Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) review: Best fitness companion for youngsters
Last month, Apple at the annual 2022 fall event unveiled three new Watches--a pocket-friendly Watch SE (2nd Gen), a standard Watch Series 8, and the top-end Watch Ultra.
This is the first time the Cupertino-based company has introduced three Watch variants and like the new iPhones, Apple plans to cater to different budget segments. This way, consumers can buy the new Watch, which matches their needs and budgets.
I have been using the Watch SE (2nd Gen) 40mm model for a little two weeks and here are my thoughts on Apple's latest and most affordable among the three new Watches.
Design and build quality
The new variant comes with trademark squarish lozenge design language. It has a smooth curved glass cover that beautifully merges with the metal casing. Speaking of which, Apple has used 100 percent full recycled aluminum. The back casing underneath is made of nylon composite materials and the colour blends beautifully with the casing. Apple offers the new Watch in midnight, silver, and starlight. Ours is the latter.
It features a very tactile digital crown along with a second-generation mic and a side button on one side. On the opposite side, you will find the new 2nd gen speaker, and is pretty loud too. You can hear the voice very clearly during a call in a room or while during an early morning walk in a park with less noise in the background.
When the side button is long pressed, it presents three options on the screen-- Medical ID (health and bio data), compass backtrack (more on that later), and emergency call. And, you will get the option to switch off the watch too. This is a handy shortcut to have to get help fast.
Also, Apple has adopted a new manufacturing process for the Watches and it has been able to reduce the carbon footprint by more than 80 per cent. That's fantastic.
The latest Watch SE is waterproof and can survive up to a depth of 50 metres.
On top, it features Ion-X glass, and as you saw up close in the cover shot, the screen has far remained scratch-free. I have said this before in my previous Apple Watch reviews, I am a clumsy person. My hands go astray while moving inside and around the houses, and most often than not, I accidentally brush against walls and grills in the garage and the gate.
I sometimes use excessive force while unlocking the gate and unintentionally rub my wrist against the grille. Thankfully, the Watch SE(2nd Gen) has remained free from any kind of physical damage.
The Watch SE (2nd Gen) has a thick bezel. It's noticeable, for those who have used top-end versions before. I have been using the Watch Series 7 for several months and for obvious reasons, it took me some time to adjust to the small display. However, the brightness (up to 1000 nits) Retina LTPO OLED display is good and is effective even outdoors too. I had no issue reading messages or notifications.
Like the previous iteration, the Watch SE (2nd Gen) comes in two sizes -- 40mm and 44mm. They come with 324x394p and 368x448p resolution, respectively.
But, I should note that I increased the font size while setting up the Watch SE 2. So, if you are not okay with the default font size of texts, you can always just swipe up to go to the home screen and scroll down to find the font size option with the AA icon. There, you can adjust how big the text can appear on the screen.
Also, the new colourful watch faces that come with watchOS 9 offer more personalisation, and great value addition in terms of user experience.
Performance
Setting up the Watch SE is really simple. It takes up just 15-20- minutes to pair with the iPhone.
Coming to the specifications of the device, it has a 64-bit class Apple S8 dual-core SiP (System-in-Package) with a W3 wireless chip same as we see in the premium Watch Series 8. It also boasts the Crash detection feature, which is exclusive to the 2022 series of iPhones and Watches.
It makes use of the new dual-core high-g accelerometer, high dynamic range gyroscope, microphone, barometer, GPS, and advanced sensor-fusion algorithm trained on over one million hours of real-world drive and crashes data to detect a severe car crash.
God forbid, if you ever meet with a car accident, the screen on the Watch displays a warning message-- 'It looks like you've been in a crash' along loud alert, if the user doesn't respond and cancel it, the device will automatically call the pre-set emergency response centre and also send location details to pre-listed contacts for speedy help.
Like I said in the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro Max reviews, I did not dare to test the efficacy of the Crash Detection and I just trust Apple based on a number of lives saved by Watches over the years.
But, there are situations, which may trigger crash detection. There were reports of false alarms on Apple Watch and iPhone 14 series owners, who rode a roller coaster.
That's a non-issue at all, the owner can always shut it off with a single tap and move on with life and be a little more assured, the Watch really does work and one day probably save a life.
Moving on, the new Watch SE comes with a new optical heart sensor to measure heart rate and heart rhythm. And, already after a week of usage, I got a notification that my cardio fitness is not that great. With a really low average score of 30.9 VO2 max. At my age (35), as per the chart on the Health app, I should have a score anywhere between 43 and 52.
