Giving up my phone

[datapolitical]

I have a mild (read: not so mild) addiction to my iPhone. It distracts me from getting work done and pulls me away from focusing on other people when I’m hanging out with them.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for getting work done on the go and keeping in touch with loved ones, and so I decided I would switch full time to an Apple Watch once it gave me the ability to do that.

I still intend to have a smartphone for when I’m relaxing, but my hope is that with LTE I can leave it behind during the workday and when I’m out with friends.

Is anybody else gonna try to do the same?

 

[Mabus51]

Not with a 1 hour run time on the Watch with LTE connected.

 

[matrix07]

Not with a 1 hour run time on the Watch with LTE connected.

It's not 1 hours run time, it's 1 hours talk time. TechCrunch tested it and they have a full day with LTE only.

 

[v0lume4]

I have a mild (read: not so mild) addiction to my iPhone. It distracts me from getting work done and pulls me away from focusing on other people when I’m hanging out with them.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for getting work done on the go and keeping in touch with loved ones, and so I decided I would switch full time to an Apple Watch once it gave me the ability to do that.

I still intend to have a smartphone for when I’m relaxing, but my hope is that with LTE I can leave it behind during the workday and when I’m out with friends.

Is anybody else gonna try to do the same?

Great idea OP. Not a bad idea at all. I hope that this venture helps you tremendously. There's a certain sense of liberation when you're away from your smartphone, no doubt about it. Checking your smartphone/notifications is like a tic -- you do it without even realizing it.

I don't use my phone that much. Or, at least I tell myself that I don't. However, about a month ago my phone died shortly after arriving at work because I didn't charge it overnight. Therefore, my phone was dead all day. I'll tell you what -- I had the most productive day ever without the distraction of my smartphone. That sounds awful, but I'll admit it. It's true.

 

[edhchoe]

4 hrs with LTE and GPS.
The watch will automatically switch between wifi and LTE and BT. LTE will only turn on when there is no wifi (previously linked via iphone) or BT from the iphone.

 

[maflynn]

Not with a 1 hour run time on the Watch with LTE connected.

but they offered one large caveat and streaming music wasn't a feature rolled out yet.

Of course, there are a couple of caveats here — namely the fact that Apple Music functionality hasn’t been rolled out. If you’re spending a lot of time using the watch to stream music, the battery’s going to take a big hit

 

[Peanut207]

Not with a 1 hour run time on the Watch with LTE connected.

This is one of the reasons I’m passing on the series 3. I’m holding out for series 4 when hopefully this will be improved upon. Kinda makes LTE useless with such a short battery life. You either have to reconnect shortly to your phone or always be charging. I’ll pass. My trust ole series 0 will have to last 1 more year.
[doublepost=1505931211][/doublepost]

I have a mild (read: not so mild) addiction to my iPhone. It distracts me from getting work done and pulls me away from focusing on other people when I’m hanging out with them.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for getting work done on the go and keeping in touch with loved ones, and so I decided I would switch full time to an Apple Watch once it gave me the ability to do that.

I still intend to have a smartphone for when I’m relaxing, but my hope is that with LTE I can leave it behind during the workday and when I’m out with friends.

Is anybody else gonna try to do the same?

Now you’ll just be constantly looking down at your watch.

 

[Cnasty]

Good on ya OP! I posted almost the same thing in a thread when the Series 3 was released for the same reasons you have.

My anchor even when attempting this is I will still bring my phone with me as I love photography and my kids and those 2 go hand in hand on every excursion.

I have made a pact though not to pull my phone out except for that reason more often as opposed to how much I do now

Good luck to us!

 

[Newtons Apple]

I have a mild (read: not so mild) addiction to my iPhone. It distracts me from getting work done and pulls me away from focusing on other people when I’m hanging out with them.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for getting work done on the go and keeping in touch with loved ones, and so I decided I would switch full time to an Apple Watch once it gave me the ability to do that.

I still intend to have a smartphone for when I’m relaxing, but my hope is that with LTE I can leave it behind during the workday and when I’m out with friends.

Is anybody else gonna try to do the same?

No!

You need to develop some self control. I quit all social media and you can not believe how it changes your life. I got to have my phone for customers but that is how I make my living and never let personal stuff get in the way.

 

[bthompson]

I am going to try this. I have an old iPhone 6 that doesn't work great. Calls can we done via the watch, or through wifi calling on my office Mac. I have wifi at my office, so that is taken care of. May just leave my phone on my nightstand and just take the watch. This has been my hope for a very long time!

 

[Peanut207]

I am going to try this. I have an old iPhone 6 that doesn't work great. Calls can we done via the watch, or through wifi calling on my office Mac. I have wifi at my office, so that is taken care of. May just leave my phone on my nightstand and just take the watch. This has been my hope for a very long time!

You guys do understand that battery life is about an hour or 2 max on LTE correct?

 

[Newtons Apple]

This is one of the reasons I’m passing on the series 3. I’m holding out for series 4 when hopefully this will be improved upon. Kinda makes LTE useless with such a short battery life. You either have to reconnect shortly to your phone or always be charging. I’ll pass. My trust ole series 0 will have to last 1 more year.
[doublepost=1505931211][/doublepost]

Now you’ll just be constantly looking down at your watch.

Unless battery technology changes drastically, the only way to increase LTE time on the AW is by making it bigger with a larger battery.

 

[edhchoe]

You guys do understand that battery life is about an hour or 2 max on LTE correct?

4hrs on stand by. 1hr if you talk for 1hr.
[doublepost=1505936623][/doublepost]

Unless battery technology changes drastically, the only way to increase LTE time on the AW is by making it bigger with a larger battery.

I am not very hopeful on the battery tech advancements.
Loading more battery in the bands would be the solution.

