Its not about loudness. Its about the chirp and the specific sound it makes. Its more distinct especially when you are in the wilderness. Many people have tested it and have proved that it can easily be heard from far away
It was also a terribly dishonest trial of it. As soon as it begins to get louder, as it gets louder over time, he rushes to turn it off and slap a negative opinion on it. Sloppy.
@@DuridPid Right? It's easily noticable in the video that it gets way louder when the screen turns off, presumably to protect the wearers hearing while the watch is raised near their head. Smh.
Siren Loudness: DC Rainmaker explained in his review that the efficacy of the siren (or alarm) was more due to the frequencies used, and the cadence between chirps than pure loudness.
And he went on to test it from the claimed 600 meters and found it easily audible, suggesting in good conditions it could be heard from even farther away.
Easy enough to test out the effectiveness - play some hide and seek in a national park, on a hiking trail, in the woods somewhere. The idea is that rescue would have some GPS coords right? And the alarm gets them the rest of the way?
If the alarm speaker has some water inside the sound will be super low. Water eject doesn’t work properly on that speaker so you have to wait around 12 hours until it dries.
Different perceptions. DC is outdoors often with an ear out for things on trails. Ifixit guy might be used to being indoors, top notch headphones on. I found the siren not only easy to detect at range but the pitch made direction easy to detect.
I normally fully agree with your assessments, but I think you’ve been a bit unfair to Apple here. It’s a very compact device with a very high level of water resistance. I wouldn’t expect it to be as easy to repair as a phone or laptop. That clearly wasn’t the correct way to remove the screen either. I agree that I wouldn’t wear the watch climbing (I wouldn’t wear any watch climbing) but I think for the vast majority of applications the raised lip will protect the screen. Also, the siren has a distinctive sound and is as good as can be expected from a tiny speaker. Personally, I think this is the best piece of hardware Apple has released in years.
We try to be unbiased though I'm afraid this was my experience with this watch. There's a certain amount of marketing going on here on Apples part that borders on the dishonest and yet at other times they understate the engineering that went into the device just in case they get into trouble (the fine print on the 100m rating is interesting as an example - only guaranteed to a depth of 40m if I'm not mistaken). All in all, I respect your opinion but we've not tried to sell anything or sway any opinions on the device itself. Cracked screens aside, repairing a battery on this device while trying to save an already function screen will be difficult for the average person. Screen replacements on this device need practice to remove intact and it's simply not something people will risk with a screen that's likely to be expensive. -SM
@@iFixitYourself It's guaranteed to 100m, it's just that the depth limit for recreational diving is 40m, so the depth sensor and Oceanic+ app will only work down to that depth, anything more and it stays waterproof, but displays a 'deeper than 40m' message on the watch.
@@iFixitYourself that's only for the dive computer which is only certified for 40m. WR100 funnily does not mean actual 100m, this is the same for other highend watches like the Polar Grit X. It has WR100 but you are not allowed to use it for any diving it all. The AWU is actually the first smart watch at all that is officially certified for SCUBA diving and the inclusion of an acutal diving computer is freakin cool und currently unmatched.
@@iFixitYourself Thank you for your reply and I respect your opinion as well. Maybe we’re coming at this from different angles. I expect a phone or laptop to be user repairable but I actually don’t expect it with a watch. Maybe that’s because I’m coming from using mechanical diving watches which you’d never dream of trying to take apart yourself. As for Apple’s marketing, the only part I disagreed with was the footage of someone climbing as there is no way that wouldn’t destroy any watch. Apart from that I think what you get is pretty much what they advertise.
It’s supposed to be a specific frequency that you only hear it from the distance while still not harming the user that is wearing the watch that is why sometimes you could hear wild animals when they’re miles away, and being next to them don’t sound much different. it is a certain frequency that echoes further than being pure loudness also when you are in the mountains or Forrest there will be wind currents that’ll push the sound to be further away.
i would expect better from ifixit to actually try and properly remove the screen rather than start prying till something breaks it’s ifixit supposed to be a resource for self repair hence “ifix it”
Not only that, but if your screen is broken anyway, replacing it looks easy. Replacing the battery alone looks unlikely, but at least you only have to remove the screen.
I think it's not the watch's fault you broke the screen. It clearly needs to be pulled out by suction cup first and then only cut out by plier. No wonder it cracked, you just tried to scrape it out of the casing.
For it not to break, like our Guide Writer who expertly removed the glass on his device. Nice work Dominik :) www.ifixit.com/Guide/Opening+Procedure/153357
@@iFixitYourself you need to get someone that has the skills to be able to do this. Anyone can give tools to a intern and say try and open this Apple watch and if the screen breaks blame it on poor design.
@@goiterlanternbase I feel like we've already talked how Apple doesn't want repairable devices, hmmm, not suuure if that's a new thing or not.. hhmmmmm Oh wait.. 10 years ago it was the same just less "gotta break it more to repair it"
They did have a problem early on with their smoothing algorithms that resulted in bad tracks, but even worse distances particularly in the woods or other places with tough satellite reception. My Series 3 now has very good tracks, but still overestimates many distances. I think most of Apples’s recent watches are pretty much spot on. And I don’t think the problem was ever antennas.
