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Apple Watch Review Roundup: The 'World's Best Smartwatch', But 'Not For Everyone'
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Here are reviews from Self and Men's Fitness.
From Self:
It won me over—but not for the reasons you think.
I started off thinking the Apple Watch would be my new go-to fitness tracker, with some sweet bells and whistles like texting. And indeed, the built-in activity apps are solid. But I think the best is yet to come on the fitness front….I can only imagine how the third party apps will elevate its potential—much as they did the iPhone and iPad.
After one week with the Watch, what amazes me even more is how it’s managed to untether me from my iPhone. It looks so cool, I’m more apt to wear it—and use it—all the time. (Even my favorite fitness trackers come off when I attend weddings or other dressy events.) And while I used to walk around with my iPhone in my hand 24-7—an admittedly obnoxious habit at home and at work—now I can discreetly tuck it into my handbag and not think about it unless a notification on the Watch inspires me to, say, respond to an email. I can buy a coffee, route myself somewhere new via a map, summon an Uber, and (soon!) check Instagram from my wrist. The fitness stuff, it turns out, is the bonus.
From Self:
It won me over—but not for the reasons you think.
I started off thinking the Apple Watch would be my new go-to fitness tracker, with some sweet bells and whistles like texting. And indeed, the built-in activity apps are solid. But I think the best is yet to come on the fitness front….I can only imagine how the third party apps will elevate its potential—much as they did the iPhone and iPad.
After one week with the Watch, what amazes me even more is how it’s managed to untether me from my iPhone. It looks so cool, I’m more apt to wear it—and use it—all the time. (Even my favorite fitness trackers come off when I attend weddings or other dressy events.) And while I used to walk around with my iPhone in my hand 24-7—an admittedly obnoxious habit at home and at work—now I can discreetly tuck it into my handbag and not think about it unless a notification on the Watch inspires me to, say, respond to an email. I can buy a coffee, route myself somewhere new via a map, summon an Uber, and (soon!) check Instagram from my wrist. The fitness stuff, it turns out, is the bonus.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Because even many of us here- people who care enough about Apple products to actually spend time talking about them with strangers on an Internet forum- can't rationalize the category of smartwatches either.
We often reference the concept of Apple rolling out iPoop as a product with expectations that there were be plenty of "shut up and take my money" and "best iPoop ever" buyers. If the iPoop was reviewed as the "best poop to date", it doesn't automatically make purchasing poop desirable to the masses... or even this niche crowd here. Note: I'm not equating this new product with poop; rather I'm just using the poop analogy to illustrate how weak a line like "best <anything> to date" can be.
"Best smart phone to date" is the same phrase applied to a highly desirable category. The masses love phones and to roll out what reviewers would call "best smart phone" has the punch relative to it's category. Key difference: does the masses love smart watches? or just watches? Enough to buy a new one now or soon anything like they were moved to buy a new smart phone when Apple rolled out iPhone?
"Best smartwatch to date" is a stellar accolade relative to all other smartwaches. So why do we want a smartwatch- best or not? It's THAT question that is an obstacle for even a chunk of our own crowd here (even before it really gets out among the masses). The iPoop buyers already love it and can't imagine living without it. The iHate crowd still can't even rationalize iPods, iPhones and iPads. The big fat crowd in the middle is grappling with THAT question and either trying to like it enough or thinking they wait and see... or wait until version 2 or 3 bring more tangibles in terms of answering the whole category question.
Personally, I think it's got the usual Apple cool, sharp Apple design and it addresses a big concern I had back when it was only an early rumor by having a lot of design diversity rather than trying to be one-design-fits-all. BUT, I'm not suddenly "fumbling around" with my iDevice or finding it particularly inconvenient to pull my iDevice out of my pocket, etc. Since my iDevice is out 50 times a day anyway, I can pretty much get almost everything the watch can deliver in those 50 times. I generally don't want to get texts or calls ASAP, nor are such texts of calls so urgent that I regret the delay in almost every single instance. So personally, I don't see it. But for those who do (which could be everybody other than me), I hope you enjoy your watch.
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Well, every other product Apple makes is updated more or less yearly, and all of their competitors will be revising their products even more often than that. (Have you seen how many products Samsung releases?) You seriously think Apple Watch would be competitive after 3-5 years?
