Several Apple Watch Ultra owners say the display is too difficult to read in low-light conditions. It is believed to be an ambient light sensor issue, likely linked to Apple’s watchOS 10 update, released last month.
MacRumors reports:
There are multiple complaints from MacRumors readers (1, 2), Reddit users (1, 2, 3, 4), and Apple Community users who say that they are unable to read information on the Apple Watch Ultra display in dark environments because the screen is too dim, suggesting the device’s ambient light sensor has not been properly calibrated to increase brightness to an adequate level.
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 (also launched last month) has a maximum screen brightness of 3,000 nits, making it the brightest Apple Watch ever, says Apple. The wearable’s display is also capable of a reduced brightness to as low as 1 nits.
While some Ultra 2 owners have laid the issue at the feet of this new hardware specification, the recent increase in reports also includes users of the first-generation Apple Watch Ultra, indicating that the issue is connected to Apple’s watchOS 10 software update, which was released in September.
Users say the issue is particularly pronounced when quickly moving from a bright room to a dark area, and when the Wayfinder and Ultra Modular watch face is set to Night mode, which puts a red filter on the display.
After some testing on my Apple Watch ultra 2 with raise to wake turned off, I wanted to see the behavior of the dimming and raising brightness of the display with the AOD.
I started off in a lit room, then turned the lights off. The watch stayed super bright in its AOD mode. Only when I woke the screen, and put it back to AOD did it go into AOD mode with the correct brightness (which is supposed to be super dim cause I turned the lights off.
Then I started out in a super dim room, turned the lights on, and the screen did not adjust until after I woke the display. So before I woke the display, it was so dim while in a lit room, I couldn’t do anything.
Owners of both the Ultra and Ultra 2 say the problem is evident on models updated with watchOS 10.0.1 and the latest watchOS 10.0.2 update.
The report indicates Apple is aware of the issue and is working on a fix that will likely be included in a future software update.