Apple Watch SE 3 (44 mm, GPS) / Garmin Forerunner 970

Apple Watch SE 3 (44 mm, GPS): 44 mm GPS · aluminium case (Midnight / Starlight)

Garmin Forerunner 970: 47 mm · 010-02969-xx (colour options)

SpecificationApple Watch SE 3 (44 mm, GPS)Garmin Forerunner 970
Release year20252025
AnnouncementSeptember 9, 2025; on sale from September 19, 2025 Apple—
Case44 mm aluminium; 44 × 38 × 10.7 mm

A 40 mm version also exists with different size, display and battery values.

Apple		47 mm; titanium bezel Garmin
Weight32.9 g (GPS) Apple—
DisplayAlways-On Retina, LTPO OLED; 368 × 448 pixels, 977 mm², 326 ppi

Because the LTPO panel can lower its refresh rate, the display keeps showing the time and notifications with the wrist down; this is the first SE with Always-On.

Apple		AMOLED touchscreen; five-button design

Garmin calls it its brightest AMOLED yet but publishes no nit figure. Touch and buttons can be used together.

Garmin
Brightness1,000 nits peak; 2 nits minimum Apple—
Front glassIon-X glass

Apple claims 4x better crack resistance than the SE 2.

Apple		—
ProcessorApple S10 SiP; 64-bit dual-core processor, 4-core Neural Engine

The S10 enables the Always-On display, double tap and wrist flick gestures, on-device Siri and fast charging.

Apple		—
Storage64 GB AppleUp to 32 GB media storage

Used for music and maps; this is not RAM.

Garmin
SensorsSecond-generation optical heart sensor, temperature sensor, compass, always-on altimeter, high-g accelerometer, high dynamic range gyroscope, ambient light sensor

There is no ECG or blood oxygen sensor. The temperature sensor is not intended for medical use.

Apple		—
Health featuresHeart rate and rhythm notifications, sleep apnoea notifications, sleep stages and sleep score, cycle tracking

Feature availability varies by country.

Apple		—
GesturesDouble tap; wrist flick (watchOS 26)

Wrist flick dismisses notifications and calls, silences alarms and returns to the watch face with one hand.

Apple		—
SpeakerYes; can play music and podcasts Apple—
Water resistance50 metres (ISO 22810:2010); swimproof Apple—
WirelessWi-Fi 4 (802.11n, 2.4 GHz only); Bluetooth 5.3 Apple—
LocationL1 GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, BeiDou

This is single-frequency (L1) GPS; position can drift under trees and between tall buildings.

Apple		—
Battery lifeUp to 18 hours of normal use; up to 32 hours in Low Power Mode

In Apple's test the watch stays connected to an iPhone over Bluetooth throughout; results vary with use and settings.

Apple		—
ChargingFast charging: about 80% in 45 minutes; 15 minutes gives up to 8 hours of use

Times are with the included Apple Watch Magnetic Fast Charger to USB-C Cable; no adapter is included.

Apple		—
CompatibilityiPhone 11 or later, iPhone SE (2nd generation) or later Apple—
Colour optionsMidnight or Starlight aluminium case Apple—
Announcement and sale—Announced 15 May 2025; on Garmin.com from 21 May 2025 Garmin
Part numbers—010-02969-00, 010-02969-01, 010-02969-02

The numbers correspond to colour options; the US page does not map each number to a colour. The page image belongs to 010-02969-01, Whitestone case with Whitestone/Amp Yellow band.

Garmin
Lens—Sapphire crystal

The Forerunner 965 used Gorilla Glass 3 DX; sapphire is more scratch-resistant.

Garmin
Flashlight—Built-in LED flashlight; adjustable brightness, strobe and red light

Red light disturbs night vision less in the dark.

Garmin
Speaker and microphone—Built-in; call handling with a compatible phone and voice commands Garmin
Health sensors—Wrist-based heart rate (PPG); ECG app; skin temperature

The ECG app screens for signs of atrial fibrillation; it is for adults 22 and over and is not available in every region.

Garmin
Running metrics—Running tolerance; running economy and step speed loss (with HRM 600)

Running tolerance suggests a weekly maximum distance. Running economy and step speed loss need the separately sold HRM 600 chest strap.

Garmin
Battery type—Rechargeable built-in lithium-ion Garmin
Battery (smartwatch)—Up to 15 days

With activity tracking, notifications and wrist heart rate; Garmin notes active features affect the result.

Garmin
Battery (GNSS)—GPS only 26 hours; Auto Select 23 hours; All systems + multi-band 21 hours

With music the figures are 14, 13 and 12 hours. Multi-band uses several satellite frequencies to improve accuracy in cities and valleys at the cost of more power.

Garmin
Water rating—Swim, 5 ATM

Withstands pressure equivalent to 50 m depth; it is not a dive watch.

Garmin
Operating temperature—-20 °C to 60 °C; charging 0–45 °C Garmin
Wireless frequencies—2.4 GHz (17 dBm maximum); 13.56 MHz NFC

13.56 MHz is the NFC band used for contactless payments.

Garmin
Maps—Built-in maps Garmin