Leaked images show that a premium Motorola smartwatch is coming

Do you remember the Motorola Moto 360 smartwatch? Released in 2014, the timepiece was known for its large circular case and made an early appearance on NBC's Tonght Show worn by Joshua Topolsky, who was editor-in-chief of The Verge and a technology correspondent for the Tonight Show at that time.

Remember the Motorola 360's "flat tire"?

Despite having the large circular case, to maximize the watch's screen-to-body ratio, the bottom of the display contained a black bar preventing the user from seeing a complete circle on their wrist. Instead, the look resembled a flat tire with the air removed from the bottom.

If I buy a smartwatch I will buy...

The following year, Motorola launched the second-generation Moto 360 smartwatch and the Moto 360 Sport. The latter was designed to track workouts and runs. By February 2017, Motorola put the kibosh on the second-generation Moto 360 and the 360 Sport.

In 2019, Motorola licensed the Moto 360 name to a third-party manufacturer

A third-party company called eBuyNow licensed the Moto 360 brand name and produced a round watch powered by Wear OS. The latter device was released in October 2019 with the flat tire look finally removed.

An official announcement from eBuyNow in October 2025 declared that the third-generation Moto 360 had reached software end of life. This means that the smartwatch will no longer receive software updates, feature improvements, and security patches. The watch will still continue to function.

Leaked image showing front of Moto Watch Ultra.

Marketing image of the Motorola Watch Ultra. | Image by The Mac Observer

But Motorola could be planning a comeback, as leaked images obtained by The Mac Observer show a circular smartwatch with the internal name of "Moto Watch Ultra." The renders show the use of the Motorola wordmark on the front and back of the watch.

Some specs of the Moto Watch Ultra appear on the image showing its rear panel

Information on the back of the device shows IP68 dust and water resistance, water protection up to 50 meters, LTE connectivity, and support for GPS. An optical sensor, used for fitness and health tracking, is seen on the back plate. The strap appears to be made of leather and utilizes red stitching.

Leaked image showing rear of Moto Watch Ultra.

Another marketing image of the Motorola Watch Ultra. | Image by The Mac Observer

The watch face shows the time in both analog and digital, the date, steps, activity data, and calories burned. Led by the Apple Watch, we've seen smartwatches become more of a health monitoring tool since the Moto 360 was first released. Batteries can run longer on a single charge.

With a name like "Ultra," this watch has to be good

With a moniker of "Motorola Watch Ultra," consumers are going to expect the watch to offer premium specs and features in line with other smartwatches that use the Ultra name such as the Apple Watch Ultra and the Galaxy Watch Ultra. Of course, that also means that pricing for the Moto Watch Ultra will be well above the $349.99 that the third-generation Moto 360 cost in 2019.

The newly unveiled Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 starts at $699. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 starts at $799.99. This suggests that Motorola is serious about rebuilding its mobile ecosystem, and the Lenovo-owned company has even improved the timing of its Android updates.

Motorola was one of the pioneers of the modern cellular phone industry with the Motorola RAZR feature phone one of the most popular cellular handsets ever sold. In 2009, the Motorola DROID was launched and it quickly became the first legitimate smartphone to challenge the iPhone. The first phone to be powered by Android Eclair (aka Android 2.0), the success of the DROID made it clear that Android was a platform to be reckoned with.

We would love to pass along a release date, battery capacity, pricing, and more. But alas, we can't, since Motorola has yet to officially announce this smartwatch. We don't even know if the device will have Wear OS pre-installed.

The leaked marketing images show a smartwatch that appears to be all ready to hit the market. It is just a matter of time before Motorola makes its return to the smartwatch world official. My guess is that despite the Watch Ultra name, Motorola will price this watch at a very competitive level in order to attract buyers who would love a Galaxy Ultra 2 or an Apple Watch

Ultra 3, but find the prices for these two models too onerous.

If you want to hear more about Motorola products, check out these stories:

Motorola has two Android tablets ready to hit the marketplace.

Motorola has an impressive flagship phone.

Motorola's premium phones have batteries that stay healthy longer.

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