Right? DC Rainmaker and The Quantified Scientist are probably the most thorough smartwatch testers on the internet and they gave really high scores for Apple Watch GPS and its sensors for accuracy.
Exactly, I've never had issues with the gps on the 3 Apple watches I've owned. Why do reviewers feel the need to make claims about a device without providing proof?
Also he need to use a heat gun against the glass for a few minutes, to make the glue to get softer and less adhesive, that is standard when removing the glass screen on iPhones.
"There is a 170 degree danger" What do you want them to do? put steel on top of the screen? Its saphire glass, its the most durable only after a diamond on mohs hardness scale.
To be honest I’m amazed that it was made with this level of repairability. They could have just slathered it with glue and called it a day. It seems like they are making a visible effort to be more repairable. I’m actually liking this watch a lot. Thank you for the video. I think I’ll pick up the ultra AW and give it a go.
The siren slowly gets louder and more annoying if you leave it on longer. Most reviewers haven't allowed it to get louder before letting us know how loud it gets lol
Based on my watches a majority of hits come from the side and if it falls directly down that lip will save both instances. So really direct impacts of something smaller than the face is the only thing left to worry about.
I have a Garmin Fenix and the lips aren't raised that much either. It isn't possible to make a watch that fully protect the screen from the front without blocking the screen lol
@@unvcht5046 at least it will last much longer and be useful in 10 years time, can't say the same for the smart watch. Let me borrow your smart watch and I'll film a video of myself throwing my G Shock and your smart watch at a wall and see which one survives 😎
Anything after the series 7 watch and iPhone 12, requires at least 120c to loosen the glue. The upside is that these displays are quite resilient if handled properly. To open the watch i recommend a cut to size Dorco blade, 120c of heat and iso 99%. Screen refurbishment process looks identical to the series 7 were you don’t need to cut any glass or remove any frame to separate the glass. This is a win in my opinion.
Pretty absurd for you to so casually discount the siren feature. If it's the last thing you do before passing out, activating that siren could definitely save your life if someone is trying to find your body buried under snow from an avalanche or while you're in a cave dying from dehydration.
I feel like the amount of effort put into this teardown and video was about the same as Apple put into the Series 7 and 8 watches… aka NONE! Also considering you referenced the 8 teardown in this video, where is that video?! That one should have been out before the Ultra, considering that model released first for the public to purchase.
About the Siren apparently the Apple Watch can detect if it’s indoors and won’t play the Siren as loud as it might outdoors maybe that’s why it sounded so weak
The siren has been tested from over 600 feet away by other tech RUclipsrs and they've shown that it's more than loud enough. I think iFixit needs to stick to taking things apart instead of analyzing the gadget's abilities.
yes true, was quite odd that the guy just sad indoors at a desk and didn't do a proper test before criticizing the feature. would not rely on this channel for proper reviews, there are many great channels that does thorough testing
I would love to see iFixIt take apart a high end Swiss watch and assess its repairability. This is the kind of complexity which goes into these devices, but no-one has ever complained to the Swiss watch industry about repairability. We’re really coming at this with false expectations.
good point, these devices are crammed with so much tech and just because this guy is not skilled to properly open or repair this device, doesn't mean the manufacturer made a bad design.
Mechanical watches are harder to repair and service because most have some forty to seventy parts, but they aren't _so_ bad. I oiled the ETA 2892 movement of a Tag Heuer watch using tools I found at home (though the four Moebius oil types themselves were pretty expensive). Everything is predictable: all you do is unscrew and re-screw screws, remove, wash, lubricate & replace parts, and take a photo every now and again so you can remember where stuff goes. Smartwatches, which are really in a different class, have less tolerances from moving parts and generally less mechanical complexity. They should be easier to make repairable.
Samsung has made repairable watches sense apple started, not that hard, the screen is a different story on mostly everything, but getting inside to replace a disposable battery, because say it with me all batteries have an end of life, that's very important
The screen is actually quite tough from a straight on hit. It was smashed several times with a hammer and the desk underneath it broke before the screen did.
The siren is about location especially when incapacitated, and not able to call out on your own. Not only that but it's not supposed to be loud but rather heard from a long distance, different frequencies.
true the guys are getting lazy, just gave some intern tools and said here try and open this best you can and then blames the design for being bad. didn't even go outside to test the siren, just making a video for the sake of it.
As always, a special tool will be required to replace the screen. Something like a suction cup or device that holds with vacuum and a heat gun to soften the adhesive.
FYI The siren has two levels, one when you are indoors and one outdoors. The watch knows when you are outdoors by using the mics, and the sound level is adjusted. The bottom line is - when you really will need it, it will be loud, much louder for the indoor test in this video.
