A Plastic Apple Watch SE May Not Be In the Cards
Credit: Apple
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Last summer, a report revealed that Apple was considering using cheaper plastic materials for its next Apple Watch SE as a way to distinguish its entry-level wearable while also bringing down its costs. However, it looks like that plan hasn’t worked out as well as Apple’s teams had hoped.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who also shared the initial report from his sources in August, said this week that the plastic Apple Watch SE is now “in serious jeopardy” for a couple of reasons. Not only is the design team less than thrilled with how it looks, but it costs nearly as much to make as the current aluminum chassis, making the whole exercise somewhat pointless.
The Apple Watch SE has become something of an oddball among the Apple Watch lineup, and perhaps this is even more true now that Apple has officially retired the iPhone SE, leaving it as the odd one out.
Still, the Apple Watch SE was similar to its iPhone counterpart in name and release cycle only. The first Apple Watch SE came in 2020 alongside the Apple Watch Series 6, as a more affordable version with a nearly identical design that used an older S5 chip and omitted more advanced health sensors like ECG and the then-newly introduced Blood Oxygen monitoring.
This trend continued in 2022 when the second-generation Apple Watch SE debuted as a relatively minor update that adopted the S8 chip of its contemporary, the Apple Watch Series 8, but changed little else from its predecessor beyond shedding a bit of weight. Today’s Apple Watch SE 2 has more features than the original, but that’s mostly down to its ability to run newer versions of watchOS; the first-generation Apple Watch SE was cut off after watchOS 10.
There are plenty of good reasons to opt for the Apple Watch SE, but the most compelling is the price tag. Starting at $249, it’s a much easier sell than the Apple Watch Series 10 for folks on a budget, but we’ve always felt that the main Series models deliver far more bang for your buck and are the Apple Watches to buy if you have the money to spend.
For instance, you’re not just missing out on the more powerful health features, which now include a wrist temperature monitor and sleep apnea notifications in addition to the aforementioned ECG and Blood Oxygen sensor. The. Apple Watch also lacks an always-on display — an essential feature on a watch — plus the larger and brighter screen. In the case of the Apple Watch Series 10, that’s a 2,000-nit display with a wide-angle OLED that makes it more viewable at off angles. The Apple Watch SE has only a 1,000-nit panel.
It’s probably no surprise that the Apple Watch SE was the least popular model last year. Its age might have something to do with that, but even the 2022 Apple Watch Series 8 did better, coming in second place. That’s likely because the discontinued wearable can likely be found at a price close enough to the SE to make it worth the jump. Still, even the priciest Apple Watch Ultra overshadowed the Apple Watch SE.
This all begs the question as to what Apple’s plans are for the Apple Watch SE. Gurman’s sources say the plastic case is likely out, and we’re not the least bit surprised the design team didn’t like it. The initial news left us with visions of the iPhone 5c. That iPhone always felt a bit “Fisher Price,” and it’s not hard to imagine how much worse that could be on an Apple Watch. That might be fine if Apple intended to double down on marketing it as a kids’ edition.
Apple partially switched to a plastic design in 2022 when the traditional back ceramic was replaced with a new “nylon composite” material. That’s likely how it lost 3–4 grams in weight over its predecessor. However, aluminum isn’t nearly as heavy, and if the move to an all-plastic casing doesn’t reduce Apple’s costs, there’s likely no point in making the change.
Apple is still expected to unveil three new Apple Watch models this year, with the traditional Series 11 being joined by a proper Apple Watch Ultra 3 and a third-generation Apple Watch SE. However, it’s unclear if Apple still has time to pivot to an aluminum Apple Watch SE or if it will scrap the plastic design and hold off on releasing a new one until next year.
We’ve also heard very little about what to expect from the next budget wearable other than the plastic body. It wouldn’t be unusual for the Apple Watch SE 3 to be another modest upgrade, but the design still hearkens back to the Apple Watch Series 6. So it may be time for Apple to at least embrace the improvements from the Series 7–9 era, especially now that the Series 10 has moved on from that design with its even larger screen and slimmer casing.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
