Everyone loves their Apple Watch, but me

[iObama]

My thoughts exactally. Mine has helped me with a good amount of weight loss also.

How specifically, if I may ask? I got one for Christmas and am interested in learning how it can aid in some potential weight loss.

 

[Septembersrain]

I like it because I've got a heart condition. It helps me to keep my eye on my HR. Now if you don't have any particular functionality you use, I can see it not really feeling like something you need. So you'd be less inclined to like it and use it regularly.

 

[Resqu2]

How specifically, if I may ask? I got one for Christmas and am interested in learning how it can aid in some potential weight loss.

I'd got up to 213 lbs and couldn't fit in my clothes. I was asked to run a 5K race for a good cause late last year and noticed I lost a small amount of weigh loss while getting ready for it. I then picked up my Apple Watch and really started tracking each run which in turn made me want to beat the previous time/distance. This was going great till I over did it on a trail run and found I could no longer run so while healing so I started going to the gym to do the elliptical and ski machine which Apple tracked perfectly. This made me want to beat each distance and go more and more. You can't miss the 7 workout week badge no matter what lol. I now go 7 days a week and stay between 30 mins to 1 hour. This takes more than a Watch, you have to want it bad. The Watch helps keep up with calories burned which also helps knowing how much you can eat.

If you want to loose weigh, do 2 things and you will loose, cut portion size and get out and walk/jog or run if you want to drop it faster. Now that I'm back to running I'm at 28 lbs lost. Getting close to my 180 lbs goal but I still got to work on my chocolate problem, I love that dang stuff.

 

[bgro]

Sometimes I like my Apple Watch and wear it and sometimes I don't. Never really loved it except for maybe the first day but then I realized that it just wasn't that useful for my purposes. I've always missed my iPhone if I switched to an android or something like that or god forbid i forget my phone at home when going to work but with the watch i never miss it when I'm not wearing it or forget to put it on.

 

[44267547]

Sometimes I like my Apple Watch and wear it and sometimes I don't. Never really loved it except for maybe the first day but then I realized that it just wasn't that useful for my purposes. I've always missed my iPhone if I switched to an android or something like that or god forbid i forget my phone at home when going to work but with the watch i never miss it when I'm not wearing it or forget to put it on.

And that's a good realization to have. The watch is just not for you and you rely on your iPhone more than you have the watch. Everybody's different. But at least you realize that.

 

[ra4oasis]

Wear it for a while, not just days. Then, don't wear it for a few days, and see if you miss it. There are times that I take it for granted, because when I'm NOT wearing it, I do miss all the little things (notifications, activity rings, turning on my lights at home via siri, and so on).

 

[Ffosse]

I fell in love with it when I first got a discounted series 0. I upgraded to the series 2 as soon as it was available. I still love it for how it works so well with my iPhone 7.

OP, if you don't like it now, I think it's unlikely you ever will.

 

[BarracksSi]

Wear it for a while, not just days. Then, don't wear it for a few days, and see if you miss it. There are times that I take it for granted, because when I'm NOT wearing it, I do miss all the little things (notifications, activity rings, turning on my lights at home via siri, and so on).

Yup. I can't wear my AW at work, so when I was getting ready this morning and wanted to check the weather, I habitually looked at my wrist to see the current temperature, but only saw my Seiko instead.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Lots of people don't love their Apple watch's. I like mine a good amount, but I don't love it either. It's not necessarily the wearable that I would immediately recommend for the everyone and anyone. Fitbit and garmin (heck even android wear) each have their advantages. That being said, I'd recommend you browse the forums for how other people use their Apple Watch. These are the top 10 things I do with it, in no particular order. (note: there may be other devices that are able to do these things as well, perhaps even better in some cases, but this is how I use my Apple Watch)

