Apple Watch Series 6

Blood Oxygen sensor and Blood Oxygen app

Redesigned back crystal houses four clusters of green, red, and infrared LEDs and four photodiodes measuring reflected light from blood to calculate oxygen saturation (SpO2) between 70% and 100% on demand and in background/sleep sessions.

S6 System in Package (SiP)

New 64-bit dual-core processor based on iPhone 11's A13 Bionic architecture runs up to 20% faster than S5, accelerating app launches while maintaining 18-hour battery life.

U1 chip and Ultra Wideband antennas

First wearable to feature Apple's U1 Ultra Wideband chip, enabling precise spatial awareness and support for digital car keys.

5GHz Wi-Fi support

Dual-band Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n 2.4GHz and 5GHz) added to alleviate 2.4GHz band congestion on modern wireless routers.

Next-generation always-on altimeter

Dedicated energy-efficient barometric altimeter operates continuously all day alongside GPS and Wi-Fi networks to detect elevation changes down to 1 foot.

Faster battery charging

Re-engineered charging architecture enables a full 0% to 100% charge in under 1.5 hours (or 80% in 1 hour).

Brighter outdoor Always-On display

Always-On Retina display is up to 2.5 times brighter outdoors when the user's wrist is down; users can interact with complications, Notification Center, and Control Center without waking the screen.

Expanded color finishes and Solo Loop bands

(refinement): Introduced new Blue and (PRODUCT)RED aluminum cases; Graphite and updated Yellow Gold stainless steel; debuted clasp-free silicone Solo Loop, Braided Solo Loop, and magnetic Leather Link bands.

Third-generation optical heart sensor

Redesigned optical sensor package integrates the heart rate and pulse oximetry photodiode array into a unified rear crystal cluster.

Slightly thinner chassis profile

(refinement): Casing depth slimmed from 10.74mm (Series 5) to 10.70mm.

Packaging environmental content

(refinement): USB power adapter removed from the box packaging; product incorporates 100% recycled rare earth elements in the Taptic Engine and nearly 100% recycled tungsten throughout.

Hardware Force Touch gasket retired

Physical force-sensitive gasket layer removed from display assembly; watchOS 7 phased out Force Touch interactions across all models in favor of long-press interactions.

Ceramic Edition case retired

(refinement): White ceramic case option discontinued from the Edition line, leaving titanium (natural and space black) as the sole Edition material.

Apple Watch Series 5 discontinued

Series 5 removed from sale immediately upon Series 6 and SE launch.

Electrical heart sensor (ECG app)

Retained electrical heart sensor built into the Digital Crown and back crystal for single-lead ECG and irregular heart rhythm notifications.

18-hour all-day battery life

Retained 18-hour battery life standard despite driving a brighter always-on display and additional background health sensors.

32GB storage

Maintained 32GB internal storage across all models.