I have to note, lately, there are noticeable signs of my body getting tired even while climbing just two flights of stairs at the office and I go into heavy breathing for at least five minutes to get back to normal breathing. I have improved the score to 31.4 VO2 max, but it is not good.
Having already scared, I can't wait till 2023 for starting afresh with the new year resolution. So, I have started to do more physical exercises, walk more, and even stopped taking autos to places that are less than three kilometres. I just walk to the destination. I hope to continue to the routine as I move to the Watch Series 8 (review coming in a couple of weeks).
With the new watchOS 9, the Watch now offers more insightful details of REM (Rapid Eye Movement), Core, and Deep sleep.
The data is very simple and easy to understand and helps us improve our sleep, which is very essential for body health and even life decisions.
Many studies have shown that good sleep is very critical for making decisions be it about office project work or even personal choices.
And, the native activity tracking app as always helps you lead a disciplined fitness regime without any nagging. With subtle nudges to get up to complete the stand, move and exercise target set for the day, it is the most intelligent fitness pal on any smartwatch in the industry. Only Fitbit can come close to Apple Watches, but for more insights on health, people have to subscribe to premium services.
With watchOS 9, Apple Watch's native activity app now offers deeper insights such as Stride Length, Ground Contact Time, and Vertical Oscillation to the Workout Views to help user understand how efficiently he/she run.
The Watch SE owner can rotate Digital Crown to view easy-to-read metrics on Workout Views.
Also, watchOS 9 brings Heart Rate Zones, which can be manually created or automatically calculated using personalised Health data and can be used to monitor the intensity of a workout.
It also brings the newly designed compass that offers a visually good analog compass with digital information such as current bearing, direction, and more customization options. Also, users can mark points of interest in the Compass app using the Waypoints feature.
And, there is an important Start Backtrack feature, which will help you find the right route to walk back to the starting point of the trekking expedition.
This is a very critical potential life-saving feature if you and your pals ever lose track of your journey.
Besides heart rate notification, Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) comes with Fall Detection too. Like Crash detection, it too will help owners get faster medical aid.
Like all Apple devices, the new watchOS 9-based Watch SE is deeply integrated with iPhone/iPad/Mac ecosystem and seamlessly connects with them. You can control the volume on the AirPods or on the HomePod. Also, it supports compatible smart home appliances such as home cameras, smart locks, and others too. However, the support for third-party devices is limited to select regions in the west.
As far as the battery life, it can last two days with just auto tracking on physical activities such as walking, standing, and things. But, if you have a routine exercise regime with any of the listed workouts (18+), even for a minimum of 30 minutes, then you need to charge at least once a day.
Also, this Apple Watch SE model is intelligent and if it senses, there is a low battery, will notify you to charge up the device at least an hour before you go to sleep every day (as specified in the sleep schedule on the Health app). It needs at least 30 per cent to easily last the night (a little eight hours). So, this will help in tracking sleep patterns.
And, like every Apple device, all health-related recorded data on Watch SE(2nd Gen) and on the Health app (on iPhone) is fully secured. It can not be shared with any third-party data broker unless you voluntarily sign up for any health study.
And, if the user has any physical fitness health issue, can share data with his/her doctor for better diagnosis.
Final thoughts
Apple's latest budget Watch SE (2nd Gen) is an effective fitness companion for young adults and children. It is good at physical activity tracking and heart rate monitoring. In little over a week of usage, the device will offer easy-to-understand insightful information on body health in terms of sleep pattern, cardio fitness health, respiratory rate, steady walking score and more on the Health app. Also, it can even help women track their menstruation cycle too.
I couldn't test the effectiveness of the fall detection, but based on a number of reports of successful rescues around the world, I'll take Apple's word for it. And, it goes the same for the newly introduced potential life-saving crash detection feature.
However, as said before, the Watch SE (2nd Gen) lacks some key features such as ECG, SpO2 monitor, and temperature sensor, as we see in the premium Watch Series 8 and the Watch Ultra.
But, for working-class young adults (21-35 age group), the Watch SE(2nd Gen) is more than enough to track their body fitness and most importantly, economical too, as it costs at least Rs 16,000 and Rs 60,000 less than the base model of the Watch S8 series and Watch Ultra, respectively.
And, it is also a good option for children. With the Family Setup feature, parents can control kids' activity, who can call/message them, get insights such as member’s screen time, set school schedules, and set other limits. And, of course, know their fitness.
Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) model prices start at Rs 29,900 in India.
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