Apple is planning to bring back its ceramic Apple Watch case with the release of this year’s upcoming Series 12 model, according to the leaker and prototype collector known as “Kosutami.”
Kosutami’s comments came in a new post on X, said that the casing will return with the Series 12. The ceramic option hasn’t been offered for the Apple Watch since it was dropped for debut of the Series 4 lineup in 2018. The original ceramic Apple Watch Edition debuted with the Series 2 back in September 2016, selling for the low low price of $1,249 (well, it’s low when compared to the $17,000 price tag of the Gold Edition it replaced).
Apple marketed the ceramic finish (which was made from a a compressed zirconia and alumina powder polished with a diamond slurry) as being four-times as hard as stainless steel. The Series 3 brought a gray ceramic option, but Apple dropped that option with the Series 4 in 2018, when Apple dropped all high-end case options for that model year.
Kosutami’s comments jibe with those of Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, who earlier this month reported that the Apple Watch ceramic case could be making a comeback this model year or next.
Kosutami’s post suggests that the feature will indeed arrive this year.
Gurman says to expect only modest upgrades to the Apple Watch lineup in the upcoming Series 12 and Ultra 4 lineups, including under-the-hood improvements that should provide the first real jump in performance in years.
Gurman says Apple is also working on new colors and bands, as well as a series of new health and fitness-related upgrades.
The Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are expected to debut in September, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and Apple’s first foldable iPhone.