The Apple Watch Ultra 4 beat Apple’s battery claims in our testing, but it’s not the only Apple Watch getting a boost. I put its battery life and new Readiness Score to the test to find out whether they’re worth the upgrade. Full review:
You can find the products mentioned in this video linked below
Apple Watch Ultra 4 GPS + Cellular 49mm Smartwatch
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Read more about Apple Watch Ultra 4 on CNET.com
The Brand-New Apple Watch Ultra 4 Is Already $99 Off, a New Low Price for This Model
Timecode Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:06 Battery Life & Extended Workout Modes
3:02 Running Battery Test
5:32 Battery Test Results & Metrics Comparison
6:29 Fast Charging Speed
6:51 Readiness Score Feature
9:43 Audio Intelligence Feature
10:10 Final Verdict & Recommendation
Video Credits:
Host: Vanessa Hand Orellana
Scripted by: Vanessa Hand Orellana
Producer: Celso Bulgatti
Camera: Celso Bulgatti
Video Editor: Dillon Lopez
Thumbnail Designer: Cole Kan
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#smartwatches #apple #Apple Watch Ultra 4
@nuraprilia9694
October 12, 2026 at 10:13 am
Drop test!
@HarlemGreatest
October 12, 2026 at 10:48 am
If it’s not 2 weeks or more who cares. I don’t need to be monitoring battery life on a watch
@nunyabeezwacks1408
October 12, 2026 at 12:11 pm
I care, as do others who have purchased it.
@HarlemGreatest
October 12, 2026 at 5:31 pm
@nunyabeezwacks1408 an idiot is born everyday . apple love fools with their money draining incremental upgrade ..
@dougenhall5638
October 12, 2026 at 11:02 am
You should test tracking through Strava, while also using it to run the music to your headphones! My Ultra 2 died 3km out from the end of a marathon, from 100% the night before. Just using the standard apple fitness app will barely drain battery
@vanessahandorellana
October 12, 2026 at 12:35 pm
Noooooo!!!!!! That’s devastating!!!! I would’ve been 😤🤬
@Justin-uc8sc
October 12, 2026 at 6:39 pm
How is that even possible? I ran a 6h23m ultra last year with my Ultra 1 and had 40% left
@sunflash9
October 12, 2026 at 11:50 am
Doesn’t matter, still too short on battery.
@Jpvashon
October 12, 2026 at 12:13 pm
Get 10-14 days with Whoop Band
@alexanderfazel
October 12, 2026 at 1:35 pm
Nah. Whoop has no other features that a smart watch has and you have pay subscription fees.
@GHinWI
October 12, 2026 at 1:36 pm
…in part because it barely does anything
@Jpvashon
October 12, 2026 at 1:59 pm
@alexanderfazel I wear both. The subscription fees are a pain but Whoop does so much more than the Ultra and uses AI. Sleep is much better documented and quite a few other metrics as well. I have been wearing the Whoop for 70 days
@VohnJaymedia
October 12, 2026 at 12:34 pm
Great review! I also chuckled so loud when you fell when your were “alseep” with the watch needed that!
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 12, 2026 at 4:36 pm
Thanks haha. In hindsight, I probably should’ve put some pillows down, cause that actually hurt!
@TopTomThing
October 12, 2026 at 12:40 pm
remember how apple watch 1 normalized the silly 12-hour battery life? these devices are toys not spots watches in my opinion.
@GHinWI
October 12, 2026 at 1:34 pm
This is what I was thinking.
The battery seems to last forever compared to my OG ultra.
@GregoriusAM
October 12, 2026 at 2:05 pm
I really love your videos. Very informative, well shot, well edited. I always come away thinking that that was well worth my time watching. Thank you so much. 😊
And that shot of you falling off the couch because of the weight of the watch?! Priceless. 😂
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 12, 2026 at 4:34 pm
Truly appreciate the encouraging feedback!! 💕 In hindsight, “falling” off the bed was not the greatest idea hahah. Was pretty sore after!
@GregoriusAM
October 12, 2026 at 5:14 pm
@Vane-hand-orelllana🤣
@robbienayuh
October 12, 2026 at 2:11 pm
VO back at it again! 🫡 to you hermana 👏🏽.
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 12, 2026 at 3:38 pm
Gracias por el apoyo 💕 Saludos 🫡
@robbienayuh
October 12, 2026 at 3:43 pm
@Vane-hand-orelllana 🫶🏽
@lunar3129
October 12, 2026 at 2:14 pm
maybe I’m tweaking but even on my series 12, the battery lasts longer than what they advertised it seems.
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 12, 2026 at 4:32 pm
You’re definitely not tweaking! I got a more than advertised too. And that’s even without the two battery saving modes in workouts. That’ll be a game changer, you should try them too!
