Two Apple Watch updates are in the pipeline right now, both reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The first is a simplified version of the Modular Ultra watch face being tested for watchOS 27. The second is the Pride Luminance collection arriving with watchOS 26.5 and iOS 26.5 — expected in May.
Different timelines, both confirmed.
Key Points
- Apple is testing a stripped-down version of the Modular Ultra watch face for non-Ultra Apple Watch models in watchOS 27 — confirmed by Gurman in his Power On newsletter
- The simplified face removes the large center complication, the three small complications above the time, and the bezel information — keeping the large clock and a bottom row of three small complications
- Pride Luminance is the 2026 Pride collection watch face — confirmed by Gurman on April 23, arriving with watchOS 26.5 and iOS 26.5 in May
- Pride Luminance features dynamic lighting effects with colors drawn from Pride flags — matching wallpapers arrive for iPhone and iPad via iOS 26.5 simultaneously
- iOS 26.5 is currently on its third beta since late March — a May public release is expected, also bringing end-to-end encrypted RCS messaging
The Modular Ultra Face Finally Comes to Standard Apple Watch
The Modular Ultra watch face has been exclusive to the Apple Watch Ultra since its introduction — its information-dense layout was designed around the larger Ultra display. Non-Ultra models couldn't use it because the full version doesn't scale down cleanly.
Apple's solution for watchOS 27 is surgical simplification. The large center complication section — the defining visual anchor of the Modular Ultra — gets removed. The three small complications that appear above the time disappear. The bezel information ring goes too. What's left is the large clock dominating the top two-thirds of the display, with a clean row of three small complications sitting below it.
It's not the full Modular Ultra experience. But it brings the aesthetic and the large clock element to the standard lineup — which is what most people actually wanted from that face.
Pride Luminance Arrives This Month
Apple's annual Pride collection is a reliable May tradition. This year's addition — Pride Luminance — leads with dynamic lighting effects that shift with colors from Pride flags. The name signals the design direction: luminance, brightness, light behavior rather than the woven textile approaches of recent years.
Matching iPhone and iPad wallpapers arrive simultaneously through iOS 26.5. The Apple Watch band that accompanies the collection will be sold separately, as Apple does every year. The official unveiling is expected in May alongside Pride Month, with watchOS 26.5 and iOS 26.5 serving as the delivery vehicle.
iOS 26.5 is further along in beta than most point releases at this stage — a May launch looks solid based on the current cadence.
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