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How do you feel about the Apple Watch
- Thread starter profmjh
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maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I love the design, but I don't feel it brings anything to the table that is different from the iPhone. To put it another way, most of what the watch can do, the iPhone does better.
The watch is beautiful and an engineering marvel, but for 500+ dollars its a solution in search of a problem imo.
I think it will be wildly successful, but not with me 🙂
The watch is beautiful and an engineering marvel, but for 500+ dollars its a solution in search of a problem imo.
I think it will be wildly successful, but not with me 🙂
T'hain Esh Kelch
macrumors 604
Starlifter
macrumors member
I have the 6+ and am always missing stuff on my phone (family members), mostly because only one or two notifications push to me. Otherwise the phone is for my convenience --- not others. I'm just one of those LOVE TECHNOLOGY people but not a slave to it.
I'm thrilled to have something on my wrist for my added convenience which also allows me to keep my phone in my purse (it's also my wallet/case). I don't even care that it's a Gen 1 product. I'll probably do what I did with the first iPhone---sit out Gen 2, but get Gen 3.
I'm thrilled to have something on my wrist for my added convenience which also allows me to keep my phone in my purse (it's also my wallet/case). I don't even care that it's a Gen 1 product. I'll probably do what I did with the first iPhone---sit out Gen 2, but get Gen 3.
Most of what the ipad does, a laptop does better.
Again, the purpose of the Watch is a lockscreen for the wrist, one that is always with you and ensures you don't miss those notifications. You can quickly take action with some or go to iphone if it's more involved than a quick reply or Siri action. You miss things on the iphone with it in pocket, purse, on the counter, etc.
For others, it tracks health in a way the iphone can't. But battery has to get better as well as software.
Beyond this, I think 3rd party apps are junk unless it's a lockscreen type of notification. You cannot think them as apps really until Apple allows them to be better. Can they get better? If native, perhaps. But even moreso, Siri has to be on board, accurate, and lightning quick. The current system of going to phone, phone going to Apple, back to phone, back to watch isn't the future.
I think the iphone and ipad each took around 6 generations to become what we think of as mature. The iphone 5S, and the Air 2. It'll be interesting to see what the watch becomes in 5 years.
I think that the product and ordering process show up the lack of someone overseeing the entire experience while always keeping the customer's point of view paramount.
I'm nortoriosly terrible at analogies but I'll try one anyway. It's like a concert put on by some of the most brilliant musicians alive but conducted by a novice conductor. You can't dim the brilliance of the musicians but the whole production isn't coming together as smoothly as you've seen it done by an expert conductor. The novice isn't bad but he's not used to overseeing everything from his new position.
This isn't my opinion because I haven't had a try at it yet, but I am parroting back the opinion of reviewers and better educated forum members than myself, the UI needs some serious editing. The features need some editing.
The debut to the public...not as expertly orchestrated. Past debuts by a better showman elicted more excited reponses by showing you exciting must-have features and then revealing in an almost offhand way "Oh and you can get these wonderful features...this Tuesday". Or better yet, later today.
By contrast we were shown guys self consciously sending each other heartbeats and childish emojis on a clearly unfinished product and told all this fabulousness would be available sometime next year. Doh!
The preorder experience had elements that were confusing and not well communicated to the general public by Apple directly on its site. You had to follow sites like this one for guidance.
For example there is apparently some sort of "2 per" limit but there's still confusion as to 2 what per whom. We've got anecdotal reports of people having an order consisting of 2 watches and 2 bands having portions of their order canceled for violating the limit. During at least the first hour of the preorder the limit was never explicitly stated on any of the pages on the online ordering form. Calls to various people at Apple apparently yield a different response to the matter depending on whom the customer reached.
The current consensus seems to be that people on Apple Finance are combing through orders of 2 or more products and flagging them for possible cancellation anywhere from a day of order to a week. They seem to be trying to catch scalpers but who knows. A participant in the discussion likened it to a witch hunt.
The app yielded different results from the website when putting more than one item in the cart. There was no consistency between how effective the site was vs the app.
An expert conductor heading up Apple would take a look at how the limit was communicated to customers, take a look at how it is being implemented or enforced retroactively on orders already placed and ask "is this how we want to represent the company to our consumers?" It comes across haphazard and arrogant.