1. Timekeeper: I hadn't worn a watch in 5 years and I'd forgotten how nice it can be to glance at your wrist instead of pulling out my iphone
2. Activity tracker: I like how it motivates to move, walk, stand, and exercise. I also like how, unlike most activity trackers, it's activity goal is calories burned instead of steps. If I bike or lift weights I should get credit for that towards my goal!
3. Notifications: I have most notifications on my watch disabled. So all that comes through is calls, messages, select emails, and maybe a few other things. This allows me to view items and decide if I need to act, this leads me to...
4. Changed interaction/Reduced dependency on iPhone: now my iPhone is silent 100% of the time. No sound, no vibration. Urgent notifications (noted in 3 above) I receive via a tap on my wrist. Non-urgent notifications are still shown on my lock screen to view the next time I pull out my iPhone. On that note, I now find myself using my iPhone less and less. I've become way too addicted to my iPhone and anything preventing me from looking at it all the time is a plus.
5. Workout tracker: I use it for glanceability on runs (iPhone can stay in pocket!) and for keeping track of continuous HR during all workouts. I like having the HR/calories burned data, as well as being able to make sure that I'm working out enough
6. Resting HR monitoring: I use HeartWatch (AMAZING app) to be able to track my resting HR throughout the day (and night...)
7. Sleep monitor: I do wear my watch during the night, so now I use AutoSleep (same dev as HeartWatch) to automatically track my nightly sleep. This enables me to track duration, quality, and sleeping HR. I love it.
8. Music/podcast control: The music controls are the first app in my app dock, so it's easy to get to when I'm listening to things on a bluetooth speaker. This is useful especially when I don't have my iPhone on my (charging or something else). On this note, I wish that control center was 2 pages on the watch (just like the iPhone) with music controls being one of the pages.
9. Weather Info: I have weather as my large complication. This makes it so easy to simply lift my wrist to see the current temp/conditions as well as the high/low for the day. I use this probably at least once every day.
10. Morning alarm: Since I sleep with the watch, I use it as my morning alarm. Vibrations on the wrist is a much more subtle wake up than the blaring alarm and is also very nice if you're sleeping with a partner.

Other uses that I'm aware of (that I may not use or not very often) include: checking off a grocery list, handsfree siri, voice recording, tracking ski runs, view data like sunrise, sunset, solar noon, and moon phases, tracking meditation/mindfulness, as a viewfinder for photos, help for GPS navigation, and making/receiving phone calls.

I think with all of the potential uses it's easy for most people to be able to latch on to a few that they find useful. But that being said for the price and depending on a persons particular needs, there are many other trackers out there which might fill that niche a little better.

 

[the caveman]

Agree with the portability and convenience of the Apple Watch from your post. The only issue I have with the Apple Watch (Which isn't an issue for most) since I've owned it, is my employer, more specifically law-enforcement, does not allow me to wear the Apple Watch while on duty. Which I would really appreciate wearing While at work, but with privacy regulations, It only allows me to wear/enjoy it on my off days. I envy those who get to where their Apple Watch to work.

I feel your pain, im a railroad operating employee and smart watches of any kind are completely banned by the FRA. Can only wear mine whil off duty.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I wear mine to work but it just reminds me how idle I am through the day sat at my desk.

 

[SHirsch999]

The tipping point for me came when I pulled myself away from the phone and used the watch more.

I used to be able to walk to work, and I remember the day I put my phone in my backpack, purposely making it even more inconvenient for me and basically forcing myself to rely on the watch. I got a text from a coworker on the way in, and I swiped to respond with a brief, "Ok" -- which was all the response I needed -- and it felt quicker and easier than doing the same on the phone. I got another text, which I decided didn't need a response -- but checking it was as easy as checking the time on a regular watch, and quicker than pulling my phone out of my pocket. As I was leaving work, I invoked Siri on the watch by saying, "Hey Siri, tell my wife, 'I'm on my way home now,' period," and with no further action on my part, Siri automatically sent "I'm on my way home now." So fast, so simple, and I didn't need to break my stride.

Another day, I went shopping with my wife, and I put my phone into her purse. I was able to avoid wandering around, tailing her with my nose in my phone, like so many other husbands and boyfriends do these days (seriously -- go watch them at a shopping mall sometime). But, I was also able to acknowledge a couple texts from coworkers and take care of a little business.