Probably the only guy that gets fired if the Watch fails. He looked like a scapegoat. So Cook, Ive, Cue etc. don't have to take the blame.
His review was biased. I'm certain you can put it on silent and have it tap your wrist.
That loud ding is him trashing the watch for what ever reason. Kind of douche of him to even portray it that way. If I turn on ALL my notifications on my phone and turn the volume up I'd end up throwing it in a lake after 10 min. That's why it's always on vibrate or silent
Who wears fitness devices to fancy events? Of course any actual "watch" would be a better option.
Oh man
From The Verge's review:
«In the first of many moments where the Watch felt underpowered, I found that the screen lit up a couple of ticks too slowly: Id raise my wrist, wait a beat, and then the screen would turn on.»
It confirms what I feared, and unfortunately, this alone is a dealbraker for me. When I'm wearing a watch, I expect it to be able to tell me the time at all times -- no button pushes or waiting necessary.
For other people this might not be as important, and I think they will be very happy with what seems to be an otherwise great product.
From The Verge's review:
«In the first of many moments where the Watch felt underpowered, I found that the screen lit up a couple of ticks too slowly: Id raise my wrist, wait a beat, and then the screen would turn on.»
It confirms what I feared, and unfortunately, this alone is a dealbraker for me. When I'm wearing a watch, I expect it to be able to tell me the time at all times -- no button pushes or waiting necessary.
For other people this might not be as important, and I think they will be very happy with what seems to be an otherwise great product.
LOL. I really was expecting so much more. At least the new MB segment was interesting.
I believe this is apple's hardest product to sell. As someone that likes watches , and loves tech I wanted to believe in the wearable's potential to change my life style , I got a moto360 and have it a trial for 2 weeks, as per these reviews , I wanted it to be an awesome experience, but alas it was not the software or the tech, my smartphone did everthing better, and was a better experience. I ended up going back to my regular watch. I'm just surprised that I can relate to these reviews from my experience . I honestly thought the reviews would be much better.
Maybe a few gens in, I will change my opinion. Still think I will preorder one and give it a trial. Interesting times ahead. Some users will no doubt love it, but this product may not be for everyone. Time will tell
I must resist the temptation of the shiny stainless steel and remind myself it has the exact same utility as the sport watch. Maybe if I buy the lens I was wanting for my camera instead I'll force myself from not tempting myself. The Apple Watch is an exercise in first world problems.
The
Arrogant? Who the ***** are you? Get out of here
I agree completely. The overwhelming majority of people here seem to conveniently ignore the fact that the iPhone was an awful gen 1 product and was largely derided upon its release. But it laid the groundwork for a platform that would revolutionize the smartphone.
The Apple Watch is starting from a much better starting position, but will inevitably have many of the pitfalls inherent to a gen 1 product, such as a dearth of quality third-party apps, and some initial confusion about exactly how it *should* operate to enhance one's daily life.
By the time the 2nd gen comes out, there will be a maturing app ecosystem, additional sensors to improve the range of functionality of the watch, and people will have a better idea of what it's capable to doing. Oh, and it will probably have a much faster processor, better battery life, and be slightly cheaper.
For those of us with a shred of foresight, these reviews are actually very positive because it seems like Apple has carefully considered how a smartwatch is more than merely a tiny smartphone on your wrist, and the groundwork for an enormously successful product category has been laid. As is the case with almost all gen 1 tech products, the vast majority of people should probably skip buying this Apple Watch. But many of the complainers in this thread will probably be eagerly lining up for launch day on gen 2.
I notice a lot of posters are of the opinion that they should wait for the next iteration of the watch.
The second generation iPods were very significant improvements over the first generation. I doubt anyone would dispute that.
But would I have given up a year of experience with the first gen iPod just because the second generation was better? Especially considering that I had no way of knowing this?
I think not; I had a year of use of that fabulous product and when a better one came out, I bought it.
I still have the old one; it's definitely limited but I can still access my favorite websites on it when the other ones are charging!
The second generation iPods were very significant improvements over the first generation. I doubt anyone would dispute that.
But would I have given up a year of experience with the first gen iPod just because the second generation was better? Especially considering that I had no way of knowing this?
I think not; I had a year of use of that fabulous product and when a better one came out, I bought it.
