Honestly seems like the main reason to buy an Ultra 2 over a 10 is if you dive, or really, really need the extra battery life.
I had assumed that it also had a significantly larger display, which would have been compelling for me since I'm getting old enough to where things I could read without my glasses a few years ago on my Series 4 are now too small. Based on 49mm vs 44mm and assuming display area goes as the square of watch size the Ultra 2 should have a display 24% larger than that of my Series 4.
But two things can invalidate that square of the size assumption. First, the aspect ratio of the cases is not the same, and second, the percent of the case area occupied by the screen is not necessarily the same.
On the watch comparison page Apple gives the actual display area and it that tells an interesting story:
Watch Size Display Pixels Δ Display Δ Size^2
--------- ---- --------- ------ --------- --------
Series 4 44mm 977 mm^2 164864 - -
Series 9 45mm 1143 mm^2 191644 17.0 % 4.6 %
Series 10 46mm 1220 mm^2 206336 6.7 % 4.5 %
Ultra 2 49mm 1185 mm^2 205820 -2.3 % 13.5 %
The "Δ Display" column is how much bigger the display area is than that of the watch from the prior row. The "Δ Size^2" is how much bigger we'd expect the display to be just based on the square of watch size.
Based on this it appears that if I want the largest display then the Series 10 is the way to go.
I've been doing hikes that last 6-8 hours (I have little kids so we go slow, takes breaks etc) and pretty much every time my Series 8 either runs out our I have to really carefully conserve battery. I'm hoping the Ultra 2 will mean I can just record my hike and not worry about it.
I can keep up with charging when I have a predictable schedule. When I don’t, I’m always running out of battery and often in the worst moments, i.e. when I’m just starting a hike.
camping and hiking: sure, but for overnight trips, i have a battery pack (for my phone) that also has a magnetic watch pad.
Can charge in the car, sure. Will I actually charge it in the car? From experience, it’s a constant struggle because I’m outside of my normal routine and I’m not usually seeing the low battery warnings while I’m in driving mode. I often realize when it’s too late, and then my watch is dead til I’m back on the road for a major segment.
And I just prefer to have fewer things to worry about each day so I can focus on why I’m traveling in the first place.
After breaking 3 Apple Watches, I just needed something more durable. I’ve been happy with it for a few years now with no real damages.
If the GP has a lifestyle that's hard on their watch, good on them for selecting the durable product that can survive it instead of churning needless extraction, labor, shipping, time, and e-waste.
I think it’s easy to scoff at (and look down on) someone who does treat things as disposable.
But the reality is that we all (in the developed world) treat everything as if it’s disposable. But we just like to think that we’re mindful or whatever because it makes us feel good.
Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States
I think the big story on the ultra is just going to stay battery life + better GOS (for now?). Want to do a 12 hour trail ride? It can keep exercise mode without fully draining your battery.