — both Natural and Black Titanium finishes include Wi-Fi and cellular as standard.
TechRadar's verdict: a fantastic refinement, with excellent battery life and responsive performance.
Why the free Readiness Score is the surprise
According to TechRadar, the standout feature is watchOS 27's Readiness Score, which turns sleep and prior-day activity into a 0–10 score with a matching phrase — and crucially, no subscription.
TechRadar notes rivals gate this kind of daily-readiness insight behind paywalls, most notably the Oura Ring and Whoop, while Garmin and Google offer comparable tools free only after buying their hardware.
The reviewer, an Apple Watch wearer since the 2015 launch, calls it their new favorite feature and a gap-filler for Apple's health lineup, complete with Fitness, Vitals and Sleep Score breakdowns that update through the day.
Evidence: two-day battery and faster charging
TechRadar says it easily managed two days of use with the Always-On display and overnight sleep tracking enabled, surpassing the 50-hour listed figure — though Garmin rivals still last longer on a charge.
The S11 chip keeps watchOS 27 fluid, and faster charging replenishes roughly 30% of the battery in 15 to 20 minutes via the updated USB-C puck.
The caveats: no major design changes and no night-and-day performance jump over the Ultra 3, so previous-generation owners may not find enough here to upgrade immediately.
The wrist becomes the gym dashboard
The Ultra 4 lands just as studios start treating the Apple Watch as their own hardware.
Trend Hunter reports Orangetheory Fitness launched OTconnect for Apple Watch on October 23 at participating U.S. studios, connecting members' personal watches to the studio tracking system for a one-time $99 fee — showing heart rate, calories, training zones and Splat Points on the wrist instead of Orangetheory's dedicated monitor.
Trend Hunter frames the move as wearable-native fitness: less hardware friction, richer member data, and a new revenue layer.