I'm curious if the screen is *actually* sapphire crystal like Apple claims, or if it's some sort of hybrid glass like Ceramic Shield. If it is indeed sapphire, my guess would be that the raised lip is to prevent the sides of the crystal from being struck. My understanding is that sapphire is more scratch resistant, but also more brittle if struck the right way, like it has a sort of grain, perhaps? If it's hit against the grain it's more likely to be fine, but if it's hit with the grain, it could shatter? Not sure how accurate that is. I do want to thank you for disassembling this! Hopefully not many people attempt to disassemble this Apple Watch and try to swim with it afterwards. I was just in an Apple Store today to see how big the watch actually was and also to decide which band size I would need to get. Someone else that was looking sounded interested in disassembling it, I hope for the watch's sake that they don't swim with it should they attempt to dismantle it.
If you watch TechRax's video, it seems like it might be actual sapphire. It didn't scratch at all when shaken in a jar of nails and it took several hammer hits to shatter the screen.
1:44 in and I'm confused. Everyone I watched so far (random people I don't even follow that just seemed to test stuff well and unbiased) said the Siren was great and GPS has always been great. Dafuq.... Edit: A minute later: The lip is not great. What is going on here....
Enough tests have been done to prove the only way you’ll need to replace the screen glass is if you’ve already beaten up the watch to the point the internal components are already ruined
I dunno. I don't watch iFixit vids much anymore and it's been a minute. But this guy is highly entertaining and not afraid to express his immediate emotions during those exciting and often tribulating teardowns. He uttered and especially juicy, "I hate it" at some point and I guffawed. Nice work teardown originalists!
The whole process seemed like you didn’t like the watch from the beginning. Never use metal tools to pry screens or anything. 17 years experienced repair shop.
Isn't it a bit odd to complain about damaging the screen when most of the repairs that require screen removal will be 99% the screen itself? I mean, he even said it himself that the screen is probably the first thing to be damaged in a fall or wipeout on to a rock face.
As a Watchmaking apprentice I have mixed feelings on this watch. First off, you missed the 'small' O-Rings underneath the screws, one hamfisted genius at 9to5mac decided to have a crack at this before tucking their tail and in the process futzed them up. On my own watch I was able to easily place them back in their groove and put the screws back in, but obviously not everyone has my (limited-ish) knowledge. But again, as a watchmaker I very well know that it's possible to make a diving watch with an infinitely serviceable internal mechanism. In an alternate reality there's an Apple which has worked out how to make an Apple Watch Ultra where the whole thing is serviceable from the back and you just pop out the screen from the back, wouldn't have been that drastically different in design.
This makes me excited, because the one worry about this watch was the seals. For dive computers, you need to service the seals every so often (I believe 6 months?) and these might seem serviceable. It’s pretty cool.
No you dont, depends on the model but you can do it when you replace the battery. This myth of dive watch/computer being hard to make was true 70 years ago, now its easy. The watch industry just want to use the idea for marketing.
Like, I got respect for y'all iFixit...but some of your takes really miss the mark. Like the screen. "Glass" like this is, by far, most vulnerable to shatter when being impacted on the edge...which is completely protected here. Yes you can still shatter it with a direct front hit but that take a lot more impact force and if the impact is at any kind of angle at all or even perfectly flat on a flat surface, the frame is going to take some of the impact force. ...and what exactly do you think a few extra mm of uplift of the titanium border is going to do about smacking the face into the point of a jagged rock? Not a thing. Some types of abuse will break pretty much whatever device you're wearing. Also, the siren isn't primarily about decibels but what frequencies it uses and that the cadence and alterations to the pulses sound entirely out of place in nature.
Good to see a teardown of the Ultra. I'd be interested to know what aspects of AWs Apple does actually "repair", because I've always thought their design made repair practically impossible.
Two comments : the siren gets louder when you cover the screen and the display turns off. Genius ! Also if you let the siren keep going it plays the SOS tones.
Apple Watch Ultra no. 4000 was born: "Hello world. I can't wait for my new owner to pick me up" iFixit buys no. 4000 Apple Watch Ultra no. 4000: "Oh no, why me!?"
The Siren is very smart. It might not sound very loud in your studio but in the mountains with its high pitched sound, it’ll grab the attention of people far away. Maybe do a tiny bit of research before you knock it off as a gimmick.
Speaker volume on AWU2 definately on the quiet side i even struggle to hear it when im running. Dont get started on NFC always being switch on. But it is a thing of beauty no doubt. ❤
the siren emits a frequency, not so much a sound. i guess you also havent seen all of the videos on the watches durability where that tiny lip pretty much saves the watch from everything
My only disappointment with apple is battery replacement. Why does it have to be so complicated and expensive. There are watches that are W100 with easy battery replacement. Use gasket instead of adhesive.
There is one thing I would like you to confirm in this design. That is "durability of the action button against oil". This time, it seems that a rubber membrane is used instead of the conventional Oring, but if it comes in contact with skin oil, sun oil, petroleum, or gasoline, it will crack in about three years. I think the oil causes the rubber to swell. Even if that is not the case, wouldn't it crack in about 7 years and become a total loss due to flooding?
