2025 will mark the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch. Due to Apple’s deep pockets, legendary R&D department, and continued demand, Apple Watch releases have become a regular occurrence. New models have arrived every year since the line’s debut in 2015. Here, we chart the entire Apple Watch chronology, from the first prototypes through a decade of Apple Watch evolution.
The Apple Watch Timeline: 10 Years of Apple Watch Evolution
2012: Apple first begins work on an Apple Watch
While the first commercially available Apple smartwatch didn’t hit shelves until 2015, work began in 2012. Following the death of former CEO and head designer Steve Jobs, Apple required a prestige product – something that would continue Jobs’ legacy and show the world they were still at the forefront of consumer technology. They needed something that was aesthetically and functionally leagues ahead of the competition.
Over the next four years, Apple would commit hundreds of engineers and designers to the product, creating dozens of functioning prototypes and refining the initial concept of an ‘iPhone for your wrist’ into the finished article.
2015: The Apple Watch makes its debut
The most significant date in the Apple Watch chronology, and in smartwatches in general, April 24, 2015 saw the unveiling of the first-ever Apple Watch. Previously, many Apple products succeeded by refining and repackaging initial concepts from other tech companies, like bringing MP3 players to a mass audience with the iPod. The Apple Watch, however, was genuinely groundbreaking. It introduced a host of new features to the world of wearables.
By current standards, the first Apple Watch was a minimalist gadget: no GPS function, paltry battery life, and no waterproofing. Sales met the hype, however, with over eight million sold in the first year. The first Apple Watch wasn’t the sports-oriented fitness tracker of today, but proved popular as a status symbol and fashion accessory.
2016: The Apple Watch Series 1 and Apple Watch Series 2
The success of the Apple Watch launch led Apple straight back into the studio to develop a follow-up while the product was still fresh in the public consciousness. The Apple Watch Series 1, followed soon after by the Series 2, corrected some of the early shortcomings by adding GPS tracking, basic waterproofing and a faster processor. Collaborations with Nike helped kickstart the Watch's image as a fitness companion.
The first Hermès Apple Watch
This period also marked the beginning of Apple’s ongoing partnership with luxury fashion house Hermès. Apple Watches were now available with a range of Hermès-designed bands and watch faces, further underlining the early Watch’s fashion credentials. “Apple and Hermès make very different products, but they reflect the deep appreciation of quality design”, then-Apple Chief of Design, and one of the creators of the first Apple Watch, Johnny Ive reflected.
2017: The cellular Apple Watch Series 3
While the Series 2 received only minor tweaks, the Apple Watch Series 3 contained one of the most significant technological steps forward of any Apple Watch: cellular technology. The Series 3 Cellular Watch (also called the LTE Watch) was the first to feature LTE, or cellular technology. This meant the Apple Watch could connect to mobile internet via a built-in eSIM. Mobile plans from Apple-approved providers could be downloaded straight to the watch.
Previous iterations of the Apple Watch could get online and use internet-based apps, but only within Bluetooth range of a paired, internet-connected iPhone. Now, users could leave their phones at home and head out with just their Apple Watch. Calls, SMS messages and internet-based services could all be used purely via the Apple Watch. For some, this made the cellular Series 3 essentially a replacement phone, realising Apple's early promise of an iPhone for the wrist.
2018: The Apple Watch Series 4
By 2014, the Apple Watch was comfortably the world's leading smartwatch – public and critical acclaim for the Series 3 led Apple to take an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to the successor. The Series 4 received a larger screen, faster processor and extra health tracking features, including the debut of the Fall Detection feature – but otherwise had little to distinguish it from the Series 3.
2019: The Apple Watch Series 5
Like the Series 4, Apple saw no need to reinvent the wheel with the Series 5. The Apple Watch was still a market leader. The most notable upgrade was the ‘always-on’ display, where previous models only switched the screen on when the watch was raised.
Other meaningful tweaks in the WatchOS 6 software update included the introduction of cycle and sleep tracking, both of which have remained integral features in successive generations of Apple Watch. It also allowed access to the App Store from the Watch for the first time.
2020: The Apple Watch Series 6, the Apple Watch SE and WatchOS 7
The Series 6 marked the fifth anniversary of the first Apple Watch – in the intervening period, the product had gone from an iPhone accessory to a fully-fledged mobile device, able to call, text and use apps. In 2020, Apple took steps to widen their target Watch audience with the release of the simplified (and less expensive) Apple Watch SE line.
The simultaneous WatchOS 7 release introduced Family Setup (now known as Apple Watch For Your Kids). Family Setup allowed users to set up a cellular Apple Watch with its own mobile plan and give it to someone else. Previously, Apple Watch wearers would need their own iPhone to set up and connect a watch. Now, one parent could set up a watch, or multiple watches, and hand them out to family members to keep in contact.
The Apple Watch SE
Following the success of the stripped-back iPhone SE, Apple applied the same concept to their smartwatch line, releasing the Apple Watch SE in 2020. The SE complemented the new Family Setup feature, offering a lower-cost Apple Watch model for the emerging customer base of families and younger children. Industry-wide, the budget smartwatch space was quickly filling with smaller brand offerings including products aimed specifically at families.
