Apple Watch SE (2022) hands-on: Design

The Apple Watch SE (2022) again looks like a resurrected Apple Watch Series 4 with thicker bezels than those on the Apple Watch Series 7. I can’t help but wish it instead took over the Apple Series 5 design to receive an Always-On Display; still, the display size is 30% larger than the bygone Apple Watch Series 3’s.

Otherwise, the Apple Watch SE (2022) features an aluminum case in three colors: Silver, Midnight and Starlight. These are three of four colors available for Apple Watch Series 8, if you were curious. Plus, the bottom casing is now made of nylon composite materials that are color-matched to the bezel. You can’t see it when it’s on your wrist, but it’s a subtle change with an environmental benefit.

Apple Watch SE (2022) hands-on: Features

Perhaps the biggest features you’ll miss with the Apple Watch SE (2022) are the health sensors. While it can monitor heart rate, it doesn’t have ECG, a blood oxygen reader or the new skin temperature sensor found in Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra. The skin temperature sensor is probably the one I’ll miss most, due to its applications for cycle tracking and sleep tracking. But ECG and SpO2 readings are easy to live without if you don’t have an existing need to see those metrics.

The performance of the Apple Watch SE (2022) should feel noticeably better than the previous Apple Watch SE as well. It has been updated from the S5 chipset to the S8 chipset, which should help with responsiveness and reliable connectivity.

And was the case with the previous SE, the Apple Watch SE (2022) is the smartwatch Apple most closely associates with Family Setup. Family Setup lets you manage Apple Watch devices for family members who don’t have their own iPhone, such as an older parent or child.