Granted it doesn't seem widespread yet. But only time will tell how many preorders end up going through this culling process. Some people are preemptive self culling portions of their order so that Apple doesn't do it and end up culling a more desired item over one that can be postponed.
My conclusion is that it's still worth hearing the best musicians play. But don't expect the best production ever. And it's still going to be a worthwhile experience owning this product. But I'll be expecting some jarring moments.
I'm nortoriosly terrible at analogies but I'll try one anyway. It's like a concert put on by some of the most brilliant musicians alive but conducted by a novice conductor. You can't dim the brilliance of the musicians but the whole production isn't coming together as smoothly as you've seen it done by an expert conductor. The novice isn't bad but he's not used to overseeing everything from his new position.
This isn't my opinion because I haven't had a try at it yet, but I am parroting back the opinion of reviewers and better educated forum members than myself, the UI needs some serious editing. The features need some editing.
The debut to the public...not as expertly orchestrated. Past debuts by a better showman elicted more excited reponses by showing you exciting must-have features and then revealing in an almost offhand way "Oh and you can get these wonderful features...this Tuesday". Or better yet, later today.
By contrast we were shown guys self consciously sending each other heartbeats and childish emojis on a clearly unfinished product and told all this fabulousness would be available sometime next year. Doh!
The preorder experience had elements that were confusing and not well communicated to the general public by Apple directly on its site. You had to follow sites like this one for guidance.
For example there is apparently some sort of "2 per" limit but there's still confusion as to 2 what per whom. We've got anecdotal reports of people having an order consisting of 2 watches and 2 bands having portions of their order canceled for violating the limit. During at least the first hour of the preorder the limit was never explicitly stated on any of the pages on the online ordering form. Calls to various people at Apple apparently yield a different response to the matter depending on whom the customer reached.
The current consensus seems to be that people on Apple Finance are combing through orders of 2 or more products and flagging them for possible cancellation anywhere from a day of order to a week. They seem to be trying to catch scalpers but who knows. A participant in the discussion likened it to a witch hunt.
The app yielded different results from the website when putting more than one item in the cart. There was no consistency between how effective the site was vs the app.
An expert conductor heading up Apple would take a look at how the limit was communicated to customers, take a look at how it is being implemented or enforced retroactively on orders already placed and ask "is this how we want to represent the company to our consumers?" It comes across haphazard and arrogant.
Granted it doesn't seem widespread yet. But only time will tell how many preorders end up going through this culling process. Some people are preemptive self culling portions of their order so that Apple doesn't do it and end up culling a more desired item over one that can be postponed.
My conclusion is that it's still worth hearing the best musicians play. But don't expect the best production ever. And it's still going to be a worthwhile experience owning this product. But I'll be expecting some jarring moments.
Appl3FTW
macrumors 603
I've been super excited since the day rumors confirmed that Apple is joining the wearables market. The wearables market is booming and I want to experience it first hand. It would be just like the iPad and iPhone when it came out. Nobody really believed in it until it resonated to consumer's daily lives and the rest was history. The problem is the market for tablets and smart watch is super concentrated now and it's plateauing. The wearables market is where the boom is.
I wrote about the potential but I'll say that as of now, first gen, it's kind of a mess. My wife had no clue in the store. She clearly didn't share in any excitement I had but I've been following it all along (she hasn't and doesn't care). All she saw was that this is 700. She's never had a watch over a hundred and it will take a lot more than the tryout she had yesterday to convince her to keep it. She's willing to use it and humor me, but I can tell she thinks I'm a bit nuts about this.
"What can it do?" Umm..you won't miss notifications? That's not exactly making her burst with excitement either. Not for 700. Not even for 400 for a sport watch that looks even worse. Track your health? Her iphone, she says, tracks her steps. It's important to note, she's a watch wearer (I'm not). She's an iphone nut. This should definitely sell to her right? Guess not yet..
It's not intuitive. She was hopelessly lost trying to manipulate the watch UI in the store. My 8 year old saw the bright colors of the sport watches and declared her love. We had to tell her no chance. Most reviewers are saying it takes a few days to a week to learn it. That's too long. Apple has to do better here.