@CNET
October 12, 2026 at 2:30 pm
Read more about Apple Watch Ultra 4 on CNET.com: The Brand-New Apple Watch Ultra 4 Is Already $99 Off, a New Low Price for This Model
@manishnailwal4178
October 12, 2026 at 2:38 pm
Paid puppets.
@KrishnaSingh-rg4qk
October 12, 2026 at 3:44 pm
❤
@KrishnaSingh-rg4qk
October 12, 2026 at 3:45 pm
Will trade my ultra 2
@amrknu
October 12, 2026 at 4:19 pm
I use the Ultra for a couple of years but i still dont understand how Huawei can give the user 11 days battery life in a similar watch and Apple only 2-3 days…
@BruceLeeRoy26
October 13, 2026 at 10:36 am
Well Huawei watches aren’t smartwatches, there’s no chipset or WearOS. It’s 2026 and people still don’t know the difference between fitness trackers and smartwatches.
Fitness trackers are like cellphones from the early 2000s that are limited to what they can do and require less battery, hence why those phones had a standby time of days rather than hours.
@MaxDelorean2
October 12, 2026 at 4:38 pm
Look how scratched up it is already at 1:10. That is disappointing! I’m glad I didn’t buy it.
@kumarashwarya2185
October 12, 2026 at 5:04 pm
My coros tracks heart rate every second and lasts like 12 days with 3-4 runs during those days + gym sessions.
Like why am I going to spend 800 bucks on a sub-par AI assistant. Also I don’t need to use touchscreen to use my watch.
@akritbehera7751
October 12, 2026 at 6:10 pm
use siri?
@Oharsh0928
October 12, 2026 at 6:18 pm
Why do you have airplane mode on? I might have missed it if you said why in your video?
@vanessahandorellana
October 12, 2026 at 7:10 pm
Mostly for consistency. Wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting any calls or notifications that could sway results. Also to force it to use the onboard GPS rather than relying on phone GPS which might also sway results
@Oharsh0928
October 12, 2026 at 7:19 pm
@vanessahandorellanagotcha. Thanks
@vanessahandorellana
October 13, 2026 at 12:20 am
@Oharsh0928of course! I imagine it would drain a bit faster with LTE and notifications on.
@Oharsh0928
October 13, 2026 at 4:43 am
@vanessahandorellanafor sure. I just never use airplane mode so I was curious why you had it on.
@Justin-uc8sc
October 12, 2026 at 6:32 pm
If for whatever reason you need it for a 500 hour ultramarathon or whatever, you can use extended mode with an external heart rate chest strap for instant readings without affecting the battery
@vanessahandorellana
October 12, 2026 at 7:08 pm
Great tip!!
@nisarmohammad3638
October 12, 2026 at 6:34 pm
Readiness Score 11:30 By discouraging alcohol consumption, Islam aligns with the Apple Watch’s health insights,
both recognizing that staying clear of alcohol protects your physical recovery and long-term vitality
@DavidGonzalez-kv1nc
October 12, 2026 at 6:40 pm
I easily get 2 days with my ultra 4 with daily workouts ranging from
60-90min WHILE listening to audiobooks (Audible app). The simplicity of media AND fitness is the main reason I have stayed with the Apple Watch. I was a long time Garmin user, but they just didn’t measure up and honestly, it’s not like I’m not near an outlet every other days.
@felipedornelas4180
October 15, 2026 at 7:57 am
@DavidGonzalez-kv1nc fênix 8 😂😅
@BroAnarchy
October 12, 2026 at 7:23 pm
60 hours (or 2 ½ days) ain’t bad, but i think it could ×definitely× be better
@adamchase1517
October 12, 2026 at 9:27 pm
I can’t seem to finish the battery Everytime I think it’s about to die I check and it’s still got 35% left
@SatishKumar-uz7bz
October 12, 2026 at 10:33 pm
Still NO YouTube on the Apple Watch…
@jsam316
October 13, 2026 at 3:54 am
@SatishKumar-uz7bz there is. Wrist tube
@SatishKumar-uz7bz
October 13, 2026 at 4:40 am
@jsam316I know but like not a official YouTube app where you can search a specific video and watch and WristTube is not free you gotta pay $8 subscription
@Scott17893cx
October 13, 2026 at 5:34 am
I really like the design of the Apple Watch and don’t want to be mean but my Garmin actually laughed when you said readiness score and battery life. Come again??
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 14, 2026 at 12:19 pm
😅 Fair! That’s why I called it out too hahah
@Scott17893cx
October 14, 2026 at 7:08 pm
@Vane-hand-orelllana 😂 us battery nerds appreciate the nod!!
@2443Bobby
October 13, 2026 at 7:11 am
If you were using cellular it would not be close to this
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 14, 2026 at 12:18 pm
Agreed! That’ll have to be another test! Though I personally like to disconnect when I’m on the trails.
