Around 10 years ago, I bought a PlayStation 4, just after the "slim" model was released. It was heavily discounted, came with a couple of years' warranty and three of the most popular games of the PS4's life cycle up to that point. It's seen me through thick and thin and runs like a dream, with no sign of slowing down, but I'm starting to cast my eye over games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which means it's finally time to upgrade to a PlayStation 5.
We're halfway through that console's life cycle, and buying a PS5 now affords me the same upgrade as launch-day games had years ago, for substantially less money. There are serious gamers out there who traded in their PS5 and bought a new console when the PS5s Pro and Slim were released last year, representing the pinnacle of console graphics, framerate, processing power and other mysterious specs that dedicated gamers care about.
I don't need a Pro or a Slim, just the vanilla model. I don't mind playing an older machine if it means an upgrade from the one I already own. I can imagine there are many more gamers like me who've waited patiently for the PS5 to fall in price, and it's finally our time to shine.
Why am I talking about consoles, when this is an article about the best Apple Watches set to arrive tomorrow? Because I'm just as interested, possibly more so, in an Apple Watch SE 3 arriving at this year's September Apple event than I am in the all-but-official Apple Watch Ultra 3.
Every couple of years, Apple takes some of the Apple Watch's older components and puts them back together, like a sort of Frankenstein watch. It then wraps these old parts inside a cheaper case, one which uses a nylon backing rather than metal, among other money-saving tricks.
Apple finally flips the switch and brings the monster to life in the form of an affordable, accessible Apple Watch capable of running current-gen software. This is the Apple Watch SE series, and it's heavily rumored we'll get an Apple Watch SE 3 this week alongside the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch Series 11.
The first Apple Watch SE debuted in 2020, while the Apple Watch SE (2022) debuted two years later. We're now three years on from that, and it's time we got another upgrade with parts from the Series 9 or Series 10 to ensure a future-proof Apple Watch that people can purchase and use at a lower price point.
Using older parts means that people adhering to the SE line get significant jumps in watch quality at substantially lower costs, just like me waiting a while to upgrade from my tired old PS4, which I bought halfway through its life-cycle, to a PS5.
As a casual gamer, I'm getting a leap in quality at a discount by waiting for older machines. The people buying the Apple Watch SE series are more likely casual fitness fans looking for a step counter and a gym companion, rather than a replacement for one of the best Garmin watches. The fact the SE 3 will use older parts won't matter to the target audience: its lower price tag will. It now just happens to come with features that were brand new a few years ago.
Apple doesn't sell older models: it immediately stops making them when new devices come out. Unless you're buying an older or refurbished watch from a third party, the SE series is the only way to get a brand-new watch at a reduced price using older, cheaper parts.
Three years on, an SE 3 will be a significant upgrade from the SE 2, which will make it a very attractive purchase, especially if it sticks to its predecessor's pricing structure, starting at $249 / £259 / AU$399. It's not going to be an incremental upgrade of the sort we're expecting from the Series 11 and Ultra 3, but it's going to be a big leap in quality, especially with watchOS 26 bringing AI smarts like the Workout Buddy to all compatible watches.
What I'm getting at is that even though tech fans are excited about the latest iteration of the Watch Ultra, that's not what's going to fall into the hands of most people. Apple's cheaper AI-infused wearable is going to be worn on many more wrists than its souped-up powerhouse, making it just as – perhaps more – important for Apple to get right.
I'm excited to review it, for all those people who don't mind using an older machine if it means an upgrade from the one they already own.
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