Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 get the S11
Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 both ship on 18 September with the S11, the first new Apple Watch SiP since the S10 arrived in Series 10 two years ago.
| CPU | Neural Engine | Storage | Devices | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S11 | 64-bit, 2 cores | 4 cores | 64GB | Series 12, Ultra 4 |
| S10 | 64-bit, 2 cores | 4 cores | 64GB | Series 11, Ultra 3, SE 3 |
On core counts the two are identical. What the S11 adds is Audio Intelligence — Live Rewind, Siri Recap, Shazam and Sound Recognition running on the watch itself — which is the first time Apple has led an S-series generation with an audio capability rather than a speed or efficiency claim.
No W-series chip on either spec sheet
Series 11 and Ultra 3 both listed the W3 alongside their S10. Neither the Series 12 nor the Ultra 4 names a W-series chip anywhere, though both still list the second-generation Ultra Wideband chip (U2), Wi-Fi 4 and Bluetooth 5.3.
Apple has a long history of folding separately-branded companion silicon into the main package without announcing it, and that is the likelier reading here — the wireless block moving inside the S11 rather than a radio going away. Both watches are recorded here without a W-series chip accordingly.
Series 11 and Ultra 3 are both discontinued. The Apple Watch SE 3 carries on with the S10, leaving it the only Apple Watch on sale still running the older SiP — and the only one still listing a W3.