Design and Build

Apple Watch Series 6, which comes in the 40mm and 44mm sizes, a variety of chassis made of aluminum, stainless steel, or titanium with a depth of 10.7mm, the 40mm model is 30.5g (aluminum, GPS), 39.7g (stainless steel), or 34.6g (titanium), the 44mm is 36.5g (aluminum, GPS), 47.1g (stainless steel), or 41.3g (titanium). The available colors are Silver, Space Gray, Gold, Blue, (PRODUCT) RED (aluminum), Silver, Graphite, Gold (stainless steel), and Natural, Space Black (titanium). The watch is suitable for a wrist of 130-200mm (40mm) or 140-220mm (44mm) and has a Digital Crown, a side button, and band release buttons. With the sapphire crystal front (stainless steel/titanium) or Ion-X glass (aluminum) and ceramic back, the watch is made water-resistant to 50m (swimproof). While they compliment the excellent quality of the material running through the watch, they can’t help but point out that the design is much the same as in Series 5.

• Aluminum, stainless steel, or titanium chassis, 10.7mm depth
• Digital Crown, side button, band release
• Sapphire crystal (stainless steel/titanium) or Ion-X glass (aluminum), ceramic back
• 50m water resistance
• No IP6X dust resistance rating

Apple Watch Series 6 Display

Series 6 boasts of the always-on LTPO OLED Retina display, with 368 x 448 pixels (40mm, ~977 sq mm) or 396 x 484 pixels (44mm, ~1148 sq mm), both featuring ~326 PPI. It promises a maximum of 1000 nits brightness, which is 2.5 times higher than the Series 5’s brightness when the wrist is not worn, additionally, it has a 1Hz–60Hz variable refresh rate for always-on functionality. The display is identical to Series 5 in resolution but smaller than the Series 10’s screen. The screen's color output is highly praised by consumers for its clarity under strong sunlight but for the more significant, brighter screen of Series 10, customers say it's unbeatable.

• LTPO OLED Retina, always-on, 1Hz–60Hz
• 40mm: 368 x 448, 44mm: 396 x 484, ~326 PPI
• Up to 1000 nits
• Sapphire crystal (stainless steel/titanium) or Ion-X glass (aluminum)
• Smaller than Series 10

Performance and Software

Outfitted with the S6 SiP and a 64-bit dual-core processor, the Series 6 has 32GB storage, and it is compatible with watchOS 7 (can be upgraded to watchOS 11). The S6 microprocessor, which is developed with the A13 Bionic chipset as the base, has 20% faster speed improvement in contrast to the S5 chip in the areas of fitness tracking, notifications, and utilizing apps like Blood Oxygen and ECG. Cellular models are also implemented with Family Setup. The major concern of the users is the quite fast operation at the expense of the fact it does not have the Neural Engine and Double Tap gestures as Series 9 do.

• S6 SiP, 64-bit dual-core
• 32GB storage
• watchOS 7 (upgradable to watchOS 11)
• Family Setup (cellular models)
• No Neural Engine or Double Tap

The S6 delivers reliable performance, with watchOS 7 adding sleep tracking and handwashing detection, but it’s slower than Series 9.

Sensors and Health

The Series 6 has a blood oxygen sensor (models in the US after January 2024 will have no sensor yet), a second-generation optical heart sensor, an electric heart sensor (ECG), high-g accelerometer, gyroscope, always-on altimeter, compass, and an ambient light sensor. It is OK to say that the device is with blood oxygen monitor, ECG, sleep tracker, and fall detector. The health features are very much appreciated by the users, but they still find it strange that there are no temperature and depth sensors like those in Series 10.

• Blood oxygen (limited regions), ECG, heart rate
• Sleep tracking, fall detection
• High-g accelerometer, gyroscope, compass
• Always-on altimeter
• No temperature or depth sensor

Battery and Charging

The Series 6 lasts about 18 hours on a single charge adhering to a set of tasks (300 time checks, 90 notifications, 15min app use, 60min workout) or up to 36 hours in Low Power Mode. It is equipped with a battery of around 303mAh (est.) and it is rechargeable by magnetic induction (0–80% in about 60min) using a Magnetic Charging Cable (included). In practice, this means that 14-16 hours are enough to cover most of the day's activities and users are satisfied with the speed of charging when compared to the 5 series. They also find the battery life to be similar to series 9 albeit a little shorter.

• ~303mAh battery
• ~18h (normal), ~36h (Low Power)
• Fast charging: 0–80% in ~60min
• Magnetic Charging Cable
• No wireless power sharing

Connectivity

The Series 6 supports Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n, 2.4GHz/5GHz), Bluetooth 5.0, L1 GPS (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS), LTE (cellular models, $499+), U1 Ultra Wideband chip, and Apple Pay. It includes a microphone and speaker for calls and Siri. Connectivity is reliable, but it lacks Series 9’s Bluetooth 5.3 and second-generation Ultra Wideband. Users praise GPS accuracy and LTE stability but note no Wi-Fi 6 support.

• Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n), Bluetooth 5.0
• L1 GPS, LTE (cellular models)
• U1 Ultra Wideband chip
• Apple Pay, GymKit
• Microphone, speaker for calls

Pricing and Availability

The Series 6 was made available at the starting price of $399 (40mm, GPS, and aluminum material). September 18th, the day of the release of Series 6, was the start of sales in Apple, carrier, and retail stores. The sales price of the cellular version is $100 higher, stainless steel starts at $699, and titanium at $799. The product was no longer in production starting from October 2021; however, one can still get it and the price ranges from ~$200–$300 if one is in the market for refurbished items. A strong message is sent by users to newer models who don’t take it likely just because it lacks advanced sensors, they say that the health benefits are worth it.