Apple Watch Ultra Display Too Dim in Low Light, Say Some Users

The Apple Watch Ultra display is too difficult to read in low light conditions, report some users, an ambient light sensor issue that is likely linked to Apple’s watchOS 10 software update last month.

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.

Launched last month, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 pushes the maximum screen brightness to 3,000 nits, making it the brightest Apple Watch ever, according to Apple. The display is also capable of reducing brightness to as low as 1 nits.

Some Ultra 2 owners have pinned the blame on this new hardware specification, however the recent uptick in reports also includes users of the first-generation Apple Watch Ultra, suggesting it is an issue with 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. Legibility issues persist despite manual adjustments to the brightness level in the watch’s Settings. Both Ultra and Ultra 2 owners say the problem is evident on models updated with watchOS 10.0.1 and the latest watchOS 10.0.2 update.

  • Apple Watch Ultra: How to Activate Night Mode

Apple is reportedly aware of the issue, so hopefully a future software update will remedy the situation. Have you experienced difficulty reading information on the Apple Watch Ultra’s screen in low light? Let us know in the comments.

(Thanks, Joshua!)Related Roundup: Apple Watch Ultra 2Tag: Night ModeBuyer’s Guide: Apple Watch Ultra (Buy Now)Related Forum: Apple Watch
This article, “Apple Watch Ultra Display Too Dim in Low Light, Say Some Users” first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

Latest posts

UFC 324 live stream: how to watch Gaethje vs Pimblett, start time, preview, full card

UFC 324: Saturday, January 24Main Card time: 9pm ET / 6pm ET / 2am GMT (Sun) / 1pm AEDT (Sun)Watch on Paramount Plus for...

ICE has killed another person in Minneapolis

Federal agents in Minneapolis repeatedly punched a man, forced him to the ground, and then shot him multiple times. The man was later pronounced...

Gmail’s spam filter and automatic sorting are broken

Some Gmail users have noticed that promotional emails that normally go to their own siloed tab have started flooding their inbox. Reports have been...

MicroSD Express cards and Anker’s travel adapter rule the deal roost this week

Welcome to the weekend, friends! We’re still in a bit of a deals lull before the Presidents Day and V-Day sales begin, the bulk...

NTSB will investigate why Waymo’s robotaxis are illegally passing school buses

Waymo has caught the attention of the National Transportation Safety Board as the federal agency launched an official investigation into the company for its...

US Congress members call for ‘thorough review’ of EA’s $55 billion sale

Before Electronic Arts goes private in a groundbreaking sale, some US lawmakers are pleading for some federal oversight. Democratic members of the US Congress,...

Google says it’s working to fix Gmail issue that’s led to flooded inboxes and increased spam warnings

If your Gmail inbox is all out of whack today, you're not alone. Gmail users have been encountering issues with the automatic filters that...

Report reveals that OpenAI’s GPT-5.2 model cites Grokipedia

OpenAI may have called GPT-5.2 its "most advanced frontier model for professional work," but tests conducted by the Guardian cast doubt on its credibility....

The NexPhone could already be the most important hardware launch of 2026 — here’s why

This week, the NexPhone has been making serious waves. In case you missed the revelation of this piece of hardware, it's a three-operating-systems-in-one smartphone,...

You could wait for the Galaxy S26 – or perhaps, you could get four free Galaxy S25s with this deal at Verizon while it...

January tends to be a pretty quiet time for phone deals on Android devices, mostly because it's the month when we all sit around...