Apple isn’t very quick to update its lower cost products, but there’s one model which badly needs its attention: the Apple Watch SE. The company’s willingness to let the SE languish for several years is now affecting its bottom line, and when the Apple Watch Series 11 arrives later this year, an Apple Watch SE 3 needs to be there alongside it.
Hitting where it hurts
In 2024 shipments of Apple Watch models declined by 19% compared to 2023, according to Counterpoint Research, and a quote in the report stated, “The slowdown of the existing Apple Watch SE lineup and the lack of new SE models contributed to the decline.” While the entire smartwatch industry slowed over the same period, Apple saw the largest fall in shipments, which points to something being awry with its current product range.
The Apple Watch SE first arrived at the end of 2020, and the second generation Apple Watch SE 2 came at the end of 2022. Two models isn’t enough to fully establish a trend for release dates, but logically the Apple Watch SE 3 should have arrived at the end of 2024 with the Apple Watch Series 10. But here we are in March 2025, and no such smartwatch has come along.
2024 was an odd year for the Apple Watch. While I love the Apple Watch Series 10, especially in titanium, I’ll admit it’s not the biggest step forward in technology — at least to the casual observer — but at least a new model was released. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 only received a color update, rather than a new model entirely. With only one true new model in it, Apple’s smartwatch range sadly lacks life, and the Apple Watch SE 2 looks terribly old next to the Series 10 and Ultra 2.
How old?
The Apple Watch SE 2 is based on an old Apple Watch design. This means a 40mm or 44mm case size, a smaller screen with larger bezels and half the brightness of the Apple Watch Series 10, and the dual-core S8 processor inside. There are fewer features in general, such as no always-on screen, ECG, or body temperature sensor, but these are to be expected considering it costs less than the Series 10, and Apple has to tempt you into upgrading somehow.
When the Apple Watch Series 9 came out, there was still a good case for the Apple Watch SE 2 if you didn’t want the always-on screen or ECG. Because the 10.7mm case thickness was identical between the two, you really only had to forgive the bezel size on the design front. This is much harder to do when you put the Series 10 next to the SE 2. The Apple Watch Series 10 is 9.7mm thick, and the reduction really notices on the wrist, plus the screen’s larger size and smaller bezels are very obvious.
If nothing else, the Series 10 shows how far Apple has progressed with the Apple Watch’s hardware. Some may have been disappointed the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch wasn’t celebrated in an iPhone X-style way, but few can deny the refinements it did make have considerably improved how the top Apple Watch looks and wears. Unfortunately, it also highlights the SE 2’s age.
The SE curse?
The Apple Watch SE 2 isn’t the only SE product Apple has left on the shelf for too long. The beginning of 2024 was dominated by anticipation for the Apple iPhone SE 3, which eventually arrived as the iPhone 16e. The iPhone SE (2022) came out in early 2022, and like the Apple Watch SE 2, was badly in need of an update. The iPhone 16e may not meet some of the higher expectations, but it has brought the design (and the name) in-line with the rest of Apple’s current range.
New products, even when they aren’t to every tech geek’s taste, drive sales. The iPhone 16e can happily live in the range for another two years, when if it’s sensible, Apple can replace it with an iPhone 17e. Very few normal people will look at the iPhone 16e and think “it’s old” and pass it by, but I do think even those not plugged into the world of tech will see a working Apple Watch SE 2 and not think it’s getting on a bit.
We shouldn’t expect an Apple Watch SE 3 to take the Series 10’s case and screen, but if it took the Series 10’s case it would sufficiently advance the design. I’d love to see an always-on screen on a future SE, but it’s seems highly unlikely Apple will take a top selling point of its more expensive smartwatch and stick it on the cheapest. The screen and the more advanced health tech separate the two, and in many cases the SE model is a great purchase for a lot of people. But at the moment, it’s being held back because no-one should be buying a smartwatch first introduced two-and-a-half years ago.
Bring on the Apple Watch Series 10e
Apple usually introduces new smartwatches with its new iPhone models, therefore we can expect the Apple Watch Series 11 to come with the iPhone 17 series. There’s very little discussion about an Apple Watch SE 3 at this point, outside of reports an SE 3 smartwatch will come later this year with a redesign along with the expected new processor. Compared to the amount of rumors that swirled around the Apple iPhone SE 3 for years ahead of its release, it’s practically silence.
The iPhone 16e took a long time to arrive, so it’s hardly a shock the Apple Watch SE 2 wasn’t updated at the end of 2024. Apple’s big chance comes at the end of 2025, when it should announce the update and even a new name — Apple Watch Series 10e perhaps — alongside the Series 11, the Ultra 3, and a host of new iPhone models including the already extensively discussed iPhone 17 Air. It’ll be an event to look forward to, but it also means the Apple Watch SE 2 still has to sit, unloved, on the shelf for another six months.
And no, you probably shouldn’t buy one. Buy the Apple Watch Series 10 instead. It’s fantastic.