The Apple Watch Series 10 may get an Ultra-sized screen

Here’s some potentially good news for Apple Watch owners who have Apple Watch Ultra screen envy: the Apple Watch Series 10 — may get the same size screen as the company’s 49mm outdoorsy watch. That’s in addition to other possible improvements, like a thinner case and a new chip that could “lay the groundwork for some AI enhancements down the road,” according to Mark Gurman’s latest Power On newsletter for Bloomberg.

The screen rumor seems to back up a CAD render from last month that showed a Series 10 watch with a two-inch display. Gurman says — and that render appears to show — that the watch won’t otherwise feature any major design changes. If that means no magnetic watch strap attachments or whatever, I’m putting that part of the rumor in the “good” column — like many, I’ve accumulated a number of watch straps over the years, and I’d like to keep using them if I decide to upgrade.

As for new sensors, that seems cloudier, as Gurman says Apple is struggling with two big health sensor updates it’s been planning. The company reportedly hasn’t been able to get its rumored blood pressure monitor’s reliability up to snuff, and he writes that not being able to use its banned blood oxygen sensor is hampering its efforts to add sleep apnea detection.

Apple is reportedly planning a cheaper version of the Apple Watch SE to bring pricing in line with Samsung’s $199 Galaxy Watch FE. One way it might do this, apparently, is with a rigid plastic case. That could make the watch cheaper, sure, and perhaps lighter — I can think of at least one other Apple product that could stand to benefit from a similar decision! (The Vision Pro. I’m talking about the Vision Pro.)

Finally, Gurman says that the company is planning to release a Watch Ultra 3, but don’t expect big visual changes. It will reportedly get the new chip that will power the Series 10, though.