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Is it just me, or is the watch better suited to being silent at all times?

At first, I only disabled sound alerts for messages. It seemed at odds with one of the primary benefits of the watch – to discreetly receive notifications with haptic feedback. With the default setting, I'd just get the same disruptive dings as I did with my iPhone and would have to remember to mute my watch before going into meetings or quiet places. It seemed weird that this was the default setting.

Next, I used directions on the watch, and I again found the sound counterproductive. With sound on, I had trouble distinguishing the difference between left and right haptics, and I'd need to look at the watch for confirmation. The accompanying sound effect (although different for each type of turn) made it difficult to perceive the tap pattern and caused momentary confusion while driving. Once I muted the watch, my brain was able to focus on the taps and it became very easy to distinguish between the left and right patterns.

This got me thinking - why have any sound effects enabled on the watch at all? Unless you're someone who is not sensitive enough to feel the taps, are there any scenarios you can think of where sound actually adds to the experience? Do you feel Apple made the right choices with the default settings?

Mine is on silent all the time.

Yes, Apple made the right choice enabling sound by default. It takes time to get used to the taptic "tap".
 
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Silent 100% of the time here too. After the first day I was used to the taptic feeling and it works fine. Sound coming out of the Watch now seems weird.
 
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Turned sounds off almost immediately. The whole point of the watch is to be innocuous. A bunch of beeping sounds in a meeting sort of ruins that.
 
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I had it on silent but I just went back to having the sounds on; this may just be a short term thing. I really like how the haptics and the sounds correlate. Especially the knocks you hear in settings when changing the volume. Makes it feel like there's really something physical.
 
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I had it on silent but I just went back to having the sounds on; this may just be a short term thing. I really like how the haptics and the sounds correlate. Especially the knocks you hear in settings when changing the volume. Makes it feel like there's really something physical.

I agree. There should be a setting that keeps UI sounds but silences all notifications.
 
Have had the sound essentially since I took it out of the box. Tried it with the sound on for a weekend, missed about every notification because the sound was too quiet and the tapic for whatever reason didnt work. I like the tapic feedback anyways... much better than the annoying iPhone buzz. Would l love to see the 6S have tapic built in
 
The ability to receive silent alerts is one of the main reasons I am buying an Apple Watch (don't have it yet), so I'm happy to read posts by others who are using it this way.

I turn off notifications for most apps, but the few apps I do allow are important to me. I use notifications for calendar appointments, phone calls, text messages, task list (I use the Swipes App), and general reminders. I have a job that requires me to remember to do specific things at specific times, as well as schedule a lot of meetings and appointments. I also have two small children, so my wife needs to be able to reach m at all times. I prefer to keep my iphone in my bag or on my desk, so it produces audible notifications throughout the day that get annoying. I use reminders for things I need to do in the evening as well, and it's just not cool to have your phone dinging at you all day and all night. The silent mode on the phone doesn't work for me, because the vibrations are too loud. I would much prefer a gentle and private tap that nobody else has to hear.

I know you can adjust haptic strength and enable prominent haptics. Does anyone know if there is a difference in the haptic strength of the 38mm vs the 42mm?
UPDATE: Just read another thread about haptic strength issues. It sounds like there may be some sample variation (or differences in sensitivity), and a quote from one Apple Store employee who says the 38mm is generally a little weaker in haptics (but I know not to believe everything an Apple Store employee says). I can see how this could be an issue of fit for some. If you don't get the band snug enough, you won't feel it as much. I know some people who wear watches quite loose, so they end up sliding around a little.
 
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Mine is on the lowest sound setting it has, but my iPhone is always silent. Maybe it's just me, but I occasionally do not feel even the strongest tap on my wrist from the Watch. Or maybe I'm still used to Pebble's vibration motor that's way too strong. The little "ding" is so quiet but so unique sounding so I know immediately that it's my Watch getting the notification and not someone else's phone.
 
