HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2: The ultimate expression of sophistication

Exotic has not been a territory explored often by smartwatches. Instead, most smartwatches have tried to appeal to the everyday man. Even those bulky Ultra watches end up being more about endurance than elegance. The HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2, however, straddles both worlds. It is a piece of serious expedition gear that still looks refined enough to wear to dinner. And beneath its shiny exterior lie things that challenge the very definition of a smartwatch, from sonar-based underwater messaging to fingertip health diagnostics.

Heavy-duty Liquid Metal Watch Case with Sapphire Glass

The WATCH Ultimate 2 is a luxury adventure watch through and through, from material to software. The casing of the watch is made by rapidly cooling molten zirconium alloy, giving the material exceptional strength, corrosion resistance and flexibility. To enhance the durability even more, a layer of ultra-hard coating is added on top of the zirconium-based liquid metal case. 

The bezel uses dual-colour nanocrystal ceramic, an exceptionally tough material that can resist scratches and corrosion, born out of a complex manufacturing process. Even after countless rendezvous with rocks, sand, or seawater, the ceramic will keep the bezel looking brand new. A sapphire glass with a Mohs hardness of 9 protects the 1.5-inch LTPO 2.0 screen with a local peak brightness of up to 3500 nits. The sapphire crystal resists scratches from your everyday bumps. 

Engineered for depths

The WATCH Ultimate 2 is not just meant for normal adventures. The watch is engineered for extremes, featuring support for 150-meter diving, and becomes the first ever in the industry to have audio capabilities for a free diving smartwatch. 

At such depths, the engineering challenge is ensuring water resistance under extreme pressure. However, HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2 has adopted a cutting-edge design featuring 13 water-resistant layers. But audio components, mics and speakers require openings for sounds to pass through. To solve this problem, the WATCH Ultimate 2 use a new water pressure sensing structure that detects water depth and automatically seals the openings to prevent water entry in deep waters. 

Underwater Sonar-based communication

The HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2 is also the first-ever smartwatch with underwater messaging support. The watch has a small sonar device that lets you send messages to other watches within 30 meters. You can connect with up to 50 dive buddies and choose from over 50 common messages and emojis, or customise your messages. The watch has an Emergency SOS as an additional safety feature. Once this mode is activated, the watch sends out SOS signals to nearby divers every 25 seconds. 

Fast and comprehensive health monitoring

For over a decade, smartwatches have relied on the sensors on the back for monitoring. While this worked for what it's worth, the WATCH Ultimate 2 brings it to the new era with the new X-TAP sensor on the right side of the watch body, which houses the ECG, PPG, and pressure sensors. Together with the super-sensing module on the watch's back, they form a new distributed TruSense System, providing enhanced fingertip health monitoring capabilities.

Compared to wrist-based monitoring alone, fingertip measurements provide more accurate health metrics. By pressing and holding the X-TAP sensor for 3 seconds, you can start a Health Glance check and receive a health report based on 11 indicators, including average heart rate, blood oxygen, body temperature, stress, and ECG. Besides the X-TAP feature, you also get all the advanced health and fitness management features people have come to love on Huawei’s wearables.

Feeling adventurous

As primarily an outdoor smartwatch, the Ultimate 2 offers an exceptional experience with Diving, Expedition, and Golf modes. The dual-frequency five-system positioning and the enhanced Sunflower positioning system, featuring a gap antenna and advanced algorithms, significantly boost positioning performance. The positioning accuracy has improved from 10 meters to 8 meters. Even in complex outdoor terrains and urban areas with tall buildings, the watch maintains strong signal reception. 

And in case you experience risks related to altitude sickness, rapid altitude changes, or entry into extremely high-altitude areas above 4,500 meters, the watch automatically identifies these risks and prompts you to perform an altitude sickness evaluation using the Lake Louise survey. The watch also provides breathing exercise recommendations to help mitigate the symptoms. 

With enhanced Golf Course mode, the WATCH Ultimate 2 offers golf enthusiasts an unprecedented smart golfing experience. There are now over 17,000 golf course maps from across the world. All of them are now upgraded to vector maps, and they dynamically zoom in and out as you move through the course. 

eSIM Cellular Calling

HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2 features a dual battery mode. In Standard mode, the watch can last for 4.5 days with all features supported, suitable for daily use. In Power Saving mode, it can last up to 6 days under normal usage while still supporting all the basic features, such as workout recording and health monitoring. The watch supports advanced eSIM calling for standalone communication, even in Power Saving mode. 

The almost indestructible build meant for rugged terrains and extreme adventures, yet still sporting the charm of a classic luxury timepiece is puts the HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate 2 squarely in a class of its own. While it might not be for everyone, it is a specialised, over-engineered tool for those who operate at the extremes.