A problem with the Apple Watch here in miami was the screen coming off. Is the Ultra using the same glue or amount to hold the glass to the watch frame? That is a deal breaker of me if it does because that means it will pop off in a year.
Do people repair their own Garmin, Polar or Suunto dive watches? How about their Omega, Tudor, Rolex or Seiko dive watches? Not if they are smart. It's always recommended that you leave battery replacements and repairs for things like dive watches to the experts and take it to a watch repair shop. All of the watch manufacturers make this recommendation. The seals related to water and dustproofing are simply too important when used for diving, water sports and adventure sports. Why do you think that the Apple Watch Ultra would be any different? Who cares how difficult it is to repair. If it needs to be repaired I'll be taking it to the Apple store to have it handled by the experts like a normal human being.
I mean, if you're doing a screen replacement in the first place, cracking the screen won't matter that much since the entire screen component is one piece anyways. You're gonna replace everything even if the screen is just cracked.
Disappointed in the snarky negativity about anything that isn't android-enough to keep apple haters happy. Nice to see the insides of my new watch though, I am thrilled with my purchase!
Its not about loudness. Its about the chirp and the specific sound it makes. Its more distinct especially when you are in the wilderness. Many people have tested it and have proved that it can easily be heard from far away
Agreed a lot of places in nature are very quiet, hearing a 90-decibel man-made noise is very noticeable in the mountains.
Man these tech reviewers really don't get it.
It was also a terribly dishonest trial of it. As soon as it begins to get louder, as it gets louder over time, he rushes to turn it off and slap a negative opinion on it. Sloppy.
@@DuridPid Right? It's easily noticable in the video that it gets way louder when the screen turns off, presumably to protect the wearers hearing while the watch is raised near their head. Smh.
I guess he was expecting an Ambulance Siren or sort of... hahaha
Siren Loudness: DC Rainmaker explained in his review that the efficacy of the siren (or alarm) was more due to the frequencies used, and the cadence between chirps than pure loudness.
And he went on to test it from the claimed 600 meters and found it easily audible, suggesting in good conditions it could be heard from even farther away.
And it gets louder when you point the watch away from you. Like the flash light which gets brighter when you point it away from you.
Easy enough to test out the effectiveness - play some hide and seek in a national park, on a hiking trail, in the woods somewhere.
The idea is that rescue would have some GPS coords right? And the alarm gets them the rest of the way?
If the alarm speaker has some water inside the sound will be super low. Water eject doesn’t work properly on that speaker so you have to wait around 12 hours until it dries.
Different perceptions. DC is outdoors often with an ear out for things on trails.
Ifixit guy might be used to being indoors, top notch headphones on.
I found the siren not only easy to detect at range but the pitch made direction easy to detect.
I normally fully agree with your assessments, but I think you’ve been a bit unfair to Apple here. It’s a very compact device with a very high level of water resistance. I wouldn’t expect it to be as easy to repair as a phone or laptop. That clearly wasn’t the correct way to remove the screen either. I agree that I wouldn’t wear the watch climbing (I wouldn’t wear any watch climbing) but I think for the vast majority of applications the raised lip will protect the screen. Also, the siren has a distinctive sound and is as good as can be expected from a tiny speaker. Personally, I think this is the best piece of hardware Apple has released in years.
Based AF
We try to be unbiased though I'm afraid this was my experience with this watch. There's a certain amount of marketing going on here on Apples part that borders on the dishonest and yet at other times they understate the engineering that went into the device just in case they get into trouble (the fine print on the 100m rating is interesting as an example - only guaranteed to a depth of 40m if I'm not mistaken).
All in all, I respect your opinion but we've not tried to sell anything or sway any opinions on the device itself. Cracked screens aside, repairing a battery on this device while trying to save an already function screen will be difficult for the average person. Screen replacements on this device need practice to remove intact and it's simply not something people will risk with a screen that's likely to be expensive. -SM
@@iFixitYourself It's guaranteed to 100m, it's just that the depth limit for recreational diving is 40m, so the depth sensor and Oceanic+ app will only work down to that depth, anything more and it stays waterproof, but displays a 'deeper than 40m' message on the watch.
@@iFixitYourself that's only for the dive computer which is only certified for 40m. WR100 funnily does not mean actual 100m, this is the same for other highend watches like the Polar Grit X. It has WR100 but you are not allowed to use it for any diving it all. The AWU is actually the first smart watch at all that is officially certified for SCUBA diving and the inclusion of an acutal diving computer is freakin cool und currently unmatched.
@@iFixitYourself Thank you for your reply and I respect your opinion as well. Maybe we’re coming at this from different angles. I expect a phone or laptop to be user repairable but I actually don’t expect it with a watch. Maybe that’s because I’m coming from using mechanical diving watches which you’d never dream of trying to take apart yourself. As for Apple’s marketing, the only part I disagreed with was the footage of someone climbing as there is no way that wouldn’t destroy any watch. Apart from that I think what you get is pretty much what they advertise.