When I'm home, I can park my phone on a bookshelf or end table and never touch it. When we're visiting Grandma on the weekend, I can get my hockey team's updates on the watch without looking like I'm avoiding contact by browsing Twitter on the phone. I can innocuously get walking directions to the next meetup. I get schedule updates via our Slack channel in the middle of lunch and then tell my classmates as if I were a psychic (which we know is NOT true!).

The watch is less obtrusive than a phone or, IMO, earbuds. It doesn't make me look like I'm blocking out the outside world like earbuds do (earbuds are, or should be, the universal sign for "Don't talk to me"), and because the interactions for a watch are inherently brief, it doesn't take away my visual attention, either. When I use it not as an accessory, but instead of my phone, I found out what it's good at doing -- and it's good at doing a lot without taking away my time and attention.

Good write up covering an aspect of the watch that has made me a bit apprehensive about getting one. How far from your iPhone can you be before the connection between them is severed?

 

[bluetideUK]

Good write up covering an aspect of the watch that has made me a bit apprehensive about getting one. How far from your iPhone can you be before the connection between them is severed?

[doublepost=1485013415][/doublepost]I'm am not loving mine like I thought I would. The activity tracking is imo poor. I find I loose connection just being in the next room making it redundant as most apps require a connection to the phone to function

 

[CharlesShaw]

I'm using my Watch in ways I never imagined when I first got it.

It allows me to, essentially, unlock my 2013 MacBook with my fingerprint.

I use long easy to remember passcodes on my Watch and iPhone. In the morning I unlock my Watch with my iPhone using my fingerprint.
​

When my iPhone is across the room and I'm lazy, I can control my Hue lightbulbs.

 

[BarracksSi]

Good write up covering an aspect of the watch that has made me a bit apprehensive about getting one. How far from your iPhone can you be before the connection between them is severed?

I'm not sure, because I don't worry about it (and my apartment is pretty small anyway). It loses connection when I go down to the laundry room -- I can set a timer without the phone nearby -- but as long as I'm in the same general area, it stays connected.

 

[44267547]

[doublepost=1485013415][/doublepost]I'm am not loving mine like I thought I would. The activity tracking is imo poor. I find I loose connection just being in the next room making it redundant as most apps require a connection to the phone to function

I actually have to think the fitness portion of the Apple Watch is probably one of the best integrated fitness applications next to Garmin. It's fairly accurate when keeping track of all your fitness results.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Good write up covering an aspect of the watch that has made me a bit apprehensive about getting one. How far from your iPhone can you be before the connection between them is severed?

Well keep in mind that if both the watch and iPhone are on the same wifi network they stay connected. so It can be as large as the wifi network. The watch will also automatically connect to any wifi network that you've already been connected to before.

But if no wifi is present it uses Bluetooth 4.0. So distance is about the same as you can expect for any Bluetooth device. Depends on factors such as walls/materials it has to travel through. I think you can generally expect the stay connected for up to about 30 feet.

 

[macintoshmac]

I don't love mine, I don't hate it. Sometimes I wear it, sometimes I don't.

Signature is a good insight into your person. Good stuff.
[doublepost=1485427858][/doublepost]

Yup. I can't wear my AW at work, so when I was getting ready this morning and wanted to check the weather, I habitually looked at my wrist to see the current temperature, but only saw my Seiko instead.

Bright side, you still got pretty damn accurate time with that Seiko.

 

[caranddriver]

I bought a refurb Series 2 38mm sport and returned it within the 14 day return window. It just didn't seem that compelling and it sucked the battery of my iPhone 6 so badly it didn't make it the whole day without dying. Maybe to be revisited in future iterations.

 

[44267547]

I bought a refurb Series 2 38mm sport and returned it within the 14 day return window. It just didn't seem that compelling and it sucked the battery of my iPhone 6 so badly it didn't make it the whole day without dying. Maybe to be revisited in future iterations.

It shouldn't of drained the battery on your iPhone 6 as drastically as you make it sound. There might of been another option you could have considered before returning it. Such as a re-pair. Perhaps your iPhone 6 battery was more depleted that you were aware of.

But in any case, the Apple Watch was not for you.