Smartwatches and fitness trackers beta · Apple
Owners keep the Apple Watch SE for heart rate readings and activity and sleep tracking, with a trade-off many make: charging around their day and a limited run of software updates.
Heart rate accuracy is clear praise. One owner with AFib took a reading on the watch during an episode and it confirmed what they suspected, though another owner gets high heart rate alerts after meals that don't match the pulse they feel at the wrist.
Software update support is a clear complaint. One owner bought a first-generation SE in 2020 and it was left off watchOS 11 in 2024. The Nike running app later vanished from the watch because the app now needs that version.
Apple Watch SE is Apple's lower-priced smartwatch. Apple's page covers one current model, the Apple Watch SE 3. Apple sells it as "essential health features at a great value", starting at $229. It is aimed at people who want an Apple Watch for less money, and at parents who set up a cellular watch for a child without an iPhone.
Several models, specs differ.
All versions use the same S10 chip and an aluminum case. They differ in case size (40mm or 44mm) and color (Starlight or Midnight). You also choose GPS only, or GPS + Cellular, which can text, call and stream music without a phone nearby and is needed to set the watch up for a child.
Pick up to three. You get a page with just those, side by side, on the subjects owners raised.
Owners who keep the watch on overnight mostly rate the sleep data as accurate. One owner who sleeps irregularly says tracking has stayed consistent. Another wears the SE alongside an Oura ring and finds Oura better for overnight data and HRV, so opinion on sleep tracking as a whole is divided. A few owners point out that Apple's sleep view is built around bedtime, consistency and duration rather than a sleep quality score.
Charging is the routine owners have to plan around, and they are divided on it. One owner bought the SE for exercise and sleep but had to charge it every evening, so it never got used for sleep. Another turned off the settings that were draining the battery and, after a recent update, gets about 30 to 36 hours with the always-on display running during the day and the odd gym session. App usability came up as a complaint in a handful of accounts, but the sample gives no detail on what bothers them.
The sensors are the part owners trust most. Heart rate and sleep accuracy both come out as praised. Battery life is divided: some owners say it doesn't last the day, while others got it to last longer by switching off settings. Software support is the clear concern. Owners say watches lose watchOS updates after three or four years, and third-party apps that need newer versions then stop working. Durability and device longevity are also concerns, though the accounts behind them are brief and mostly don't say what failed.
The long-term record for the SE itself is thin. Only a few accounts follow one owner's SE over several years. Many of the comments behind the update, battery and longevity themes are about other Apple Watch models (the Series 6, 7 and 8 and the first Ultra), so read them as a sign of how Apple handles older watches in general, not as measured SE history.
From 0 owner accounts that said how long they have had it. Own one? Add how long yours has lasted.
Counted from the owners who raised each subject, not from everyone. A subject is judged once at least 4 owners raise it.
34 more subjects came up from fewer than 4 owners each, which is not enough for a fair reading. To see how it stacks up, compare it with another machine.
The same owner, asked again at each point. Fills in as owners answer.
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More in smartwatches and fitness trackers: Apple Watch 5, Garmin Venu 3, Fitbit Versa 4.
Among the 0 owner accounts here that gave a duration, 0 described a failure.
Before you buy one used, ask the seller: how old it is, whether it was ever repaired and by whom, and whether any of the parts above have been replaced. Ask to see it run. A receipt tells you the warranty start date; most makers honour the term only for the first owner.
Public discussions we read and summarised in our own words. Nothing here was submitted to Still Kicks.
Counted from public accounts by people who said they own it, and summarised by Still Kicks in its own words. Not a manufacturer claim, a lab test or an estimate.
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