I still have the old one; it's definitely limited but I can still access my favorite websites on it when the other ones are charging!
Cook should make iPoop or an Apple Pet Rock just to see if people would buy it.
Lies
I needed an iPod.
I had already moved my music collection to digital by the time the iPod came out. I had a 200 disc CD changer and didn't have enough room in it for just playing my entire collection on random.
I absolutely needed a large format MP3 device for my music.
I tried a few before ever getting the iPod. I had a couple CD based Mp3 players (burn 740mb of MP3 to CD), I even had a hard drive based creative one (shaped like a CD player) and each iteration was frustrating to use. I couldn't fit them in pockets easily. they skipped if they were CD based, or they just had terrible battery life with no real 3rd party support
When the iPod came out I was enamoured. Finally, an MP3 player that didn't look like I was a geek, or had a ridiculous buldge in my jacket pocket. I just couldn't use the first gen because I wasn't using an apple computer at the time. by the 3rd gen, I was allover the iPod and owned every version of the classic one since (I literally just found my 3rd gen in a drawer with FM transmitter, can't get it to start up
). even when the iPhone came out, I was super impressed. I already had a smartphone that suited my needs, but there was no mistaking what apple had created.
the Apple Watch? its just.. missing something. there's no real need for it. it doesn't replace anything that people have been clamouring for. at least not that I can see.
the only people i htink who will adopt smart watches en masse will be those who already wear watches, and we won't generally do that until you replicate the look and feel of a traditional watch. The Jewelry piece first. Watch is one of those places that it's absolutely form over function.
Love how people read the reviews so negatively. There are tons of products all across the board where I simply have a different opinion than others. That includes Tech like iPhone, music, video games etc....
I am sure I will enjoy the watch and the more people that will now decide they wont buy one because of someone elses opinion... Great... more chances for me on Friday to get mine
I will 100% get an Apple Watch.
I do think the reviews were fair and it gives people reason to wait. I love the design of the watch but some slowness of apps would set people off - myself included.
I think I will get one because I was worried about battery life and that was the number one reason before the reviews that people hated. I may downgrade on models just because I want to see revision upgrades for speed - not so much the gen releases because we know that will get better.
The one most common positive the surprised me was the battery and the most common negative was delays loading some apps. Not sure a software revision will fix that - don't know.
I laughed at the reviews of people talking and getting annoyed at the interruption. Like they had to look. Though I know what they were trying to prove. The biggest complaint people had before the watch was how annoying kids and some adults were with looking at their phone. You have to decide what is worthy of an interruption... duh. Facebook post should be no... wife texting... better look. Of course my wife always replies back with "OK" even when done so that would be annoying like it is with my phone.
Reading the reviews, I would say this is similar to my first iPhone experience. Why did I spend my money for this... later, I am glad I spent my money for this...
Do I need a smartwatch? No way... does every pebble user need that hung of junk? no way... to each their own I guess. If you like it after the reviews and want it... get it. At least you won't look like a geek if you are a professional and have this big hung of junk sticking out of your shirt sleeve but again, it's up to the person.
I downgrade how guess as to how many will sell in the first 12 months from about 20mm to maybe 12-15mm. All depends on what extra features are in those sensors that they are waiting to turn on. They said body temp/skin temp and a few more. we shall see...
If no "gotta have it" apps don't come out, it will always be a gimmick. If it can't get away from carrying your phone, it will be a gimmick. For what I want and I work from home 99% of the time, not carrying my phone around and never missing a work email from my boss is a plus. My wife for other reasons... I am a runner and weightlifter and my phone doesn't need to be anywhere near me. I listen to music and track my steps and heartbeat.
The Pebble kickstarter launched in April 2012 and The Apple Watch rumor mill began at the end of December in 2012.
Meanwhile, in spite of what others say, I'll get my apple watch and enjoy it fully... Until nex gen comes up, and then purchase and enjoy that one too. The old one goes to other members of my family which will be thankful for the loan. Every one wins!
That's the whole point. The Apple Watch is a fitness tracker, but at the same time it's a nice looking watch you could wear to the office or a fancy event. And it's a smartphone hub on your wrist. People keep looking for some killer app, but really it's just a merging of three different things.
Anyone that denies that Pebble was a huge instigator in the market in terms of showing the viability of a smart watch is burying their head in the sand. Period.