You cannot declare a win for Apple with this initial demand and backordered stuff. Everyone knew this would be the case no matter what. But I do see a lot of returns in the future and poor sales on this once it's in the wild. There's just too many nontechies and people in general just don't understand what this watch is all about. Apple really needs to get those "faces", "messages" etc videos on its website into commercials asap.
As a tech enthusiast and someone who is following it, Apple has to make the sale to people like me. But I'm wavering at this point. It feels ok on wrist but yeah, that's 700. It's not impressive to me as fashion. It has to be impressive in actual use for me not to return it. The benefits have to outweigh the cost. Not only 700 and additional bands, but extra cable, setting up and maintenance, charging every night, managing battery life, managing which notifications you want, bugs, etc.
The problem is that I'm much more aware of the costs then I am benefits. I have to wait to use it.
"What can it do?" Umm..you won't miss notifications? That's not exactly making her burst with excitement either. Not for 700. Not even for 400 for a sport watch that looks even worse. Track your health? Her iphone, she says, tracks her steps. It's important to note, she's a watch wearer (I'm not). She's an iphone nut. This should definitely sell to her right? Guess not yet..
It's not intuitive. She was hopelessly lost trying to manipulate the watch UI in the store. My 8 year old saw the bright colors of the sport watches and declared her love. We had to tell her no chance. Most reviewers are saying it takes a few days to a week to learn it. That's too long. Apple has to do better here.
You cannot declare a win for Apple with this initial demand and backordered stuff. Everyone knew this would be the case no matter what. But I do see a lot of returns in the future and poor sales on this once it's in the wild. There's just too many nontechies and people in general just don't understand what this watch is all about. Apple really needs to get those "faces", "messages" etc videos on its website into commercials asap.
As a tech enthusiast and someone who is following it, Apple has to make the sale to people like me. But I'm wavering at this point. It feels ok on wrist but yeah, that's 700. It's not impressive to me as fashion. It has to be impressive in actual use for me not to return it. The benefits have to outweigh the cost. Not only 700 and additional bands, but extra cable, setting up and maintenance, charging every night, managing battery life, managing which notifications you want, bugs, etc.
The problem is that I'm much more aware of the costs then I am benefits. I have to wait to use it.
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gwynne
macrumors 68000
I'm optimistic. I think of it as an iPhone extender/place shifter, and there are numerous scenarios in my life where that will be handy. My iPhone 6+ is too big to behave as a fitness tracker, and I don't think my Fitbit will survive many more accidental trips through the washer, so I will be very happy to replace it. I do think it is overpriced, but I have no sense of romance about expensive watches whatsoever. A lot of people seem to describe the price of entry as "$700", as above; my price of entry was $349. In retrospect, that's about what I was expecting to pay before any announcements, but I had NO clue how high that ceiling would go, and I guess that makes some people unwilling to be at the lower end.
Scrub175
macrumors 6502
I'm neutral as well. My personal reasons I purchased the watch are: for the remote notifications because I keep my phone in silent mostly and fitness tracking. I don't see a major market for smart watches yet, so any mainstream market coolness isn't a major surprise. I was considering a Fitbit but I opted for the better matched to my iOS device Apple Watch. Although a Fitbit is less money, I like the expanded features of the Apple Watch and could justify the price over the Fitbit for the Apple Watch.
Apple is right when they stated this is a very personal device and even in choosing to get one or not. The concept has been very polarizing here, where we a) care about tech gear and b) care about Apple products. For the normal folks, you know the other 99% of iPhone users, there appears to be very little interest or appeal of this product, for now.
Apple is right when they stated this is a very personal device and even in choosing to get one or not. The concept has been very polarizing here, where we a) care about tech gear and b) care about Apple products. For the normal folks, you know the other 99% of iPhone users, there appears to be very little interest or appeal of this product, for now.
I'm positive, but accept it has flaws! I see there is a lot more to come and I am excited to be at the beginning of that and will enjoy the ride. For now I will get convenient notifications without having to fish around for the phone I never end up putting back in my bag properly, or miss a call because I'm in the supermarket and don't hear my phone. I can even check the time conveniently but with background images that will make me smile. ITa prettier than anything else on the market , and I want these conveniences now so glad that Apple are producing it without waiting any longer.
