Apple Watch Series 12: All the rumors at a glance

The Apple Watch Series 12 is expected in September 2026 – alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone Ultra. After a rather understated Series 11, this year's model is also likely to be a minor update: new watch faces, performance improvements, and little else. Touch ID has been canceled for 2026, and Siri AI will only access the watch via the paired iPhone. Apple is apparently postponing the larger generational leap to the planned redesign with a new band system – currently rumored for 2027.

Since 2015, Apple has released a new Apple Watch every September. The Series 11 in fall 2025 was a moderate update with 5G connectivity, longer battery life, and high blood pressure alerts - but little to cause a stir. Which of the currently available models - Ultra 3, Series 11, or SE 3 - is the best fit depends heavily on the intended use.

Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman significantly dampened expectations in mid-May 2026: The Series 12 is likely to be largely identical to the Series 11 – with a new watch face, performance improvements via a new S-series chip, and minor fixes via watchOS 27. Major sensor expansions or a new case design are not expected, Touch ID has been scrapped for 2026, and Siri AI will not run natively on the watch but will be routed through the paired iPhone. This article summarizes all known rumors.

Apple Watch Series 12: The most important points at a glance

Detail	Expectation
Release	September 2026, along with iPhone 18 Pro
Chip	New S11 or S12 chip (successor to the S10)
Design	No major changes; a major redesign is not expected until Series 13 (2027)
Watch face	New watch faces with watchOS 27, including a Modular Ultra variant
Sensors	Potentially a new 8-sensor array – Bloomberg dampens expectations
Wristband sensor	Leak: possible health sensor in the silicone band, possibly sold separately
Touch ID	According to Instant Digital, it has been scrapped for 2026
Apple Intelligence	Siri AI only works via a paired iPhone, not natively (RAM hurdle)
Starting price	Expected to start at €449 (like Series 11)

Design: Familiar form, redesign coming later

According to Mark Gurman, the Apple Watch Series 12 will largely resemble the Series 11 externally. This means: same case shape, same rounded square, buttons on the right, speaker on the left. A major redesign – with a thinner case, larger battery, and a new band attachment system – is now rumored for the Series 13 in 2027. A Weibo leaker initially dated this redesign to 2028 but recently corrected the date to 2027 – consistent with Apple's roughly three-year design cycle, following the Series 10's introduction of the current design in 2024. However, this date is not reliable: the same redesign, in varying variations, has been circulating in the rumor mill since 2023 without ever being released.

Leaker Instant Digital also confirmed on Weibo that the 2026 Apple Watch will not receive any radical design changes. However, new watch bands and possibly new colors are likely.

Apple continues to take a conservative approach to the casing, without major redesign – the real innovation takes place beneath the surface.

Chip: S12 with AI focus

As every year, a new chip is expected – likely the S11 or S12. The Series 11 uses the S10 chip with a 64-bit dual-core processor and a quad-core Neural Engine. Details about its successor are not yet known, but the general trend with Apple Silicon suggests improvements in three areas: higher energy efficiency for longer battery life, faster processing of health data, and better performance for local AI tasks.

It's unclear whether the S12 chip will enable Apple's intelligence features directly on the Watch – the Neural Engine in the Watch chips has been significantly more limited than in the iPhone or iPad. Apple has since enhanced Siri on the Watch with watchOS 27, but the processing is not handled by the Watch chip itself, but by a paired iPhone.

Sensors: New 8-sensor array

One of the most exciting rumors comes from DigiTimes: The Apple Watch Series 12 is said to feature a new sensor array with eight sensors arranged in a ring on the underside. What exactly these sensors measure is unconfirmed.

Possible areas of application:

Improved heart rate measurement during exercise and sports
More precise SpO2 values (blood oxygen)
Improved temperature measurement for cycle tracking
More reliable sleep monitoring
Basis for future blood pressure or blood sugar measurements

The principle is similar to Oura's approach with the Ring 4: More sensors with a better arrangement deliver more reliable data – even if the watch isn't perfectly fitted. However, this sensor rumor should also be taken with a grain of salt. In his latest Power-On newsletter, Mark Gurman doesn't expect any major hardware leaps with the Series 12 and only mentions minor, unspecified hardware adjustments. Whether DigiTimes' prominent 8-sensor array will actually arrive in 2026 or whether Apple will postpone it to a later generation remains to be seen.

Health sensor in the wristband instead of the case?

Alongside the array on the underside of the case, a second, more unusual theory is circulating: Leaker Kosutami claims that the Series 12 could have an additional health sensor, not located in the watch case, but directly in the silicone band. The sensor would be permanently integrated into the band via injection molding – this most likely refers to the fluoroelastomer band, the standard sport band that Apple includes at no extra cost. How such a sensor could be incorporated into bands made of fabric, leather, or metal has not yet been determined internally.

For users, this would have an immediate consequence: the latest sensor might only be accessible via a single – and, of all things, the cheapest – band variant. However, a more logical approach than reserving it exclusively for the included band would be for Apple to sell this sensor-equipped variant separately, as an independent accessory that could also be purchased alongside more expensive bands. This would create a new accessory category for Apple with recurring revenue potential, instead of further condensing the already dense electronics within the casing.

The leak leaves open what the sensor is intended to measure. Previous reports suggested a fluid balance sensor and an approach for capturing muscle movements – both functions that would benefit from the larger skin contact area of a band. The frequently mentioned non-invasive blood glucose measurement is explicitly excluded: this is said to be integrated into the optical sensor array under the casing and remains completely unclear.

