Full specifications, features and battery life for the Apple Watch SE 3, the brand’s entry-level model.
| Manufacturer | Apple |
| Type | Smartwatch, entry-level tier |
| Series | Watch SE |
| Released | September 2025 |
| Price at launch | From $249 / £219 |
| Predecessor | Apple Watch SE 2 |
| Successor | — |
| Case sizes | 40mm, 44mm |
| Thickness | 10.7mm |
| Weight | 26.3–26.4g (40mm), 32.9–33.0g (44mm) |
| Materials | Aluminium: Midnight, Starlight |
| Water resistance | 50m |
Specifications and features as at launch.
Expert opinion | What’s new | Specifications | Battery life | Features | Further reading
Expert opinion
The SE 3 carries the same S10 chip as Series 11 and Ultra 3, and gains an always-on Retina display for the first time on an SE model, rated up to 1,000 nits. Double-tap and wrist-flick gestures, on-device Siri, wrist temperature sensing, Sleep Score and cycle tracking with ovulation estimates all arrive on the entry-level tier for the first time. Storage doubles to 64GB, fast charging is added, and 5G is available as an option. The case stays aluminium only, in 40mm or 44mm, with 50-metre water resistance. Apple claims up to 18 hours of battery life. The SE 3 has no ECG and no blood oxygen sensor, and keeps the thicker glass design rather than the flatter profile of Series 10 and 11.
What’s new versus Apple Watch SE 2
- Always-On display, replacing the SE 2’s standard-refresh panel; glass rated 4x more crack-resistant
- New S10 chip, from the S8 SiP
- Storage doubles to 64GB, from 32GB
- New wrist temperature sensor, enabling cycle tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates and a Sleep Score
- 5G and LTE connectivity, replacing 4G LTE and UMTS
- Fast charging added: up to 80% in about 45 minutes. The SE 2 had no fast charging.
- Low Power Mode added, claimed up to 32 hours
- Double-tap and wrist flick gestures added; the SE 2 had neither
- Siri gains on-device processing
The optical heart rate sensor is unchanged, carried over from the SE 2 as the same second-generation design.
Specifications
| Display | |
|---|---|
| Type | Always-On Retina, OLED, LTPO |
| Peak brightness | Up to 1,000 nits |
| Glass | 4x more crack-resistant than the SE 2 |
| Internals | |
| Chip | S10, 64-bit dual-core processor |
| Storage | 64GB |
| Sensors | |
| Heart rate | Second-generation optical sensor |
| Temperature | Wrist temperature sensor |
| Other | Compass, always-on altimeter, high-g accelerometer, high dynamic range gyroscope, ambient light sensor |
| Connectivity and battery | |
| Positioning | L1 GPS, GNSS, Galileo, QZSS |
| Cellular | 5G and LTE |
| Wireless | WiFi 4 (802.11n), Bluetooth 5.3 |
| Fast charging | Up to 80% in about 45 minutes |
| Battery, normal use | Up to 18 hours |
| Battery, Low Power Mode | Up to 32 hours |
Battery life
Apple claims up to 18 hours of normal use, unchanged from the SE 2, with a new Low Power Mode extending that to up to 32 hours. Fast charging is new to this generation: up to 80% in around 45 minutes.
Features
Full feature detail is covered on the Apple specifications index.
Health and wellness
- Cycle tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates, enabled by the new temperature sensor
- Sleep Score, plus sleep stage tracking
- Sleep apnea notifications
- Heart Rate app, with high and low heart rate notifications and irregular rhythm notifications
- Medications, Mindfulness and Noise apps
Interface
- Double-tap gesture, for hands-free control
- Wrist flick gesture
- Siri with on-device processing
