Apple Employees 'Set Low Expectations' For iWatch Battery Life

[willmtaylor]

So this is how Apple plans to conquer Switzerland? Poor marketing in my opinion, the employees need a morale boost.

no, this is a rumor, not an apple press release or announcement. duh.

The part I bolded above tells me all I need to know about this story -- which is that the story is pointless. If Apple wasn't satisfied with the battery performance of the wearable, they wouldn't be releasing the device anytime soon. There's no sense in Apple rushing a subpar product to the market when it's a brand new category of device for them -- plenty of other companies have done that already.

Baseless report.. Typical of todays journalism..
Print anything u want and when asked for accountability Say" Oh i cant reveal my sources"!...MacR why are u giving legitimacy to this kind of garbage by publishing it again !?

I would imagine that this is a anonymous, controlled release from Apple to curb consumers' expectations for the absurd, and then when they release the device, which will most likely have better battery longevity than anything else on the market, people are relieved/pleasantly surprised.

Have we all forgotten the rumors that the iPad would be $1,000, then the relief and surprise when it came in at $500?

 

[MarkusL]

The only issue I'm thinking of with this that it's supposed to monitor our sleep right? So if it's charging every night how is that going to work?

If you take it out of the charger after only 5 hours it will tell you to go back to sleep.

 

[Piggie]

What hardware is Samsung making for the iWatch? Do tell.

I don't know as you well know.
But as we know, Apple only really makes cases for the most part, does some design work on layouts, and writes the software to tie it all together.

They don't actually make components.
Screens, batteries, camera's, CPU/GPU's, Memory chips etc etc etc.

So someone, perhaps Samsung or LG, may be making it's screens as we speak.

 

[bstpierre]

1-2 days? That's sounds about right to me. I bet that's on "mild" usage too. This is a mini computer that does like 16 different things,by the way it just happens to tell time. I actually think using it for the time will be the least used function of this device. So, although the name is "iWatch" .... It's a mini computer that happens to tell time.

Just like the iPhone. Making phone calls is the least used function for me.

 

[Gasu E.]

Really people? You can't know the time without a watch? I have my phone for the time...which is always with me. I'm in healthcare.



Graduated in '98.

You actually have to take your phone out of your pocket to tell time? Wow.

I thought people didn't need watches because time is posted all over the place... not because they could take a device out of their pocket to check the time, and that was adequate.

I need to know the time all the time... a watch is so much easier. You may not have noticed, but time has a habit of changing very frequently-- it's likely to be different from the last time you checked.

 

[kds1]

Graduated in '98.

And that's the time period I figured.....

 

[willmtaylor]

What hardware is Samsung making for the iWatch? Do tell.

Don't you mean the "SWatch"? ...damn you, Switzerland!!!

 

[transpo1]

It's a watch, it better work all day, hopefully 2. My hope is apple has invested a lot more in this an Motorola did theirs

+1

Needs to be at least 2 days battery life. People expect to charge a phone every night now, but are used to forgetting about their watches which are either automatic (kinetic) or have year long quartz life.

 

[arkmannj]

I wonder how reliant the iWatch will be on other idevices.
It wouldn't surprise me if Apple, to help with battery life pushed off any "real" processing of apps onto an iPhone/iPad/iPod connected via BT.

The front end of the app could reside on the iWatch, but all the backend residing on the iPhone. (like running a SQL query on computer, you have a server in the background doing all the real heavy work)

This would reduce the RAM needs, reduce the local storage needs, reduce the processing power needs of the iWatch, and as a result it would ultimately reduce the power consumption needs. (assuming that reducing circuitry in these areas is enough to offset the BT communications cost in power)
Of course the iWatch would have some core stand-alone functionality, not dependent on the iPhone for everything, but it just makes me wonder.

 

[mytakeontech]

To me, 1+ days of battery is fine. I charge my phone every night, I can charge a watch, too. It's when it goes less than a day that it becomes a problem.

Good for you but one day of charge may not be fun for many who use watches. Also, even if it is advertised as 1 day, people will still have to charge during the day depending on their notifications setting and other use.

While no one can pay me to use watch anymore but if I were using this I will find 1 day of advertised battery life a deal breaker. Apple fanboys will be even more wall huggers after iWatch introduction

 

[ckhris1613]

Another apple device with another crappy battery... It's no surprise to me...

 

[jm001]

I own a Pebble and it's one of the best smart watches out there. It's battery lasts 3 - 5 days in real usage time. I'd be happy with 3 days before charging since, if rumours are true, the iWatch/iTime will be doing more than what a Pebble does.

