One week with the Apple Watch Ultra: A UNIQUE, EXCLUSIVE, IMPRESSIVE Statement

A few weeks ago, in anticipation of the new Apple Watch Ultra's release, I wrote about what "my anything" would be. I decided that I did not want to pre-order the watch. I wanted to go to an Apple Store, see it for myself, and see if the store had any to sell on site. On September 23rd, after work, I picked up my wife and we went to the Apple Store to see if there were any available. My only option was to get the Ultra with a White Ocean Band; it was that or wait. I didn't wait! By the time this blog post gets published I will have worn the Ultra for a week. There are several who have reviewed the Ultra, including famous You Tuber MKBHD, and equally famous podcaster Stephen Hackett on this week's Connected podcast. I'm not interested in trying to get people to consider whether this watch is for them or not; that's a personal choice. What I am interested in is letting you know what my experience has been like wearing the watch for a week. Specifically, I will share what I'm liking about, from its size to its new watch bands. Let's begin with the size of the watch.

Size Does Matter

I was excited to see what the Ultra's 49mm display looked like "in the wild." When I got to the Apple Store and saw one of the demo models, which the Apple Store employees were way cool with me testing out my 45mm watch bands on, I knew right away that this watch was for me. It is gigantic compared to the Series 45mm watches. I've always been a big fan of a large watch; I actually owned one of the first generation Casio G-Shock watches. I am quite confident that my wrist is "owning" the size of the Ultra, as witnessed in this photo.

My wrist was made for this Watch!

It makes a very impressive statement! I was also curious as to how the watch would feel on my wrist being made of Titanium.

Weight on my Wrist/Titanium Build

When I picked up the demo model to try my Series 45mm bands I did notice immediately that the Ultra felt heavier. While my previous Series watch, made of Aluminium, has a lower density than the Titanium Ultra, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that, after purchasing my Ultra and putting it on in the store, it did not feel much heavier on my wrist. Not ever owning a watch made of Titanium I do have to say that it looks aesthetically more impressive to me than the Aluminium watch. This thing is ticking some serious boxes for me! Another exclusive feature to this watch is the Action Button.

Action Button

Experimenting with the Action Button was one of the things I was most looking forward to and it has not disappointed; sort of. I spent some time looking over some of my frequently used Shortcuts in the hopes that I could "promote one" to the Action Button. I've tried a few Shortcuts and have found them not to be cooperating on the Ultra so until the Shortcuts are working I am testing out something a bit more utilitarian. As of this blog post I am using both Outdoor Walk and Indoor Walk with an open goal. I wasn't quite prepared for how fast the Action Button was going to get me to each of these workouts. I was anticipating a "3-2-1" count down, like you get when you initiate workouts from the Workout app. Not the case. When I pressed the Action Button to start my Outdoor Walk workout it immediately started; how cool is that?! My plan is to alternate between the two workouts as it only takes a few seconds to set up. Size, made of Titanium, an Action Button, how much more exclusive and impressive of a statement could this watch get? Can someone say, "Wayfinder?!"

Watch Face

The Apple Watch Ultra comes with a watch face that unique to this model; the Wayfinder watch face. I love the colors available on this face as well as the look; so mucch that I have decided it is going to be my all day watch face. Wayfinder has capacity for 8 complications; I am currently using 6. I like how you can change the outer Bezel from Latitude and Longitude readings to the Style setting of minute intervals for the current hour. The compass in the Bezel works really well, the Compass app still isn't available in my area; sort of weird. That, or maybe I need to change my watch band as the Ocean Band does have metal on it.

NOTE: The only other watch face I use is Numerals Duo/Arabic Indic, which I have the watch switch to when I am in Writing or Driving Focus Mode so I am not distracted during those times.

On Screen QWERTY Keyboard

My Series 6 Watch did not have the ability to access the On Screen QWERTY keyboard. I swipe when I text and with the 49mm display that we get on the Ultra, texting short messages to people via the QWERTY keyboard has been a joy!

Battery

Anecdotal records are showing that the battery on my Ultra is a BEAST!! I charged the watch on a Saturday morning, the day after I bought it, and wore it all day Saturday, all day Sunday, got up Monday morning and went for a 3 mile walk with the Workout app activated and at 11:28am Monday morning still had 52% battery left! At 7pm that evening I was only down to 37%.

Watch Bands

As stated previously, my watch came with the White Ocean Band. It has quickly become my favorite band. I love the feel of it. Apple's website states that the band is, "Molded from fluoroelastomer rubber..." I love it so much I just ordered the Midnight Ocean Band. I've also tried some of my Series bands on the Ultra; namely the Black Sports band. The Black Sports band, which I wear to bed and during workouts both feels and fits just fine on the Ultra.

Size, Titanium build, fast acting Action Button, the Wayfinder watch face, an amazing battery life, and the Ocean Bands put together make a uniquely, impressive statement! My "anything" has been realized on many levels!!!