Update , September 10 : Upon further examination it looks like the SE is set up for preorder because there are lots of new straps . Whether you select a safe , fabric , or stainless steel band on Apple ’s website , you ’ll see that every single option is labelled with either NEW or NEW COLORS . Mystery solved ?
Today ’s “ It ’s Glowtime ! ” Apple event see a serial of newspaper headline - catch announcements , from theiPhone 16 Proto theAirPods 4 . And the Apple Watch was n’t left out of the fun , with a completely redesignedSeries 10 modeloffering both the thinnest body and the braggart display the line has ever had , along with faster charging and a new health - monitoring feature of speech .
The Series 10 replaces the Series 9 in the lineup , but what about the other models ? Most initiate expected new adaptation of the Apple Watch Ultra and SE too , but these did n’t appear : the second - gen versions of each remain on cut-rate sale . The Ultra 2 bewilder a new colouration finishing ( a rather beautiful satin black ) but the Apple Watch SE , as far as we can separate , did n’t alter at all . It was n’t even mentioned in the demonstration .
Which make it rather strange , when you go to theApple website , to see that the Apple Watch SE 2 is available to buy … on preorder . It is n’t a raw model , there is n’t a new people of color or chip , and it has n’t had a price cut , so what give ? The lineage is presumptively out there already , having set in motion in fall 2023 , so why do we need to wait until the 20th ? What ’s the difference between buying it now and buying it a workweek ago ?
Foundry
We ’ve emailed Apple PR to ask for clues , but there are a few possibilities . Perhaps the range of accessory has deepen in some small way of life that we have n’t noticed yet : fresh band , perhaps those “ Fresh band people of color ” mentioned on the internet site , that need to be ship out to customers . ( The Ultra 2 got a new band , theMilanese loop in black atomic number 22 , and this was announce during the display . But a less thrilling SE ring might not have merited stage time . )
or else , Apple may have taper off output of the SE in July and August , on the discernment that customers would have been expecting a Modern model and therefore would n’t want to buy the existing one ; which means it now has to ramp that production back up again and get building block out to distributors . Maybe the company even planned to update the SE this fall , and change its mind at a recent microscope stage . Or like the thought of people thinking the SE on the web site right now is New than it really is , although that would be more or less blue . ( And in paleness , it ’s reasonably clear that itisn’tnew . The Series 10 has a flushed newfangled badge , while Ultra 2 has fresh COLOR . The SE has no badge at all . )
We ’ll update this clause if we find the result , or if Apple respond . But for now , it will have to stay on a small but intriguing whodunit .