2021: The Apple Watch Series 7
By 2021, the world was a year into the COVID-19 pandemic and there was rising public interest in monitoring personal health. Previously niche fitness trackers like the WHOOP and Fitbit were seeing record sales, making the leap from their prior fanbase of athletes to the wider public. This hadn't gone unnoticed at Apple.
Despite healthy sales and continuous updates, the Apple Watch, much like early versions of the iPad, sometimes struggled with a clear identity. Apple refocused efforts around the Watch to draw attention to its health and fitness measuring capabilities, recasting it as an activity tracker that could keep pace with dedicated sports brands like Garmin and Polar. A series of Nike-designed straps followed, as well as the resurrection of Nike+, the running coach software first introduced in the iPod back in 2006. The Watch Nike+ app harnessed the improved sensors on the back of the Series 7 watch case to display, record and analyse accurate fitness data in real time.
2022: The Apple Watch Series 8, the 2nd-Gen SE and the Apple Watch Ultra
2022 was a big year in the Apple Watch series history, and it needed to be: Google had just released their long-awaited Pixel Watch, finally providing a viable alternative to the Apple Watch for Android users. Aesthetically, the circular dial of the Pixel Watch 1 was more traditional than any Apple Watch model, but under the glass, it boasted a similar combination of accurate fitness tracking, LTE technology and access to hundreds of third-party smartwatch apps. Apple responded with the improved Series 8, a new version of the SE, an an all-new model, the Ultra.
The Apple Watch Ultra
By 2022, the Apple Watch line had gone through many guises: a bold fashion statement, a kid-friendly gadget, and a fitness monitor. The Apple Watch Ultra filled a new niche: a rugged, outdoorsy survival machine. Waterproof, durable and filled with wilderness-ready features like a siren and titanium casing, the Ultra was a stark contrast to the urbane Series 8. It revealed Apple’s intent on cornering all areas of the smartwatch market.
The obvious references here were hiking and adventure smartwatches from brands like Garmin and Suunto. All Ultra models came in cellular as standard, underlining Apple's belief in the popularity of eSIM technology. This was mirrored in the simultaneous release of the eSIM-only iPhone 14.
2023: The Apple Watch Series 9 and the Ultra 2
As sales across the series continued to rise, Apple leaned into the purported health benefits of wearable technology. The growing popularity of the screenless WHOOP fitness band and Google's recent acquisition of Fitbit indicated big tech's faith in the ongoing popularity of personal activity monitors. Apple, too, added new health features including a Blood Oxygen monitor and the ability to produce ECG reports. The former faced some backlash from medical professionals and the FDA, and was only made available in selected regions. Buyers should still be aware that the Apple Watch is not a medical device, nor should it be used solely as one - Apple themselves state that the Blood Oxygen app should only be used for “general fitness and wellness purposes”.
The success of the Ultra led to an Ultra 2 release only a year later. The Ultra 2 was similar to its predecessor, adding a faster processor, brighter screen and more intuitive controls.
2024: The Apple Watch Series 10
2024 continued the annual release pattern of new Watch models with the Apple Watch Series 10 in September. Apple's thinnest Watch yet, the Series 10 improved on its forebears with a larger screen and selection of understated steel bands, making it equally at home in the gym or a cocktail bar. Apple's ability to quickly adapt to the design of their watches to reflect user behaviour was typified in WatchOS 11, the accompanying OS to the Series 10.
Specifically, the release of Apple Watch For Your Kids (previously known as Family Setup). While the technology has been around since the launch of Family Setup in 2020, and eSIM capabilities since the Series 3 in 2017, Apple Watch For Your Kids brought new visibility to the feature. Parents could download an Apple Watch cellular plan from an approved Apple Partner and hand their kids an Apple Watch with the ability to call, message and share location, wherever they were.
The Ultra 2 Hermès
2024 also saw the release of the most expensive-ever Apple Watch model: the Ultra 2 Hermès. Combining the high performance and rugged shell of the Ultra 2 with a series of luxurious Hermès bands and straps widened the spectrum of the Apple Watch range, which now spans from the entry-level SE to the $1300 Ultra 2 Hermès.
2025: The Future of the Apple Watch
With the benefit of hindsight, it's interesting to see how little the Series 10 differs from its 2015 counterpart, at least visually. Compared to the upheaval of the iPhone's appearance over the same time period, the relative continuity of the Apple Watch is a testament to the original model's timeless design. Whether this will stay so in the future remains to be seen. Under the face, anyway, the differences are clear. A decade in, Apple seems to show no intent of slowing the development of the Apple Watch.
Apple Watch Series History: A Summary
| Model | Year of Release |
|---|---|
Apple Watch | 2015 |
Apple Watch Series 1 | 2016 |
Apple Watch Series 2 | 2016 |
Apple Watch Series 3 | 2017 |
Apple Watch Series 4 | 2018 |
Apple Watch Series 5 | 2019 |
Apple Watch Series 6 | 2020 |
Apple Watch SE | 2020 |
Apple Watch Series 7 | 2021 |
Apple Watch Series 8 | 2022 |
Apple Watch SE (2nd generation) | 2022 |
Apple Watch Ultra | 2022 |
Apple Watch Ultra | 2022 |
Apple Watch Series 9 | 2023 |
Apple Watch Ultra 2 | 2023 |
Apple Watch Series 10 | 2024 |