Despite all the speculation, caution is advised. Kosutami's track record is generally respectable, but the leaker has been wrong before, specifically regarding the Apple Watch – for example, in 2023 with his prediction of a changed band connector that never materialized. The fact that the latest clue again revolves around Apple Watch bands warrants caution. Furthermore, a persistent rumor about a redesigned band connector mechanism is currently resurfacing: however, this pertains to the rumored Watch redesign, including a new band system, for a later generation, and not to the Series 12. A band-integrated sensor as early as 2026 and a new band connector only about a year later are unlikely to be linked to a common cause. Until Apple officially unveils the Series 12, the wristband sensor remains an intriguing but unconfirmed possibility.

Blood pressure and blood sugar: Not quite there yet

Blood pressure

The Series 11 already introduced high blood pressure warnings based on the analysis of heart rate data over 30 days. According to Mark Gurman, Apple is working on true wrist-based blood pressure measurement – but there are significant doubts as to whether the technology will be mature enough by 2026.

Blood sugar

Non-invasive blood glucose monitoring has been rumored for years. Apple is demonstrably researching it, but the accuracy is not yet sufficient for a consumer product. This feature is not expected for the Series 12.

Touch ID: Comeback on the wrist?

Touch ID has long been considered a hot feature for the next Apple Watch generation. Several sources – including Mark Gurman – reported that Apple was testing an integration, most likely in the side button, similar to the iPad Air. This would have allowed the Watch to be unlocked without an iPhone, Apple Pay to be authorized, and sensitive apps to be protected.

In May 2026, however, the Chinese leaker Instant Digital reported that Apple had abandoned the project for 2026. Two specific reasons were said to be decisive: First, an additional biometric sensor would strain the already tight energy efficiency of the Apple Watch. Second, a fingerprint sensor would increase the cost of the components without significantly expanding its usefulness from Apple's perspective. Apple is reportedly continuing its strategy of unlocking the smartwatch via iPhone pairing.

Important to understand: Code hints like "AppleMesa" - Apple's internal code name for Touch ID - don't automatically mean a final product decision. Apple regularly tests features in its software that don't make it into final devices. Touch ID on the wrist isn't completely off the table, however. Should Apple find a technical solution in the coming years that doesn't significantly impact battery life or unit costs, the topic could quickly resurface - but currently, attention is focused on two other areas: larger batteries and more sophisticated health sensors.

Apple Intelligence: Via the paired iPhone instead of natively

One of the biggest questions surrounding the Series 12 concerns Apple's AI platform. With iOS 27 and the new, Gemini-powered Siri generation, Apple Intelligence is moving to the center of its software lineup – and with watchOS 27, Siri AI is now also available on the Apple Watch. The important point: the processing isn't done by the watch itself, but by a paired iPhone with Apple Intelligence. A dedicated Siri app will appear on the Watch, allowing users to continue conversations started on their iPhone. However, the rollout is staggered: Siri AI will not be available at launch; the feature will arrive later this year, initially only in English.

The fact that the processing remains outsourced has a purely technical reason: The Apple Watch currently has between one and 1.5 gigabytes of RAM. For devices that run Apple Intelligence directly, Apple currently requires at least eight gigabytes. This gap cannot be closed quickly in such a small form factor with such a tight power budget – only a significantly larger battery or a much more efficient chip could overcome it. Neither is expected by 2026. Native AI processing on the wrist therefore remains a topic for a later generation; for the Series 12, the path leads via the iPhone.

Release and price

The Apple Watch Series 12 is expected to be unveiled in mid-September 2026, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro. Pre-orders are likely to begin a few days after the keynote, with sales starting in the following weeks.

An Apple Watch Ultra 4 will likely be released alongside the new model. An update to the Apple Watch SE in 2026 is rather unlikely – the SE 3 was only released in September 2025.

No major price change is expected. The Series 11 starts at €449 (GPS) in Germany. Should Apple actually include the new sensor array, a slight price increase of €20 - 50 would be conceivable – however, without the Touch ID sensor, one of the previously mentioned reasons for a price increase no longer applies.

Apple Watch Series 12: Who should wait?

Those wearing an Apple Watch Series 10 or 11 will likely find little reason to upgrade to the Series 12. Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman describes the model as a minor update with a new watch face and performance improvements – little to justify a generational change.

However, those still using a Series 8 or older will get several generations of improvements with the Series 12: a larger display, a thinner case, 5G, high blood pressure alerts, sleep apnea detection, and the new S-chip. There's also a compelling software argument: watchOS 27 only supports the Series 9 and newer, the Ultra 2 and newer, and the SE 3 – the Series 8, 7, 6, and SE 2 will no longer receive feature updates and will therefore miss out on new features like Siri AI on the watch.

Our recommendation depends primarily on how much time you have: If you're planning to buy in the fall anyway, the Series 12 is a solid but unremarkable model. Those who wait could finally experience a genuine generational leap with the major redesign of the Series 13 – currently expected in 2027, featuring a new strap system and a thinner case – provided the repeatedly postponed release date actually materializes this time.

The best products for you: Our Amazon storefront offers a wide selection of accessories, including those for HomeKit. (Image: Shutterstock / Wongsakorn 2468)