Perhaps a suction cup on the screen might improve chances of intact removal?
You're spot on brother
💯 don't have to be an expert to know this.. lazy attempt
@@jbutler The guy on the video was so aggressive for nothing lmao AHAHAHAHAHAh
It’s supposed to be a specific frequency that you only hear it from the distance while still not harming the user that is wearing the watch that is why sometimes you could hear wild animals when they’re miles away, and being next to them don’t sound much different. it is a certain frequency that echoes further than being pure loudness also when you are in the mountains or Forrest there will be wind currents that’ll push the sound to be further away.
i would expect better from ifixit to actually try and properly remove the screen rather than start prying till something breaks it’s ifixit supposed to be a resource for self repair hence “ifix it”
Taking a page from JerryRigEverything’s tear down videos
Not only that, but if your screen is broken anyway, replacing it looks easy. Replacing the battery alone looks unlikely, but at least you only have to remove the screen.
If it was possible, they’d have done it
I think it's not the watch's fault you broke the screen. It clearly needs to be pulled out by suction cup first and then only cut out by plier. No wonder it cracked, you just tried to scrape it out of the casing.
Exactly. It’s like the more recent iPhones.
There's always someone defending apples bad design choices lol
@@ForeverMan the most basic flat screen design is a bad choice? What’s a “good choice” then?
@@ForeverMan lol the repair manuals arent probably even out yet and they just used brute force. And what a surprise it breaks …
@@kleini3 they never release manuals lol
What did you expect would happen when you pried the screen away with a metal tool?
For it not to break, like our Guide Writer who expertly removed the glass on his device. Nice work Dominik :)
www.ifixit.com/Guide/Opening+Procedure/153357
@@iFixitYourself you need to get someone that has the skills to be able to do this. Anyone can give tools to a intern and say try and open this Apple watch and if the screen breaks blame it on poor design.
Apple could have easily used a seal, that swell above 140 F, thus lifting up the display for easy pry. They deliberately choose to not.
@@goiterlanternbase I feel like we've already talked how Apple doesn't want repairable devices, hmmm, not suuure if that's a new thing or not.. hhmmmmm
Oh wait.. 10 years ago it was the same just less "gotta break it more to repair it"
Since when did Apple watch had “abysmal” record for gps accuracy? Its one of the best on a smart watch!
Yeah they've said and done a couple things in this video that seem misinformed
They did have a problem early on with their smoothing algorithms that resulted in bad tracks, but even worse distances particularly in the woods or other places with tough satellite reception. My Series 3 now has very good tracks, but still overestimates many distances. I think most of Apples’s recent watches are pretty much spot on. And I don’t think the problem was ever antennas.
Right? DC Rainmaker and The Quantified Scientist are probably the most thorough smartwatch testers on the internet and they gave really high scores for Apple Watch GPS and its sensors for accuracy.
Exactly, I've never had issues with the gps on the 3 Apple watches I've owned. Why do reviewers feel the need to make claims about a device without providing proof?
@@JXHNDRX like the lip does nothing 😂 common sense checks out
I guess you are removing the screen the wrong way. You need some sort of small suction cups for that
Also he need to use a heat gun against the glass for a few minutes, to make the glue to get softer and less adhesive, that is standard when removing the glass screen on iPhones.
"There is a 170 degree danger" What do you want them to do? put steel on top of the screen? Its saphire glass, its the most durable only after a diamond on mohs hardness scale.
To be honest I’m amazed that it was made with this level of repairability. They could have just slathered it with glue and called it a day. It seems like they are making a visible effort to be more repairable.
I’m actually liking this watch a lot. Thank you for the video.
I think I’ll pick up the ultra AW and give it a go.
Glad you liked the video! Its a nice watch, I hope you get many years of use and enjoyment from it :)
I’ll definitely consider it soon! But I’ll wait for it to go on sale
do people really talk like advertisements?
Have we seen the same video ? You need to break the screen to access the battery, WTF
@@LeBlafy You don’t “need” to break the screen - just because they broke it, doesn’t mean everyone would.
The siren slowly gets louder and more annoying if you leave it on longer. Most reviewers haven't allowed it to get louder before letting us know how loud it gets lol
it's just laziness on poor review on their side.
You know what is loud though? The background music in this video. Why is this still an issue for creators?
I like how he turned the siren off saying it wasn’t very loud literally right when it got noticeably louder.
iFixit repair score = 1
Hugh Jeffreys = “I couldn’t disagree more with iFixit, they’re so biased towards Apple”
He actually said that ifixit was giving too high of a score. Your comment makes no sense.
@@Zach.O NO Dont feed lies!!
Based on my watches a majority of hits come from the side and if it falls directly down that lip will save both instances. So really direct impacts of something smaller than the face is the only thing left to worry about.
My G Shock repeatedly gets whacked on the sides, rarely on the front unless I’m walking adjacent to a wall.