 

[Newtons Apple]

4hrs on stand by. 1hr if you talk for 1hr.
[doublepost=1505936623][/doublepost]
I am not very hopeful on the battery tech advancements.
Loading more battery in the bands would be the solution.

I am afraid that Dick Tracey would laugh at Apple's Watch when it comes to LTE.

 

[Peanut207]

4hrs on stand by. 1hr if you talk for 1hr.
[doublepost=1505936623][/doublepost]

Hardly enough time to use the watch as a stand-alone. Maybe for a quick jog or run to the store but that’s about it. Definitely won’t serve as phone replacement until Apple improves LTE battery time.
[doublepost=1505952019][/doublepost]

Unless battery technology changes drastically, the only way to increase LTE time on the AW is by making it bigger with a larger battery.

My phones always on me so LTE is useless and waste of $10 a month. Hopefully Apple makes a slimmer non LTE watch and keep the same design for those who need LTE.

 

[sean000]

It's certainly an interesting, and tech-forward, way of dealing with a problem many struggle with. One of the college students who works for me got rid of his smartphone and bought a flip-phone because of the distraction issue.

I've had my Apple Watch Series 0 for over 2 years now, and one of the things I said about it from the first few months was that it made my iPhone less distracting. Before the Apple Watch I would pull out my iPhone just to check a text message, the weather forecast, my calendar, etc. and before I knew it I would extend the session into browsing news headlines, Facebook, etc. The Apple Watch does not invite extended use, because it's clearly meant to provide bits of useful information at a glance. Of course my iPhone is rarely far from my Series 0, because it needs to be for many functions... so it can still be a distraction from time to time. I'm pretty good at limiting myself under some situations. Less so in others.

Good luck and let us know how things go.

 

[rillrill]

I think Apple really did a great job, despite the uneducated reviews out today, on the series 3. I don't see battery tech advancing to where you'd get 6-8 hours on just LTE in a year or even two years. I can see using this LTE version for an hour or two without my phone - leave it in the car on a date with my wife, or in a drawer at work, out on a run, etc... It's worth it to me to be reachable for emergencies and not to feel like I MUST have the almighty iPhone with me at all times.

 

[riverfreak]

I have a mild (read: not so mild) addiction to my iPhone. It distracts me from getting work done and pulls me away from focusing on other people when I’m hanging out with them.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for getting work done on the go and keeping in touch with loved ones, and so I decided I would switch full time to an Apple Watch once it gave me the ability to do that.

I still intend to have a smartphone for when I’m relaxing, but my hope is that with LTE I can leave it behind during the workday and when I’m out with friends.

Is anybody else gonna try to do the same?

Maybe you’re just transferring addictions?

One not try simple things like deleting apps on your phone where you spend too much time? You don’t have to delete your accounts, just delete the apps. When you are out with friends, try trading phones. That way you CAN’T look at your phone.

At any rate, I hear what you are saying. I personally am hoping to be less reliant on my phone.

 

[riverfreak]

This is one of the reasons I’m passing on the series 3. I’m holding out for series 4 when hopefully this will be improved upon. Kinda makes LTE useless with such a short battery life. You either have to reconnect shortly to your phone or always be charging. I’ll pass. My trust ole series 0 will have to last 1 more year.
[doublepost=1505931211][/doublepost]

Now you’ll just be constantly looking down at your watch.

Except that the watch offers really, really great filters so that you can make only the most important things surface. It’s great in that respect.

And to the OP, look up Tristan Harris and read some of his work. We are all being gamed when it comes to the addictive nature of mobile apps.

 

[datapolitical]

Tristan is great; I strongly agree with a lot of what he has written.

What I think a lot of folks on this thread miss is how little I need to use my phone most of the time. When I leave my phone completely at home the only things I really miss are texts, calls, and maps.

It sounds like you can leave LTE on all day you just can’t be using it constantly to stream stuff. I don’t plan to. When I need to get work done, I’m in the office or I’m sitting outdoors or at a restaurant with my 12” MacBook.

My phone is a way to keep in touch with the people that matter and a distraction device when I don’t have something better to do. The watch lets me do the former and keeps me from doing the latter.

Modern humans existed for decades without constant access to the Internet. So long as I have maps, calls, texts, and email notifications I don’t need my phone for 90% of the day, and I look forward to not having it.

Except that the watch offers really, really great filters so that you can make only the most important things surface. It’s great in that respect.

And to the OP, look up Tristan Harris and read some of his work. We are all being gamed when it comes to the addictive nature of mobile apps.

 

[riverfreak]

Tristan is great; I strongly agree with a lot of what he has written.

What I think a lot of folks on this thread miss is how little I need to use my phone most of the time. When I leave my phone completely at home the only things I really miss are texts, calls, and maps.

It sounds like you can leave LTE on all day you just can’t be using it constantly to stream stuff. I don’t plan to. When I need to get work done, I’m in the office or I’m sitting outdoors or at a restaurant with my 12” MacBook.

My phone is a way to keep in touch with the people that matter and a distraction device when I don’t have something better to do. The watch lets me do the former and keeps me from doing the latter.

Modern humans existed for decades without constant access to the Internet. So long as I have maps, calls, texts, and email notifications I don’t need my phone for 90% of the day, and I look forward to not having it.

Amen. You and I are totally on the same page, right down to the 12” MB.

Will be interesting to see how the S3 fares. I have used an S0 since it’s inception with heavy, heavy notification filtering. My next step was to disable all the spurious notifications from things like FB, IG, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. even news notifications on my phone. Basically everything. That, coupled with the confidence that only the most important messages would get through was eye opening. Next, I started wholesale deleting apps from my phone. I look forward to the next step, turning my smartphone into a dumb terminal.

 

[mk313]

Good luck with this. Please post updates to let us know how this works out for you.