@DanaCreate
October 13, 2026 at 7:49 am
3 days of battery life and you’re proud of it?? Just go buy Garmin, cheaper, better, and last longer
@Kiss__Kiss
October 13, 2026 at 7:54 am
I have the Ultra 2 and preordered the 4. I don’t see that much of a difference, and that’s okay. Since I only use them to tell time, and receive emails/texts. lol
@Techs.Plainer
October 13, 2026 at 9:58 am
lol upgrading just to check the time and texts is such an expensive habit 😂
@Kiss__Kiss
October 13, 2026 at 2:01 pm
@Techs.Plainer 😂🤣😅I have a problem.
@peppeddu
October 13, 2026 at 8:43 am
The glucose monitoring feature is the holy grail no one has yet achieved.
If Apple can pull it off, sales of the Apple Watch will go thru the roof.
@okaayyyybuddy1927
October 13, 2026 at 9:06 am
Just like how the series 12 now lasts 48 hours for some reason
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 13, 2026 at 12:53 pm
100% Apple has completely undersold both!
@Akadehmix
October 13, 2026 at 9:39 am
If you don’t exercise a lot, it pushes 4 days for me.
@Techs.Plainer
October 13, 2026 at 9:57 am
4 days on an apple watch is actually insane lol that’s finally some battery life worth talking about
@Mywatchtime2
October 14, 2026 at 6:13 am
max mode.
No text. social and blah?
Just Bluetooth? my gshock dwh5600 has better values.
sleep is a dream 😅
@nelsdale1137
October 14, 2026 at 7:18 am
Outstanding review! Is this the new CNET DC?!
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 14, 2026 at 12:17 pm
Thanks 💕
@hughrouse3961
October 14, 2026 at 9:16 am
Great review – Do you lose connectivity when in extended mode? Can you listen to podcast or live stream?
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 14, 2026 at 12:17 pm
Great question! I tested it on airplane mode for consistency (and to force it to use built-in GPS), but I’ll have to test it with streaming too. I would assume you can still do it because Apple’s spec sheet only mentioned “no notifications” on extended max.
@patosieR
October 14, 2026 at 10:01 am
battery that is probably the worst in the premium smart watch category that it can only highlight hours instead of days. no hate with apple watch but they really have to step up the battery
@Techs.Plainer
October 14, 2026 at 3:13 pm
yeah garmin has been doing multi day battery life for years but apple still has the edge when it comes to apps and iphone integration just wish we didn’t have to choose between the two lol
@Stephenmaly
October 14, 2026 at 10:48 am
Firstly well done on beating your times with each run. But I noticed that the watch was on airplane mode – doesn’t that impact battery?
@Vane-hand-orelllana
October 14, 2026 at 12:15 pm
Thank you!! Wish I could keep the 3X a week cadence, then I’d be flying through that mountain haha. I would imagine keeping it on airplane mode helps battery life to have it on airplane mode, but since I was mostly interested in consistency and establishing a baseline, I figured it was a fair trade. Having it on airplane mode forces it to use the built-in GPS and ensures I don’t get calls and texts that might unfairly drain battery more or less.
@ak_hoops
October 14, 2026 at 11:23 am
I’m finding that my new series 12 is lasting way more than I could expect. Like it used around 8% over a sleep session
@NetworkVenky
October 14, 2026 at 12:45 pm
The most regretted decision that I made was buying an Apple watch.
The battery charge can’t last even a day.
Useless purchase, waste of money.
@Techs.Plainer
October 14, 2026 at 3:12 pm
yeah charging a watch every single day gets old real fast lol which model do you have tho because the ultra models usually last way longer
@bnm9131
October 14, 2026 at 7:08 pm
I want people to understand the difference between a smartwatch and sports watch when it’s comes to battery life and features
@anklexpress
October 14, 2026 at 9:41 pm
I get 3 solid days with maybe 5% remaining doing about 1.5 hours of gps activity a day. Thats 72 hours. I never use cellular and have the watch in low power mode during any workout. outside of that I only use it as a watch and timer and to tell me about notifications I respond to on my phone…I did a 6 hour run in the mountains with apple maps giving me turn by turn, and outdoor run on, screen on medium brightness, airplane mode on, always on display off, and regular low power mode on and I calculated a burn rate that would give me about 27.5 hours of battery…thats without all the super duper battery saver modes enabled. Not too bad
@vanessahandorellana
October 14, 2026 at 11:39 pm
Wow that’s impressive!!! And now you have two more battery saving tricks if you need them.
@FeelGoodClipsAndMemes
October 15, 2026 at 11:34 am
Why is it in airplane mode and not connected to an iPhone , only that will be “real world” usage 🤷♂️