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I know you can adjust haptic strength and enable prominent haptics. Does anyone know if there is a difference in the haptic strength of the 38mm vs the 42mm?
UPDATE: Just read another thread about haptic strength issues. It sounds like there may be some sample variation (or differences in sensitivity), and a quote from one Apple Store employee who says the 38mm is generally a little weaker in haptics (but I know not to believe everything an Apple Store employee says). I can see how this could be an issue of fit for some. If you don't get the band snug enough, you won't feel it as much. I know some people who wear watches quite loose, so they end up sliding around a little.
I had a 38mm Sports version for around two weeks before I switched to a 42mm Stainless Steel version. I didn't personally notice much of a difference in the haptic strength between the two versions, but at the same time there have been several people who said they noticed a difference that it perhaps due to the weight/density variance between the aluminium Sport and the stainless steel Watch.

I'd imagine that majority of the reason for differences in strength would come down to manufacturing reasons moreso than watch size, though a larger watch could theoretically house a larger motor (I haven't looked at any teardown articles so I actually don't know if the motors are same size or different.)
 
As far as haptic feedback. I did notice a much stronger feedback when I had my sport vs the SS. Sometimes I almost miss the feedback on my SS cause I don't feel it.
 
My watch has been on silent since I first got it. I love that I don't miss anything and my phone only makes sounds if I'm not wearing the watch or if I get a call. I was recently sharing a vacation house with 13 other people and their frequent phone notification sounds were a reminder of what it used to be like before I got my watch, and I love the quiet now!
 
Silenced phone, no sounds or vibrations.
(Finally!)

Just taptic on the watch. There really no point with sounds for this type of product, makes me cringe when my friends watches go off...
 
Silenced phone, no sounds or vibrations.
(Finally!)

Just taptic on the watch. There really no point with sounds for this type of product, makes me cringe when my friends watches go off...

I absolutely hate it when I hear a watch going off. The only sounds I want are timers and alarms at most.
 
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Mine is on the lowest sound setting it has, but my iPhone is always silent. Maybe it's just me, but I occasionally do not feel even the strongest tap on my wrist from the Watch. Or maybe I'm still used to Pebble's vibration motor that's way too strong. The little "ding" is so quiet but so unique sounding so I know immediately that it's my Watch getting the notification and not someone else's phone.

The trick to stronger taptics is to put the volume to full and then just mute it. The lower the volume, the weaker the taptic feels. To me anyway.
 
The trick to stronger taptics is to put the volume to full and then just mute it. The lower the volume, the weaker the taptic feels. To me anyway.
I read somewhere that it's possible the taptic engine is weak enough that, in a scenario where you shouldn't look at your watch or phone, it wouldn't distract you.
 
Yeah, my watch went on silent a few minutes after I got it and it's not changed since then.
 
Had my watch silent from the second day i had it. The taptic feature works and alerts me very well.
I don't see a reason to have any audible alerts from the watch. That to me is the beauty of a personal and silent notification.
 
My watch has been on silent since I first got it. I love that I don't miss anything and my phone only makes sounds if I'm not wearing the watch or if I get a call. I was recently sharing a vacation house with 13 other people and their frequent phone notification sounds were a reminder of what it used to be like before I got my watch, and I love the quiet now!
This is driving me crazy - when I started with the watch I'm sure my phone didn't even make a sound on a call. Now it rings even when connected to the watch.

Anyone else experienced this?
 
I normally keep sound off. I keep phone on silent too - don't like it to make noise at work, and at home, ring tones make my dog cry. :D

The only time I ever turn sound on is if I'm at Disney or something with family scattered all around, and someone may be trying to find me.
 
This is driving me crazy - when I started with the watch I'm sure my phone didn't even make a sound on a call. Now it rings even when connected to the watch.

Anyone else experienced this?

Calls always pop up on both, but you can have one or both on mute. Other notifications come through only on the active device (i.e., your iPhone if it's in use or the Watch when your iPhone isn't in use).

You may have had the iPhone on mute at the time and merely didn't notice because it was in your pocket.
 
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