Apple Watch Series 12 / Garmin Forerunner 970

Apple Watch Series 12: 42 / 46 mm · Case material options

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

SpecificationApple Watch Series 12Garmin Forerunner 970
Release year20262025
ProcessorS11; 64-bit dual-core; 4-core Neural Engine Apple—
Storage64 GB AppleUp to 32 GB media storage

Used for music and maps; this is not RAM.

Garmin
DisplayAlways-On Retina LTPO3 OLED; 326 ppi; 2000 nits peak, 1 nit minimum; 46 mm: 416 × 496; 42 mm: 374 × 446

LTPO3 drops to 1 Hz in Always-On mode to save power.

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
Cover glassAluminium: Ceramic Shield 2; titanium/ceramic: sapphire Apple—
Case and material42 / 46 mm; aluminium, titanium or ceramic

Ceramic cases are slightly larger and thicker (9.85 mm); aluminium and titanium are 9.7 mm.

Apple		—
Rated battery lifeUp to 24 hours normal use; up to 38 hours Low Power Mode; up to 10 hours workout tracking

Apple's test profile; actual use varies.

Apple		—
Rated charging timeAbout 80% in 30 minutes; 15 minutes gives up to 12 hours of normal use

Apple measured these with a 20 W adapter that is not included; a USB-C fast-charging cable is in the box.

Apple		—
SensorsSecond-generation electrical and always-on optical heart sensors; blood oxygen; temperature; compass; always-on altimeter; high-g accelerometer; depth gauge to 6 m; water temperature Apple—
Health featuresECG; irregular rhythm and high/low heart rate notifications; hypertension and sleep apnoea notifications; sleep score; Vitals; Readiness

Some health features are limited by country and age; blood oxygen and temperature are not for medical use.

Apple		—
Weight46 mm aluminium GPS 39.5 g; titanium 44.9 g; 42 mm aluminium GPS 32.2 g; titanium 36.5 g Apple—
Durability50 m water resistance (ISO 22810:2010); IP6X dust

For swimming and snorkelling to 6 m, not scuba diving. Resistance can diminish over time.

Apple		—
ConnectivityWi-Fi 4 (2.4 and 5 GHz); Bluetooth 5.3; second-generation UWB; multi-constellation GPS; RedCap 5G on cellular models Apple—
CompatibilitywatchOS 27; iPhone 11 or later (including iPhone SE 2nd generation or later) running iOS 27 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
Case—47 mm; titanium bezel 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