@@darthraider450 if your g shock as smart as ultra watch lol
I have a Garmin Fenix and the lips aren't raised that much either. It isn't possible to make a watch that fully protect the screen from the front without blocking the screen lol
@@unvcht5046 at least it will last much longer and be useful in 10 years time, can't say the same for the smart watch. Let me borrow your smart watch and I'll film a video of myself throwing my G Shock and your smart watch at a wall and see which one survives 😎
@@darthraider450 2 watches built for really different purposes. Both leaders of their own games, they dont compare to eachother.
Anything after the series 7 watch and iPhone 12, requires at least 120c to loosen the glue.
The upside is that these displays are quite resilient if handled properly.
To open the watch i recommend a cut to size Dorco blade, 120c of heat and iso 99%.
Screen refurbishment process looks identical to the series 7 were you don’t need to cut any glass or remove any frame to separate the glass.
This is a win in my opinion.
Pretty absurd for you to so casually discount the siren feature. If it's the last thing you do before passing out, activating that siren could definitely save your life if someone is trying to find your body buried under snow from an avalanche or while you're in a cave dying from dehydration.
If I'm from dehydration that would be the last thing I'd want to hear
Glad to see these metal encased batteries moving up, hope they use it on iPhones and Macbooks eventually
Uuummm Apple Watch doesn't have an "abismal reputation for GPS accuracy", it has had a great reputation the last 3-4 generations.
I feel like the amount of effort put into this teardown and video was about the same as Apple put into the Series 7 and 8 watches… aka NONE! Also considering you referenced the 8 teardown in this video, where is that video?! That one should have been out before the Ultra, considering that model released first for the public to purchase.
I think maybe a suction method to remove the screen is better
About the Siren apparently the Apple Watch can detect if it’s indoors and won’t play the Siren as loud as it might outdoors maybe that’s why it sounded so weak
The siren has been tested from over 600 feet away by other tech RUclipsrs and they've shown that it's more than loud enough. I think iFixit needs to stick to taking things apart instead of analyzing the gadget's abilities.
yes true, was quite odd that the guy just sad indoors at a desk and didn't do a proper test before criticizing the feature. would not rely on this channel for proper reviews, there are many great channels that does thorough testing
At least the flat screen surface means it's much easier and better looking with a screen protector
Already have a glass protector on mine and it's completely invisible. Super nice.
@@AvocadoAtrocity Where from? 👀is it great quality? I need one myself
true everyone is saying this, can't just shove a metal piece underneath the screen use excessive force and then be surprised when the screen breaks.
I don’t screen protector is necessary it’s sapphire crystal screen
I would love to see iFixIt take apart a high end Swiss watch and assess its repairability. This is the kind of complexity which goes into these devices, but no-one has ever complained to the Swiss watch industry about repairability. We’re really coming at this with false expectations.
You mean: when you’re buying a Ferrari, would you really try to repair this by yourself or let bloody beginners repair it? Oh He’ll naw. 😂
Excellent!
good point, these devices are crammed with so much tech and just because this guy is not skilled to properly open or repair this device, doesn't mean the manufacturer made a bad design.
Mechanical watches are harder to repair and service because most have some forty to seventy parts, but they aren't _so_ bad. I oiled the ETA 2892 movement of a Tag Heuer watch using tools I found at home (though the four Moebius oil types themselves were pretty expensive). Everything is predictable: all you do is unscrew and re-screw screws, remove, wash, lubricate & replace parts, and take a photo every now and again so you can remember where stuff goes.
Smartwatches, which are really in a different class, have less tolerances from moving parts and generally less mechanical complexity. They should be easier to make repairable.
Samsung has made repairable watches sense apple started, not that hard, the screen is a different story on mostly everything, but getting inside to replace a disposable battery, because say it with me all batteries have an end of life, that's very important
Apple care+ gets you unlimited repairs which is awesome
The screen is actually quite tough from a straight on hit. It was smashed several times with a hammer and the desk underneath it broke before the screen did.
Exactly. You'd be surprised just how hard you'd have to hit it with "a jagged rock" before it would actually break.
I bonked against a wall with just my hand and it cracked right open and no Apple care.
The siren is about location especially when incapacitated, and not able to call out on your own. Not only that but it's not supposed to be loud but rather heard from a long distance, different frequencies.
Bummed the battery isn't behind the back of the watch. Was really hoping it would be with screws there to easily replace when needed.
You didn't heat the display before removing it
I guess you missed the part of the video where he heated the display before removing it then
Thanks for another great tear down video. I love seeing what’s inside without having to break anything myself 😁
before the Internet you should brake things to see what is inside))) i did it a lot... sorry my Dad)))
One thing for certain, Apple put a lot more effort into making the Apple Watch ultra, then iFixit put into making this video
true the guys are getting lazy, just gave some intern tools and said here try and open this best you can and then blames the design for being bad. didn't even go outside to test the siren, just making a video for the sake of it.