The analogy I want to use is DVR's. I couldn't imagine watching tv without one now. Being able to pause, rewind, schedule season recordings, skipping commericals, etc.
But I also remember trying to explain these things to people when they were new. They still had no interest. "Why would I want to do that" was common.
Discreet notifications on the wrist and being able to make a split second judgement (of whether to act on it) after glancing at it is the claim to fame for the watch.
Have something important you need to be reminded of as a specific time? I usually set such a reminder on my iphone in an hour or two prior to that specific time so I don't miss it. With an apple watch, this doesn't have to be the case. Be reminded "just in time."
Your spouse calls and calls and no answer. Texts go unanswered. The phone is in pocket or what not and you simply miss it. No more of that with the apple watch.
It is this concept that makes the watch unique and is something the phone can never do. At work, I set reminders and calendar appointments all the time. But you always need to review your phone or calendar to see what's coming up. The Watch can make this more precise. I bill my time out and need to track how long I work on engagements. The Watch can come in handy here as well although I do use my phone for this too.
But again, try explaining these things to the average person. So what is the response. Just like the dvr. "why would i need that..or so what?"
But I also remember trying to explain these things to people when they were new. They still had no interest. "Why would I want to do that" was common.
Discreet notifications on the wrist and being able to make a split second judgement (of whether to act on it) after glancing at it is the claim to fame for the watch.
Have something important you need to be reminded of as a specific time? I usually set such a reminder on my iphone in an hour or two prior to that specific time so I don't miss it. With an apple watch, this doesn't have to be the case. Be reminded "just in time."
Your spouse calls and calls and no answer. Texts go unanswered. The phone is in pocket or what not and you simply miss it. No more of that with the apple watch.
It is this concept that makes the watch unique and is something the phone can never do. At work, I set reminders and calendar appointments all the time. But you always need to review your phone or calendar to see what's coming up. The Watch can make this more precise. I bill my time out and need to track how long I work on engagements. The Watch can come in handy here as well although I do use my phone for this too.
But again, try explaining these things to the average person. So what is the response. Just like the dvr. "why would i need that..or so what?"
I am very excited and positive. I am in the camp that thinks they over priced the watch for most mainstream ppl. Had it been slightly cheaper for the base models not the gold. I feel like more ppl would be interested. Yes they did have an initial sell out. But after that settles down. I think it will be a hard sell for most consumers. But much like the Apple TV. There will be a segment that will want it.
Well, this really isn't a scientific poll. That the results so far are on a curve indicating a very favorable attitude that should be expected in posting a poll in a forum like this. This is where the excited people are going to go.
Try going to a completely different type of forum and see what you get. Say, a car, sports, etc forum somewhere.
Fwiw, I'm...hopeful. I'm sick and tired of having to pull my phone out of my pocket all the time just to see the time or what just came in. Having an iPhone 6+ made it that much worse - the only thing I hate about it. Love the size, but really hate the size
It's the iPhone 6+ that is causing my interest in the watch! Crazy. Apple's stringing me along! 🙂
Try going to a completely different type of forum and see what you get. Say, a car, sports, etc forum somewhere.
Fwiw, I'm...hopeful. I'm sick and tired of having to pull my phone out of my pocket all the time just to see the time or what just came in. Having an iPhone 6+ made it that much worse - the only thing I hate about it. Love the size, but really hate the size
It's the iPhone 6+ that is causing my interest in the watch! Crazy. Apple's stringing me along! 🙂
SixtyK
macrumors 6502a
I voted "Positive". It is nothing I have to have, but over the past several months since the announcement I've been saving my pennies to get myself something nice/fun for myself. As a single dad, I don't get to do that for myself often.
Do I need it? Not even a little. But I'm excited to get it.
Do I need it? Not even a little. But I'm excited to get it.
Kavier
macrumors 6502a
I love the design and thought it looked great on me. I have an iPhone 6+ which I leave on silent all day at work. I often miss texts and calls, so the watch will fill a need for me. I also like that I can ditch my Fuelband and just wear one device that will look a lot more professional.