Apple aims for dominance of smartwatch market with flashy Ultra Watch

Apple’s upgraded smartwatches have fitness buffs and hardcore outdoorsmen buzzing — even if the tech giant’s new line of iPhone’s failed to cause much of a stir.

The Apple Watch Ultra was the most innovative product unveiled during the company’s much-anticipated annual event Wednesday, many enthusiasts said. It goes on sale Sept. 23 for $799.

The sleek, titanium-designed watch will get up to 36 hours of battery life on each charge — or up to 60 hours under a new battery optimization feature. By comparison, the current generation Apple Watch Series 7 has an 18-hour battery life.

Underscoring its pitch to extreme athletes, Apple said that the Ultra also includes a more precise GPS and a new app called Backtrack that helps hikers retrace their steps. If gadget enthusiasts wander too far off the trail or find themselves trapped, they can activate an 86-decibel siren that can be heard up to 600 meters away, according to Apple. 

“It’s honestly so impressive,” gushed iJustine, a YouTube star who tested out the device at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters. “This is built for the action sports person in mind, but who’s to say the everyday person can’t enjoy the Apple Watch Ultra.” 

For divers, the Apple Watch is water resistant up to 100 meters and comes with a new depth detector and an app that can help guide their ascents and descents. 

The device also comes with three built-in microphones that are intended to improve sound quality and help users make calls in windy environments. 

It comes in three differently textured and colored bands for climbers, hikers and scuba divers. 

The Ultra and the new $399 Apple Watch Series 8 also feature upgraded fertility and period tracking features for women. Both watches also come with a feature that can detect car crashes 

Apple’s rollout of the Ultra marks the company’s attempt to compete with Garmin, which currently dominates the market for pricey, outdoorsy smartwatches. 

Garmin offers more than two dozen smartwatches, some of which sell for as much as $1,500. The Apple Watch Ultra’s comparatively low price point gives the company flexibility to introduce specialized, pricier editions in the coming years. 

While the Ultra was the Apple of enthusiasts’ eyes, the new lineup of iPhone 14s were largely panned for incremental improvements, such as upgraded cameras. The Pro and Pro Max iPhone 14s main innovation was a redesigned notch at the top of the screen. 

Even the daughter of Apple founder Steve Jobs poked fun at the lack of changes in the new iPhone lineup with an Instagram meme on Wednesday. Eve Jobs posted an image showing a person in a striped shirt opening up a present that featured an identical shirt.