Apple Watch 8 and Apple Watch SE 2 are the latest watch releases. Both watches were released in September 2022. We evaluate the two Apple watches and bring the salient points into your ready consideration below.
In the following document, we list the main elements of Apple Watch 8 and Apple Watch SE 2. Both watches are based on the watch OS version 9 of Apple. This OS was released in September 2022 for Apple Watch 8 and Apple Watch SE 2.
- Price
- Physical Specifications
- Battery and Charging
- Display
- Health Tracking
- Dust Protection
- Table of Comparison (Quick Reference)
Price
- Apple Watch 8 GPS variant costs upwards of $399 and Apple Watch SE 2 GPS variant costs $249.
- Apple Watch 8 GPS + Cellular costs upwards of $499 and Apple Watch SE 2 GPS + Cellular costs upwards of $299.
On a model to model comparison, Apple Watch 8 is costlier than Apple Watch SE 2 by $ 150.
Physical Specifications
Apple Watch 8 and Apple Watch SE 2 (2022 edition) do have significant differences when it comes to size and physical attributes of the watch.
Apple Watch 8 comes in aluminum and stainless steel body (watch casing) variants. Apple Watch SE 2 comes in aluminum option. There is no steel casing option for Apple Watch SE 2.
Apple Watch 8 has slightly bigger variants in 41 mm and 45 mm sizes. Apple Watch SE 2 (2022 edition) has variants in 40 mm and 44 mm physical sizes. The larger size of Apple Watch 8 results in bigger screen area (almost 20 percent higher screen area) of the Apple Watch 8.
Effectively, a bigger screen area results in a better display resolution of the Apple Watch 8 over the Apple Watch SE 2 variant.
- Apple Watch 8 45 mm has a display resolution of 396 x 484 pixels. Apple Watch SE 2 has a display resolution of 368 x 448 pixels.
- Apple Watch 8 41 mm has a display resolutions of 352 x 430 pixels. Apple Watch SE 2 40 mm variant has a display resolution of 324 x 394 pixels.
We are looking a display resolution improvement of over 15 percent on the Apple Watch 8 over the Apple Watch SE 2.
On account of the bigger screen area and size, the weight of Apple Watch 8 is marginally higher than the Apple Watch SE 2 edition watches on a model to model comparison.
Battery and Charging
Apple Watch SE 2 and Apple Watch 8 contain a rechargeable Lithium ion battery with 18 hours of rated battery life. The difference, however, lies in the improved battery charging rates of Apple Watch 8.
An Apple Watch 8 can go from 0 to 100 percent in 75 minutes. Apple Watch SE 2 takes up to 150 minutes for building full charge on a drained out battery. This difference in charging performance can be explained on account of fast charging that is available on Apple Watch 8.
Display
Apple Watch 8 has an OLED display with 1000 nits of screen brightness. The watch supports ‘Always on Display’ or AOD. Apple Watch SE 2 does have an OLED display with 1000 nits of screen brightness; however, it does not support the ‘Always on Display’ or the AOD feature. Apple Watch SE 2 supports the normal Retina display technology.
Health Tracking
Some of the more significant differences between an Apple Watch 8 and Apple Watch SE 2 can be experience in the health tracking.
Apple Watch 8 comes with an electrical heart sensor. This is in addition to the third-generation optical heart sensor. The electrical heart sensor allows an Apple Watch 8 to take on-demand ECG readings and support the ECG feature (in supported countries only).
Apple Watch SE 2 does not have an electrical heart sensor and does not support the ECG function.
On a similar note, Apple Watch 8 has a ‘Blood Oxygen Sensor’ to take levels of pulse oxygenation in the blood. The wrist-based pulse oxygenation readings allow you to monitor blood oxygenation levels.
Apple Watch SE 2 does not have the ‘Blood Oxygen Sensor’ and does not offer monitoring of pulse blood oxygenation levels.
Finally, Apple Watch 8 also has a temperature sensor. This sensor allows the watch to take skin-based temperature readings. Apple Watch SE 2 does not have such a temperature sensor.
Dust Protection
Interestingly, Apple Watch 8 has an IP68 dust protect rating. IP68 is an ingress-protection rating for dust and water. IP68 implies that the rated device has maximum possible ingress protection against dust and water.
Apple Watch SE 2 does not have the IP68 dust protection.
Table of Comparison – Apple Watch 8 vs Apple Watch SE 2
| Features | Apple Watch 8 | Apple Watch SE 2 (2022 Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Chip | S8 with 64 bit processor | S8 with 64 bit processor |
| Size | 41 mm and 45 mm | 40 mm and 44 mm |
| Casing | Aluminum | Aluminum and Steel |
| Display | OLED with Always on Display | OLED |
| Additional Sensors | Electrical heart sensor, Temperature Sensor and Blood Oxygen Sensor | |
| Dust Protection | IP68 | Not certified for dust protection |
| ECG | Yes (in supported countries) | No |
| Pulse Oxygenation (Blood oxygen) | Yes | No |
| Fast Charging | Yes | No |
| Price | $249 and above | $399 and above |
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Helen Kurt is a geeky nerd who loves to cover the wearables space. She has over 5 years of experience in the smartwatch domain. You can reach her on email at [email protected].