3:52 I feel like this little “cut out” was a scratch from your pry-tool lmaoo
Might look like it but it's not. You see these often in other encased batteries.
Considering u likely won’t replace the screen unless u break it, makes me happy at the repairability
As always, a special tool will be required to replace the screen. Something like a suction cup or device that holds with vacuum and a heat gun to soften the adhesive.
I want an iPhone Ultra now
FYI
The siren has two levels, one when you are indoors and one outdoors.
The watch knows when you are outdoors by using the mics, and the sound level is adjusted.
The bottom line is - when you really will need it, it will be loud, much louder for the indoor test in this video.
I'm curious if the screen is *actually* sapphire crystal like Apple claims, or if it's some sort of hybrid glass like Ceramic Shield. If it is indeed sapphire, my guess would be that the raised lip is to prevent the sides of the crystal from being struck. My understanding is that sapphire is more scratch resistant, but also more brittle if struck the right way, like it has a sort of grain, perhaps? If it's hit against the grain it's more likely to be fine, but if it's hit with the grain, it could shatter? Not sure how accurate that is.
I do want to thank you for disassembling this! Hopefully not many people attempt to disassemble this Apple Watch and try to swim with it afterwards. I was just in an Apple Store today to see how big the watch actually was and also to decide which band size I would need to get. Someone else that was looking sounded interested in disassembling it, I hope for the watch's sake that they don't swim with it should they attempt to dismantle it.
If you watch TechRax's video, it seems like it might be actual sapphire. It didn't scratch at all when shaken in a jar of nails and it took several hammer hits to shatter the screen.
You can immediately see the "concern for the environment" with this way of changing the battery!))))
1:44 in and I'm confused. Everyone I watched so far (random people I don't even follow that just seemed to test stuff well and unbiased) said the Siren was great and GPS has always been great. Dafuq....
Edit: A minute later: The lip is not great. What is going on here....
I'm still rocking the series 7 wallpaper on my Ultra. Apple Watch Ultra X-Ray wallpaper when!?!?
Enough tests have been done to prove the only way you’ll need to replace the screen glass is if you’ve already beaten up the watch to the point the internal components are already ruined
The watch apparently is smart enough to detect if you are indoors so the siren won't be as loud. LTT's test was pretty loud. But they did it outdoors.
It's nice to see that this is more repairable than other Apple Watches. Can't wait to receive mine.
“Look at that, its baked!” 🤣
Now put it back together. I “fix” it means actually fixing it.
More like iBreakIt, amirite?
I dunno. I don't watch iFixit vids much anymore and it's been a minute.
But this guy is highly entertaining and not afraid to express his immediate emotions during those exciting and often tribulating teardowns. He uttered and especially juicy, "I hate it" at some point and I guffawed.
Nice work teardown originalists!
The whole process seemed like you didn’t like the watch from the beginning. Never use metal tools to pry screens or anything. 17 years experienced repair shop.
Isn't it a bit odd to complain about damaging the screen when most of the repairs that require screen removal will be 99% the screen itself? I mean, he even said it himself that the screen is probably the first thing to be damaged in a fall or wipeout on to a rock face.
You apparently have to remove the screen to fully remove the battery which would be the other most likely repair.
As a Watchmaking apprentice I have mixed feelings on this watch.
First off, you missed the 'small' O-Rings underneath the screws, one hamfisted genius at 9to5mac decided to have a crack at this before tucking their tail and in the process futzed them up. On my own watch I was able to easily place them back in their groove and put the screws back in, but obviously not everyone has my (limited-ish) knowledge.
But again, as a watchmaker I very well know that it's possible to make a diving watch with an infinitely serviceable internal mechanism. In an alternate reality there's an Apple which has worked out how to make an Apple Watch Ultra where the whole thing is serviceable from the back and you just pop out the screen from the back, wouldn't have been that drastically different in design.
After opening it up it really worth that much of money 👏👏
This makes me excited, because the one worry about this watch was the seals. For dive computers, you need to service the seals every so often (I believe 6 months?) and these might seem serviceable. It’s pretty cool.
No you dont, depends on the model but you can do it when you replace the battery.
This myth of dive watch/computer being hard to make was true 70 years ago, now its easy. The watch industry just want to use the idea for marketing.
@@iBlindPanic no, you do have to service the seals ever so often.
@@Blarnix yes with same interval as the battery, not every 1/2 year. Do you dive?
My dive computer doesn‘t require service at all…sorry.
The screws are there to keep it watertight, compressing the gasket.
It's made very well.. good video..
Please teardown Xreal Air AR glasses
Man I just tried to blow that hair away 🤣🤣🤣
The Ultra is just amazing.
Like, I got respect for y'all iFixit...but some of your takes really miss the mark. Like the screen. "Glass" like this is, by far, most vulnerable to shatter when being impacted on the edge...which is completely protected here. Yes you can still shatter it with a direct front hit but that take a lot more impact force and if the impact is at any kind of angle at all or even perfectly flat on a flat surface, the frame is going to take some of the impact force.
