The Apple Watch Series 2 will surely be at the top of many wish lists this holiday season. The newest iteration is waterproof, has a much brighter display and sports built-in GPS.
This wearable device is the perfect gift for people who like to track their fitness, check their notifications and stay closely connected with friends and loved ones. Just make sure the person you are getting it for uses an iPhone since this smartwatch doesn’t work with Android or Windows smartphones.
Like the original Apple Watch, the Series 2 has different variations of watchcases and wrist straps to choose from. You can choose from two case sizes: 38 mm and 42 mm (1.5 and 1.7 inches). We recommend the $369 anodized aluminum Apple Watch. You have four case colors to choose from – silver, gold, rose gold and space gray. You can pay extra for nylon, leather and stainless steel bands, but the included silicone strap is comfortable and doesn’t get dirty easily. No matter which variation you choose, all have the same internal components.
If you want a more premium watch, there’s one with a stainless steel case, which starts at $549. The most expensive version has a ceramic case and costs $1,249. Both of these models have a sapphire crystal display, compared to the aluminum model’s Ion-X display. The screen on the 42 mm space gray aluminum model we tested still doesn't have any scratches after a month of wearing it.
The Series 2 Apple Watch is twice as bright as the first-generation watch, making it much easier to read outdoors, especially in direct sunlight. However, its screen resolution remains the same as the last model and it lacks an always-on display mode like Android Wear watches offer.
When we reviewed the previous Apple Watch, we complained about it being slow, especially when using apps. Fortunately, this model has a much faster dual-core processor, better graphics performance and 1GB of RAM.
The battery for the Series 2 Apple Watch is 32 percent bigger than the one in the original Apple Watch. However, the size increase hasn’t affected battery life much. This is likely because of the brighter display and built-in GPS. You will have no issues getting a full day of battery life (19 hours), but we recommend you charge the watch each night.
What makes the Apple Watch Series 2 stand out from other smartwatches is its fitness tracking capabilities and waterproofing. It tracks several common cardio-focused workouts and has a built-in heart rate monitor and GPS for tracking runs. Since it's waterproof you can use it to record your laps, strokes, pace and distance in the pool.
Apple is known for its outstanding customer service. The Apple Watch Series 2 comes with one year of AppleCare, which includes phone, email, live chat and in-store support.
The newest Apple Watch may be much better than last year's model since it’s screen is brighter, it’s faster, the casing is waterproof and it finally has GPS. Does anyone really need one? Maybe not, but sometimes the best Christmas gifts are things that we don't need.