 

[StyxMaker]

once a day ? :-O I have always been charging my iPhones AT LEAST twice a day. And I'm not a heavy user. It's been like that ever since my iPhone 3G

I've been using iPhones since the first one came out. I always plug them in when I go to bed and unplug them in the morning, never had a problem with the battery lasting all day.

If this new product is supposed to monitor your sleep, there will be a problem with plugging it in every night.

 

[F1 Fan]

You don't seem to know what you want. This puts you right in Apple's target market.

I totally agree. With the possible exception of a dress watch, I had assumed that I would never buy or wear a watch again but with the advent of a new product category, I'm not daft enough to say "I'll never buy that" even though I can't currently see the need.

I can see some advantage in the rumoured health monitoring features - I have used a heart rate monitor during exercise in the past, but they'll have to do more than that to persuade me to buy one. I'm sure that they plan to...

 

[miamialley]

And that's the time period I figured.....

Why is that? Now I'm curious. How old are you?

You actually have to take your phone out of your pocket to tell time? Wow.

I thought people didn't need watches because time is posted all over the place... not because they could take a device out of their pocket to check the time, and that was adequate.

I need to know the time all the time... a watch is so much easier. You may not have noticed, but time has a habit of changing very frequently-- it's likely to be different from the last time you checked.

I have clocks readily available at work, in the car and many other places in the more rare time when they aren't viewable I have a phone. I didn't realize I had to explain I look at clocks, too.

 

[NikeTalk]

If the iPhone can't last a day this thing doesn't stand a chance...

 

[travis64]

if it has wireless charging then whats the big deal

 

[NewbieCanada]

If my aunt had one the battery would last a lot longer because she'd turn it off all the time just like she does with her iPad and her phone.

 

[bstpierre]

Recharging your "watch" more than once a week is ludicrous for the AVERAGE person...so people are supposed to just carry around their "charging station" on vacations, flights/travel, to work, etc? No way, Jose. And I bet the station is the size of a loaf of bread.

The issue is that the iWatch is supposedly far more than a watch...which means it is a mini computer/ipod that just eats battery life thanks to cpu cycles, display, and other stuff...therefore, trying to find a battery that can actually power all this technology AND be the size of a dime is going to come with a very short life. That's the central problem.

If Apple is serious about iWatch, Apple should (should have) invested big bucks into new battery technologies (they do exist)...just like how solid state drives/ram has replaced traditional drives for the past 7+ years in countless consumer devices requiring storage.

We all know these countless articles on MR are rumors...but $300+ for a watch intended for the masses whose battery lasts less than 7 days is a complete joke.

Sounds like you are talking about my phone.

 

[S.B.G]

I'd be plenty happy if it were to have enough battery life to last from sun up to sun down, in the summer of course.

 

[taptic]

Apple's patents suggest a wireless charging range of ~ 1 meter.


This could create a “virtual charging area” within about a yard (1 meter) of this power supply, which would keep your mouse, keyboard, and other gadgetry juiced.


Personally I think this would be great. Have the charge pad hidden on my desk where I normally set my phone down. No more plugging it in. There are rumors that the iWatch will use this (or a similar) tech but personally I'm hoping they add it to the iPhone as well. Would make sense to add it to both if you're adding it to one. (Or they may wait for the 6S for it lol )

Interesting... I know this sounds rather paranoid, but would it be detrimental in some way sitting at a desk with pure energy being sent through the air?

 

[IJ Reilly]

I totally agree. With the possible exception of a dress watch, I had assumed that I would never buy or wear a watch again but with the advent of a new product category, I'm not daft enough to say "I'll never buy that" even though I can't currently see the need.

I can see some advantage in the rumoured health monitoring features - I have used a heart rate monitor during exercise in the past, but they'll have to do more than that to persuade me to buy one. I'm sure that they plan to...

Thanks for noticing that I wasn't being entirely facetious. Of the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, which of them did any of us (honestly) think we needed before we saw them?

 

[deviant]

I haven't worn a watch since high school, I can't imagine wanting to wear one now. Just me?

Just you. Grow up. Men wear watches. It's a very useful and nice accessory. Checking your phone every time for time makes you look like a compulsive schoolboy who checks if the girl he likes answered (of course she didn't answer)

 

[NewbieCanada]

if it has wireless charging then whats the big deal

Well it means you have to bring a charger with you when you travel - another thing to pack and to lose. But not a big deal to me at all.

 

[gotluck]

The hate towards people who don't wear watches in this thread is ridiculous.