The Quantified Scientist tests the Apple Watch Series 12’s new heart rate sensor
The Quantified Scientist's Rob ter Horst compares the new Apple Watch Series 12's heart rate sensor with a Polar H10 ECG chest strap in a video review.
Intelligence analysis by Qwen 2.5 (3B)

The Quantified Scientist tests the Apple Watch Series 12's new heart rate sensor and finds it performs well, particularly during indoor cycling.
The Quantified Scientist tested the new Apple Watch Series 12's heart rate sensor and found it works well during activities like cycling and running. It's like having a smartwatch that can tell you your heart rate during exercise, just like a chest strap.
Analysis
{"heading":"Indoor Cycling Performance","subheading":"Indoor Cycling","content":["During indoor cycling, the Apple Watch Series 12's heart rate sensor readings were nearly identical to those from the Polar H10 ECG chest strap.","The correlation between the two devices was 0.98, which is very close to the perfect 1.0 correlation.","This performance is particularly noteworthy as it is one of the most challenging activities for wrist-based heart rate sensors."]}
Key points
- Apple revamped the heart sensor in the Apple Watch Series 12
- The sensor performs well during indoor cycling and running
- It shows some variability during weightlifting
- The sensor's accuracy is generally similar to the Apple Watch Series 11
The new heart rate sensor could help users better understand their heart rate during various activities, potentially leading to better health and fitness outcomes.
However, the sensor might not perform as well during more strenuous activities like weightlifting, where it showed a slightly lower correlation.



