Apple Watch SE 3 announced with the same chip as Ultra 3 and $249 price tag

The budget-focused Apple Watch SE 3 is here, and it has leveled up with its pricier siblings in several ways.

Alongside the upgrades for Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3, the Cupetrino giant has also refreshed its cheapest smartwatch after a few years. Apple Watch SE 3 now comes with the Always-On display and new health features, the company announced at its Awe Dropping event.

However, for the first time, Apple has chosen to ship an older chip on newer Apple Watch models. Apple Watch SE 3 features the same S10 chip under the hood as its pricier siblings, featuring a 64‑bit dual-core processor, 4-core Neural Engine, and 64GB storage capacity. It's available in 44mm and 40mm aluminum case sizes with Starlight and Midnight color options.

The S10 chip enables faster on-device Siri and quicker responses when doing offline tasks such as starting a workout or setting a timer. Siri can now access data from the Health app, and the S10 chip also enables support for Double Tap and wrist flick gestures.

On a side note, a small but useful addition is that the Apple Watch SE 3 can play music or podcasts directly through its built-in speakers.

The device offers a host of sensors and connectivity options, including Bluetooth 5.3, dual-band Wi-Fi 4, GPS, and 5G support. However, the budget-focused Apple Watch lacks support for the Ultra Wide Band (UWB) chip that powers features like Precision Finding for AirTag.

Apple Watch 3 comes with an Always-On Retina display with OLED and LTPO. Apple claims that its toughened Ion-X cover glass is 4x more resistant to cracks than the previous generation. After Always-On display, fast charging is another feature making its way to the SE series for the first time.

Apple Watch SE 3 charges twice as fast as its previous generation and promises 18 hours of normal use. It takes about 45 minutes to reach 80% battery capacity, and a quick 15-minute power up can add about 8 hours of backup for daily use.

The smartwatch supports a platter of health-related features, including wrist temperature sensing and sleep apnea notifications that are already supported on the older Apple Watch models. This year, Apple has introduced a new metric called Sleep Score, offering insights about the quality of sleep.

Apple Watch SE 3 is now up for pre-order in over 50 countries, including the US, UK, Australia, France, Germany, and India. It starts with a price tag of $249 and will be up for sale on September 19.