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Bengy66

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 22, 2012
201
60
St. Louis, MO
You look around a restaurant or a bar and what do you see nowadays? Most people interacting with their smartphone vs socializing with the actual human beings in front of them. I am not a white knight, I am guilty of it.

With that being said, do you think the :apple: Watch or any smart watch can help/solve this "intrusion" mobile devices have made in society or will it make it worse.

From a personal stand point, I think it might help with general notifications and filtering out some of the less important reasons to pull out the iPhone and get "trapped" by just also checking email or some social media app.

Will it be socially acceptable to check your wrist for this info for early adopters? (a main reason I think they added the haptic feedback and taps messaging) or will people get flack like Google Glass supporters?
 
I currently wear a Pebble Steel. When I check something on my watch people don't think twice about what I'm doing. This is especially noticeable in a place where pulling out your smartphone would not be acceptable (I check football scores in church, for instance). The perception will change as wearables mature and more people become aware of them. I think the social faux pas will be extremely similar to current phone use.

I also think everyone is gonna look like a Power Ranger talking to Zordon.
 
In our society, checking your watch is a signal you are bored, and are counting the seconds. I don't think checking it for notifications is any less rude than being in your phone. How about we just unplug at dinner or drinks?
 
In our society, checking your watch is a signal you are bored, and are counting the seconds. I don't think checking it for notifications is any less rude than being in your phone. How about we just unplug at dinner or drinks?

Even allowing for checking the time we don't stare at our watch and 'fiddle' with our other hand for moments at a time. :eek:
 
As I've mentioned before, one thing I wonder is if future Broadway plays and movies will not only have to pre-announce:

"Please turn off your smartphone."

But will soon also have to add:

"And your smartwatch!!"

Just imagine all the self-centered people snapping their wrists up to turn on the bright display to see who's texting them in the middle of Les Misérables or Iron Man 4.
 
As I've mentioned before, one thing I wonder is if future Broadway plays and movies will not only have to pre-announce:

"Please turn off your smartphone."

But will soon also have to add:

"And your smartwatch!!"

Just imagine all the self-centered people snapping their wrists up to turn on the bright display to see who's texting them in the middle of Les Misérables or Iron Man 4.

I think it's simply more likely that they switch to the "Please shut off your electronic devices" verbiage.
 
Will it be socially acceptable to check your wrist for this info for early adopters? (a main reason I think they added the haptic feedback and taps messaging) or will people get flack like Google Glass supporters?

My wife loves that I have a Pebble for that exact reason. Occasionally glancing at my wrist is much less distracting (to her) than looking at my phone.

Google Glass is intrusive in its design - it is blatantly obvious, where a watch can be "just a watch". Yeah, if you start using Siri regularly on your watch, you will become just as annoying as a Google Glass user; but if you're just glancing down to look at your watch, that's not any different than glancing down at old fashioned watches to look at the time.
 
It will be more socially acceptable than pulling out your phone, however if that is all you are doing, it will be equally obnoxious.

Google glass carries a stigma as it's so identifiable as a nerd device. Just like a Go-Pro affixed to the top of your helmet, they are the pocket protectors of the new millennia. Once those technologies are designed and integrated into conventional glasses and sunglasses, they will be accepted. That's why Apple spent so much time working on so many upscale models of their watch; they don't want to be the next nerd device.

I imagine they will have a dark mode for occasions such as when in a movie. For battery savings, I wouldn't be surprised if most things are designed to display in dark mode. You could get a notification that wouldn't light up any more than the time, which will be completely acceptable rather than the faux pas of lighting up your phone in a dark theatre. Some people have to stay that connected, others just want to.
 
You look around a restaurant or a bar and what do you see nowadays? Most people interacting with their smartphone vs socializing with the actual human beings in front of them. I am not a white knight, I am guilty of it.

With that being said, do you think the :apple: Watch or any smart watch can help/solve this "intrusion" mobile devices have made in society or will it make it worse.

From a personal stand point, I think it might help with general notifications and filtering out some of the less important reasons to pull out the iPhone and get "trapped" by just also checking email or some social media app.

Will it be socially acceptable to check your wrist for this info for early adopters? (a main reason I think they added the haptic feedback and taps messaging) or will people get flack like Google Glass supporters?

It will help sort out the nerds and geeks from the busy executives at a glance. Gives a girl a quick heads up as to whether she's in for hours of geek talk or Wall Street news.
 
Is it really different to look at your wrist than a phone? I'm not sure it is. Similarly, I don't think looking at a Google Glass display is really looking at what's on front of you; your eyeballs may look less distracted, but they're not.
 
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