Apple Watch should be an 80% phone replacement

[Mac47]

I just got a notification on my watch telling me that my wife had added something to our shared grocery list on the Notes app on her phone. But could I open the note and read it on my watch? No. Why not? No good reason. Apple just hasn’t made the Notes app for the watch. Yes, I know about various third party alternatives; I know about how to use Reminders or Calendar to make a grocery list instead. But it’s stupid. There’s no reason not to include the Notes app on the watch.

I wear hearing aids. They connect to my iPhone and iPad via bluetooth. Can they connect to the watch? Nope. The watch uses low-energy bluetooth, not the high energy version needed for my ReSound GN hearing aids. I can control music playback on my phone via the watch, but I can’t stream audio directly to my hearing aids from it.

I bought the cellular Apple Watch S5. Why? Because I wanted to be able to go on hikes and possibly take phone calls and texts without my phone. I could do this, but if I do, I will need to pay Telus in Canada $85/month for a cellular plan for my phone. (I’m a cheapass who pays only $20/month for a prepaid plan with no data.) The watch by itself is only $10/month for data, but it only works if I have a data plan for my phone. The result is that I haven’t bothered activating a cellular data plan for the watch.

This is some lame crap, Apple. The watch should be a fully independent device, with its own phone number. It should be able to receive texts and calls. It should be able to send audio directly to hearing aids. It should have the Notes app.

One final thing: there is no reason not to have the Activity app on the iPad as well as on iPhone. That would be my ideal ecosystem: no phone at all, just an iPad Pro and a watch that can make calls. I don’t like browsing or reading or typing or really doing anything at all on my phone. I take photos with it; that is all.

Okay, I’m done bitching. The S5 is a great watch, and it is transforming my life with its fitness and health tracking. But I really want to ditch my phone, and Apple just isn’t letting me do it yet.

 

[Thejameslavis]

it never will. macbook to ipad pro is about 95% there, but it’s a blend of screen size, power and software.

AW on the other hand is a complimentary device. for what most of us do, it’ll never happen. Twitter, news, FB, email, texting, all a **** show on AW. are they somewhat achievable maybe but the screen size, lack of a good keyboard make it never to likely happen. can it be a fitness tracker, watch, notification viewer and odd call maker, yes.

 

[Shirasaki]

While I doubt Apple Watch will ever “replace” an iPhone, what I would suspect is Apple Watch will probably be the only device people will ever need for phone call and text messaging. iPhone is an amazing device, but the screen size (even the biggest one) practically eliminates all possibilities of multitasking and doing any level of serious works. For just phone call and text messaging iPhone is super overkill, but for almost anything else imo it is meh at best and impractical at worst.

Nowadays iPhone looks like a compromised device sitting between an Apple Watch and an iPad. Jack of all trades masters of none. After having an iPad, I now rarely picks up my iPhone at home if at all. Yes, the camera is bad (except maybe iPad Pro 2020) and it is bulky, but big screen makes sure you get the job done easily, and gaming experience is another level. Everything is easier to see, still crisp, and high performance kicks iPhone out of water. iPhone can’t compete outside of portability, which is getting worse overtime because somehow nobody wants a small phone?

In conclusion, Apple should provide connectivity between Apple Watch and iPad, and allow iPad to manage all iOS devices, not on iPhone, and let Apple watch does basic things while iPad does Almost everything else.

 

[Thejameslavis]

iphones have the best camera in the ecosystem, and they’re going nowhere. i’ve reduced my phone size from the max as they’re too cumbersome. also AW is a last resort for calls, why? it annoys the **** out of people when you hear someone on speakerphone or you need pods for the ears. the ecosystem is just fine. you just need to understand the use case for each one.

 

[Janeilfen]

And I can get my iPhone 11 in my pocket (just). My iPad, whilst a great device, just will not go in my pocket, no matter how I try!

 

[Mac47]

Well, yeah, if you want to carry a phone around, then I suppose it’s great that it fits in your pocket. But wouldn’t it be great to just use your watch?

 

[TiggrToo]

This is some lame crap, Apple. The watch should be a fully independent device, with its own phone number. It should be able to receive texts and calls. It should be able to send audio directly to hearing aids. It should have the Notes app.

I feel you're being just a tish overdramatic and expecting too much.

Could the watch eventually do a lot of this? Sure, but it's still early days. Apple really don't like giving subpar UI experiences and to expect everything now on a device so small is really asking too much.

 

[Janeilfen]

Well, yeah, if you want to carry a phone around, then I suppose it’s great that it fits in your pocket. But wouldn’t it be great to just use your watch?

It would, yes. But maybe it’s asking a bit too much of such a small device? I love the watch by the way but I will accept its present day capabilities. Maybe in the future, when the first Starship Enterprise is launched!
Its still a bit weird when taking a call on the watch, that you appear to be talking to your wrist.

 

[Mac47]

I feel you're being just a tish overdramatic and expecting too much.

Expecting too much? With all respect, no, I’m not at all. It already does ALMOST everything I’m asking: it notifies me of new Notes App additions, just can’t display them. It can take and make calls, but I need to have a phone data plan. It can do Bluetooth, just not to my hearing aids.

It’s THIS close on everything.

 

[TiggrToo]

Expecting too much? With all respect, no, I’m not at all. It already does ALMOST everything I’m asking: it notifies me of new Notes App additions, just can’t display them. It can take and make calls, but I need to have a phone data plan. It can do Bluetooth, just not to my hearing aids.

It’s THIS close on everything.

For you, yes. The world however doesn't revolve around you though (shock, horror!) and Apple are not going to take their design and feature cues from just you.

It'll need considerably more work for Apple make this a fully functional device that doesn't need an associated iPhone that can stand on its own two feet (as it were).

Just because you personally feel it doesn't need many more features doesn't mean it doesn't need many more features.

Think big.

 

[Mac47]

For you, yes. The world however doesn't revolve around you though (shock, horror!) and Apple are not going to take their design and feature cues from just you.

Dude, I’m literally requesting features that Apple has already enabled halfway. It’s not that Apple needs to take their design and feature cues from me. It’s rather that I want the device to do what they clearly already want it to do.

Just because you personally feel it doesn't need many more features doesn't mean it doesn't need many more features.

Well, sure. I’d love to have a camera and FaceTime videochat on my wrist. And the ability to print documents from my wrist, too. And PDF viewing. And Microsoft Office. And the Adobe CC suite. And AirPlay to my UHD TV. And 2TB storage. And the ability to send my friends little talking holograms of myself like Princess Leia sent to Obi-Wan.

The sky’s the limit, man.

MC