How many years before all the "first generation" shortcomings disappear?

[acctman]

There's a pretty consistent list of first-generation shortcomings from the reviews that will surely be addressed in future versions of the hardware and software. But I get the sense people maybe think this will all magically come to pass in version two. Realistically, how many versions out do you expect it'll take before the Apple Watch features:

- 3-Day+ Battery life
- 4x CPU Performance
- GPS
- Sleep monitoring
- Twice as thin
- (mostly) Always-on display
- Full Waterproofing

the watch has a mic, speaker and altimeter all which require an opening... splash proof yes water proof i don't see that happening

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How about social features with the exercise? I want to compete with friends like my fitbit

that's not up to apple that can be built by any 3rd party company. heck fitbit can open there app up to HealthKit if they wanted too.

 

[Cory Bauer]

So basically, aside from waterproofing, you want something that is much faster with more features and a battery that lasts three times longer in a space half the size.

PHYSICS, yo. I mean sure you can improve battery and CPU efficiency, but how in tarnation do you expect to cram all of that into a device? The iPhone's battery has gotten marginally better over time despite continued speed improvement, and recently a lot of that has to do with expanding the area available for a battery.

And sleep monitoring? When is this thing going to get charged?

What? You mean OP's expectations don't jive with reality? Nooooo say it ain't so!!

I think people are simply "special" if they think anyone can pull off what some have in mind.....which of course is a paper thin watch with 7 day battery life, full GPS with ability to cook your eggs in the morning it's quite silly if you ask me.

You misunderstand, I'm with you guys. I think the list of hardware features people are expecting are physically impossible without some kind of technological breakthrough in batteries - meaning it's going to be many many years before all of those desired features could simultaneously occur. The point I'm making here is this: if a person's passing on the Watch until even half of that criteria is met, they're going to be waiting a lot longer than 2nd or 3rd generation Apple Watch. Which is why I'm comfortable buying 1st generation.

That still doesn't make sense. You'd measure thinness in the same way you measure thickness. Doubling it would still make it thicker.

"That's half an inch thin"
"I want to to be twice that"
"Now its an inch thin"

I know, I'm messing with you I had originally written, "Half as thick", but Apple would never say that because that implies that the current version is a chunky monkey.

 

[Michael CM1]

You misunderstand, I'm with you guys. I think the list of hardware features people are expecting are physically impossible without some kind of technological breakthrough in batteries - meaning it's going to be many many years before all of those desired features could simultaneously occur. The point I'm making here is this: if a person's passing on the Watch until even half of that criteria is met, they're going to be waiting a lot longer than 2nd or 3rd generation Apple Watch. Which is why I'm comfortable buying 1st generation.



I know, I'm messing with you I had originally written, "Half as thick", but Apple would never say that because that implies that the current version is a chunky monkey.

I definitely think a lot of people will wait just because of experiences with the iPhone and iPad. Pretty big jumps in the second generation -- 3G iPhone, iPad added cameras.

But I think a lot of those engineering feats went into this thing. Apple will be quite limited on things like improving battery life yet improving processing speed and making a standalone version -- thus adding cellular and GPS -- without doing something akin to making a flexible, curved watch.

I think most of the improvements are going to be things like different sensors and maybe different ways to charge it. If there's some biological way to charge it a little bit kind of like regenerative braking does on my Prius, that would go a long way to extending battery life. We all radiate heat, which is infrared light. If you can charge batteries using solar panels using sunlight, you can charge a battery with infrared. But it would have to get way better than anything likely possible now to work with such a limited surface area.

 

[Cory Bauer]

But I think a lot of those engineering feats went into this thing. Apple will be quite limited on things like improving battery life yet improving processing speed and making a standalone version -- thus adding cellular and GPS -- without doing something akin to making a flexible, curved watch.

Here's a fun little fact: Garmin has a fitness tracker that gets 3 weeks of battery life (because it has only a few features and a screen equivalent to a T-86), but as soon as you turn on the built-in GPS that 3-week battery life drops to 10hrs. So yeah, it's going to take some crazy advancements in battery technology.

 

[thekeyring]

I don't think it needs to be any thinner, not at the sacrifice of battery life.

I know it looks thick in photos, but see it in person and you'll realise how small it is.

Battery life aside, it's amazing Apple managed to make a computer that small.

 

[Mascots]

I don't know why some people are saying these kinds of lusts are out of reality.

I mean, maybe for right now. But many these things don't require massive breakthroughs in technology to see improvements in the long term.

But many of the features that iPhone 6 contains would be considered "out of reality" in 2007. I'd give it 3 years before we see a device that comprable and capable to what the iPhone 6 is today.

 

[Michael CM1]

Here's a fun little fact: Garmin has a fitness tracker that gets 3 weeks of battery life (because it has only a few features and a screen equivalent to a T-86), but as soon as you turn on the built-in GPS that 3-week battery life drops to 10hrs. So yeah, it's going to take some crazy advancements in battery technology.

Samsung made its watches require a phone, so I would say this isn't isolated to Apple. My problem with what Samsung did was it required one of three models that nobody had at the time. Apple is letting people who own back to an iPhone 5 (right?) use this. That's almost everybody who owns an iPhone. Had it been limited to the 6 Plus, similar to the limit on the original Gear, that would've killed it. I'm assuming Samsung has improved on that, but damn.