We Got Our Hands on the All-New Apple Watch Series 7 — Here’s Our Review

apple watch series 7
Reviewed: Apple Watch Series 7Apple


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Time and time again, Apple has proven to us why their product remains the industry-leading smartwatch on the market. Announced alongside the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro, the Apple Watch Series 7 got its first redesign since 2018's Series 4. It features a larger display, tucked into a slightly bigger 41- or 45-millimeter case — up from 40- and 44-millimeter ones in the Apple Watch Series 6 and other preceding models. The $399 starting price of the product has remained unchanged.

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I've been testing the Apple Watch Series 7 for a week and found it to be a noticeable leap forward over the Series 6, with noticeable improvements made to its display, durability, charging capabilities, and health features. Here's why its new design and performance improvements make it worthy of your upgrade.

Bigger Screen = Better Interactions

The Series 7 has a 20% larger display panel than its predecessors — and it seriously enhances your user experience. Featuring ultra-thin borders, the screen of the latest Apple Watch is infinitely more convenient.

apple watch series 7 on wrist
Stefan Vazharov

Upgrading to the Apple Watch Series 7 from a Series 6, I found simple tasks like glancing at the time, checking on my notifications, and viewing watch face complications like weather and activity stats to be more effortless on the bigger screen. Plus, the display panel is even easier to read without the need to lift your wrist in always-on mode.

Even Apple watchOS 8 — the latest installment of the wearable platform — has been designed to take advantage of the new timepiece's bigger screen. Thanks to bigger type and larger buttons, onboard apps function better than ever, and the display feels substantially easier to use. To top things off, there are a bunch of new watch faces that fully utilize the bigger panel.

apple watch series 7 qwerty keyboard
Apple

My favorite new bit about the bigger screen of the Apple Watch Series 7 is the full QWERTY keyboard. This cool new feature allows you to reply to messages and emails by simply tapping on its letters or sliding your finger over them. It’s a feature that allowed me to take longer breaks from bigger screens by cranking out lengthier replies with surprising efficiency. This new keyboard function is such a game changer, I’d upgrade to the Apple Watch Series 7 for this feature alone.

I'm happy to report that the Series 7's bigger screen didn't have a negative impact on its battery life. I could easily get a full day of use from the gadget without the need to disable its always-on display feature.

Sleeker and Tougher Build

Apple has freshened up the design of the Apple Watch with refined corner curves and a display glass cover that's better integrated into the metal case, all while maintaining the same instantly recognizable shape. The newcomer still looks like a classic Apple Watch, only sleeker.

apple watch series 7
Stefan Vazharov

The Series 7 is even tougher than older Apple Watch variants, thanks to a thicker crystal and a case with an IP6X rating for dust resistance ­— which is the industry's highest rating. The smart timepiece is also fully waterproof to depths of up to 50 meters.

Thankfully, despite having the biggest case yet, every Apple Watch Series 7 is fully compatible with bands from older models. So if you've accumulated a vast collection of Apple Watch bands over the years, you won't have to abandon any of them for this upgrade.

Best-in-Class Health and Fitness Tracking

Like every Apple Watch that precedes it, the Series 7 has groundbreaking health-, fitness-, and wellness-tracking tools, making them the best set of health tools in the business. The smartwatch is packed with essential tech, headlined by a heart rate sensor with ECG capabilities and a blood oxygen sensor. The former can keep tabs on your heart rhythm with exceptional accuracy, and alerts you for potential health- and life-threatening abnormalities.

The innovative blood oxygen sensor can track changes in your body through an infrared light that's integrated into its back. It can monitor for changes in your body over time, including while you sleep — but you should be mindful that the feature is intended for wellness tracking, not medical use.

underwater diver with apple watch series 7
Apple

When it comes to fitness tracking, the Apple Watch Series 7 can do just about everything — from indoor cycling all the way to swimming in open waters. The watch can automatically detect and prompt you to begin tracking a host of activities.

You'll also get an outstanding set of tools for tracking outdoor activities like an always-on altimeter and an accurate GPS with a built-in compass, among others. In addition to outdoor runs and hikes, to name a couple of activities, the Series 7 can also track their cycling trips.

The Apple Watch has been a favorite of ours for health and fitness tracking for years, and the Series 7 is no exception. Keeping track of all of your performance metrics and vital stats via Fitness and Health, a duo of native iPhone apps, is easier to access and understand than ever. You can view your trends over time and even set new goals for your favorite exercises.

By offering easy access to a constantly growing selection of studio workouts led by professional trainers, Apple Fitness+ is another big reason to consider the tech giant's watches. The service offers training sessions with various lengths for all activity levels. You can view the guided workouts and your Apple Watch metrics on the screen of your iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV.

You can rest assured you're in safe hands with the Apple Watch Series 7, thanks to built-in fall detection tech and the ability to contact emergency services in more than 150 countries worldwide. The potentially life-saving features are enabled by default for anyone over 55 years of age.

Snappy Performance

Performance-wise, the Apple Watch Series 7 delivers a stellar user experience just like the Series 6. Its dual-core processor shares bits with the A13 Bionic chip that's powering the iPhone 11 and the latest iPad, so apps opened instantly and switching between open ones was just as swift. In terms of speed and fluidity of interactions, the Series 7 is second to none in its product category.

apps on apple watch series 7
Stefan Vazharov

The Series 7 can also charge even faster than the already speedy Series 6 ­— up to 33%, to be exact. You can get its battery from 0 to 80% — enough for a day of use with the screen always on — in only 45 minutes.

Wrap Up

If you're an iPhone user looking for a new smartwatch, the Apple Watch Series 7 is the one to get, as it fits your budget. The next-level convenience brought by the bigger display makes the new installment a worthwhile upgrade for current Apple Watch users as well.

The entry-level Apple Watch Series 7 comes with a 41-millimeter case crafted from recycled aluminum in a multitude of colors: blue, green, midnight, and starlight. The 45-millimeter version costs $30 more, while cellular connectivity will tack on $100 to the price of both models.

Stainless steel Series 7 models and titanium-clad Edition versions start at $749 and $849, respectively. Collaborations with Nike and Hermès are also available, with the latter topping out at $1,759 for stainless steel case with a stunning Gourmette Double Tour leather band.

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