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The only thing keeping on a Garmin is that my OG AW Ultra probably won't last a mountain 50 miler (I've used it for easier 50 mile races). If it truly lasts anywhere near 45 hours, even my old, slow ass could knock out 100 miles in that time.

Plus satellite comms on the AW (which I'd have to spend money to upgrade the 965 to get that feature). I just might pick one up next week.

Two days is so poor for a ultra watch. The fact it won't last a full weekend let alone any significant hike just means it doesn't fit the market it is aiming at.
A weekend? How about a full week at the absolute bare minimum, if not more.

3 days is a complete joke. Competitors have battery lives measured in weeks rather than days (a famous, and still 100% appropriate, quote by Garmin. Now 5 years old and counting, and the situation is still as ridiculously bad).

Seriously what is it even doing to justify going through the battery so fast? Are they just bad at programming?

I completely agree with you, I was just trying to avoid being attacked by a certain group. I assume it's the processor as it isn't designed specifically for battery life etc.
Having Garmin Enduro with 3+ weeks of battery life seems funny to watch apples ultra ads ...
It's surprising that in 2026 they still haven't figured out how to remove the bezels. They are smaller than they used to be, but On something as compact a watch, all screen estate counts.
So apparently Siri AI is not coming to my part of the world anytime soon because of EU law. With that, I see no reason at all to upgrade from my Ultra 1, as not much else has improved in any meaningful way in 3 years. Don't get me wrong, I love my Ultra 1. But I had hoped for more innovation in three generations of it.
Not because of eu law. Because Apple wants an exception to the rules.
They don't get it. Malicious compliance. So many credible proofs of them doing it, but people still rather be apologists for a trillion dollars company.
I am so, so tired of everyone trying to make everything into a political discussion.
Because Apple wants an exeption to the ridiculous and insane rules the EU has imposed on their citizens. EU is sooo irrelevant, sooo behind in tech... And such laws only worsen the situation.
> For everyday use, Apple Watch Ultra 4 now offers more than two days of battery life, up to 50 hours.

This is the reason i don't like these smart watches... I always forget to charge the watch.....

You just plug in your devices when you go to sleep. I don't get why that is difficult.
That was fine until I started using it for sleep tracking. Now it’s kinda hard. I put it on the charger when I’m taking a shower and having dinner still it’s not super convenient.
The battery life being so short is just pathetic. My Garmin can last up to two whole weeks in a similar form factor and its pretty much the only differentiation
"A batter you can't outrun" actually the gen 1 Pebble from literally 2013 still runs circles around this thing.
I recently got their new gen Pebble Time 2 and this thing lasts about a month on a single charge!
Huh, this "Readiness" innovation seems really similar to the "HybridCharge" my Amazfit watch has had for several years (but obviously at literally 10x the price, but you do whatever you want with your money, chaps...)
I bought an Ultra 3 and was quite disappointed with it. The heart rate monitor frequency is really low. I'm glad to see they have at least fixed that. I dual-wield right now with a Fitbit Air to supplement the data.
I've owned multiple generations of Apple watches before and the battery life made me ditch it. After about a year, the watch wouldn't even last a full day with mostly passive usage.

I'm considering trying Ultra just so the battery can comfortably last full day without entering power saving mode by 8pm.

Disappointing to see Apple doesn't consider battery life to be a major problem. They keep balancing efficiency and battery gains with new features consuming more juice to keep battery life roughly the same as the previous generations.

So no new sensors. No blood pressure or glucose (very long shot) monitoring. I was holding out for the blood pressure monitor but I will have to wait longer now.
With the readiness feature - I think they are trying to close the gap with Garmin.