...and what exactly do you think a few extra mm of uplift of the titanium border is going to do about smacking the face into the point of a jagged rock? Not a thing. Some types of abuse will break pretty much whatever device you're wearing.
Also, the siren isn't primarily about decibels but what frequencies it uses and that the cadence and alterations to the pulses sound entirely out of place in nature.
About the Siren the sound get louder and louder every 5 seconds
Good to see a teardown of the Ultra. I'd be interested to know what aspects of AWs Apple does actually "repair", because I've always thought their design made repair practically impossible.
I don’t feel this guy knows what he is talking about.
Two comments : the siren gets louder when you cover the screen and the display turns off. Genius ! Also if you let the siren keep going it plays the SOS tones.
you didn’t let the siren get to the loud part
Samsung is chillin with a very high repairabilty score
you're not fixing it, you're killing it 🤣😂🤣
Apple Watch Ultra no. 4000 was born: "Hello world. I can't wait for my new owner to pick me up"
iFixit buys no. 4000
Apple Watch Ultra no. 4000: "Oh no, why me!?"
Apple watch GPS is abysmal? Your teardown is abysmal lol.
A cricket can scream louder than that! Lol
"aaand it's baked", I laughed so hard xD
Teardown for watch series8 please upload that video as well . Good work really helpfull as technician
The Siren is very smart. It might not sound very loud in your studio but in the mountains with its high pitched sound, it’ll grab the attention of people far away.
Maybe do a tiny bit of research before you knock it off as a gimmick.
Ok, I’m officially perplexed by this guy’s accent. There’s an Irish tone in there somewhere…..please let me know, man. Great tear down by the way.
I know I’m late to this video, but the siren is louder outdoors. The watch can tell the difference.
Speaker volume on AWU2 definately on the quiet side i even struggle to hear it when im running. Dont get started on NFC always being switch on. But it is a thing of beauty no doubt. ❤
I was looking for such video couple of hours back.Thank you ifixit to meet my unquenchable thirst
If you're indoors, the siren doesn't get very loud since it detects the ambiance - outdoors, it goes the total volume.
the siren emits a frequency, not so much a sound.
i guess you also havent seen all of the videos on the watches durability where that tiny lip pretty much saves the watch from everything
Love the watch hate the orange… kills it for me. You know they’re gonna release without later.
Tell me you hate apple without telling me you hate apple
Well Enjoy putting that back together.
My only disappointment with apple is battery replacement. Why does it have to be so complicated and expensive. There are watches that are W100 with easy battery replacement. Use gasket instead of adhesive.
Do those watches perform like the Apple Watch does to the caliber the Apple performs at? And if so, which ones?
I almost stop watching when he did not understand how the siren was suppose to work. Ifixit quality had dropped so much these days.
There is one thing I would like you to confirm in this design.
That is "durability of the action button against oil".
This time, it seems that a rubber membrane is used instead of the conventional Oring, but if it comes in contact with skin oil, sun oil, petroleum, or gasoline, it will crack in about three years. I think the oil causes the rubber to swell. Even if that is not the case, wouldn't it crack in about 7 years and become a total loss due to flooding?
I would like to see what’s inside the system-in-package
this video just sounds like hate.
Alarm gets louder over time
A problem with the Apple Watch here in miami was the screen coming off. Is the Ultra using the same glue or amount to hold the glass to the watch frame? That is a deal breaker of me if it does because that means it will pop off in a year.
Before you declare the siren as weak, did you ask your neighbor if they hear a weird sound coming from your set?
Do people repair their own Garmin, Polar or Suunto dive watches? How about their Omega, Tudor, Rolex or Seiko dive watches? Not if they are smart. It's always recommended that you leave battery replacements and repairs for things like dive watches to the experts and take it to a watch repair shop. All of the watch manufacturers make this recommendation. The seals related to water and dustproofing are simply too important when used for diving, water sports and adventure sports. Why do you think that the Apple Watch Ultra would be any different? Who cares how difficult it is to repair. If it needs to be repaired I'll be taking it to the Apple store to have it handled by the experts like a normal human being.
Well said! I'm thinking the same.
Would you mind showing us divers a close up photo of the pressure sensor?
1:30 I thought the siren will only be as loud as it’s location indoors low and outdoors extra loud?
Could the entire case be separated so that in theory you could color anodize the case?
Now tear down the competition’s
I mean, if you're doing a screen replacement in the first place, cracking the screen won't matter that much since the entire screen component is one piece anyways. You're gonna replace everything even if the screen is just cracked.
Disappointed in the snarky negativity about anything that isn't android-enough to keep apple haters happy. Nice to see the insides of my new watch though, I am thrilled with my purchase!
RIP with the screen
сразу видно заботу об экологии с таким способом поменять аккумулятор!)))
I don't think that display breaks that easily, @AppleTrack channel did durability test which was really impressive to see how tough the ultra is
Haven’t seen such a bad teardown in years!