I gave up my Apple Watch after 9 years and feel free.

[Analog Kid]

I didn't say I was judging anyone wearing an Apple watch. I just notice when people are wearing one. And sure, individuality can be identified by your face, but its also identified by the clothes you wear, the style of your hair, and, wait for it, the watch/jewelry you wear.

I don't make the rules, that's just how it is.

You're making an assessment of ("judging") someone's personality based on trinkets. That's certainly not a rule-- judging people by their appearance is a personality trait in itself.

Anyway, I meant it as a light hearted response and certainly didn't take, or mean to give, offense. I just found it amusing that someone would think a person's individuality comes down to a couple square inches between their hand and their elbow. It's not news to me, certainly, but I couldn't help pointing it out.

 

[trip1ex]

Rotating your wrist 45 degrees at a glance rather than pulling something out of your pocket is easier. It’s much easier if you have something in your hands such as a bag. And of course it’s more subtle if you’re with other people around.

Sources of info here for “rules”: physics, life, facts.

I have a phone on me. There's basically zilch advantage to having an AW so I can tell time.

 

[Webcat86]

I stopped Wearing one for a while too — as a fellow Omega owner, I adore wearing that watch. But I went back to AW for 99% of the time, and the primary reason is health. It helps me improve my heart metrics, monitor my steps, track my sleep data, and I use it for controlling my workout app and when running.

I’ve heard too many people talk about how their AW helped them detect unknown heart issues like irregular patterns and A Fib.

I find that stuff really helpful and important, especially as I get closer to 40. But I turned off almost all notifications, because it’s very easy for the AW to become a real nuisance.

 

[MTShipp]

A few days ago I received an Apple survey on Apple Watch. I was honest in explaining how I rarely wear mine anymore. Mostly because ai am tired of it changing screens randomly and calling 911 without prompting. No amount of Genius discussion determined any defects. So I gave up trying.

 

[Arths]

Gave up my AW5 since watchOS 11 won't support it.
I bought a Mi Band 8 for 35 € : twelve days of battery life, heart rate, notifications.
If only Apple made a "light" version of the Apple Watch with just basic features such as the ones above I would buy it.
For now battery life is killing the experience for me

 

[Night Spring]

I’m having a bit of a break from my watch as well. I hope Apple get around to bringing out a ring one day so we can just do very simple stuff with it and have it quietly record our steps, with a few days battery life so we can wear it through the night.

Anyone here with one of those rings? How are they with step tracking? Do finger movements, such as typing and playing piano get picked up as steps?

She likes it for fitness...but still refuses to leave the phone at home while walking

I thought I'd be able to leave the phone behind on my walks, but then found that I liked taking pictures of things I see while walking, so I need my phone. I also like being able to read on my phone when I sit down to take a break on longer walks. Maybe your wife also has something she needs her phone for during her walks?

 

[Webcat86]

Anyone here with one of those rings? How are they with step tracking? Do finger movements, such as typing and playing piano get picked up as steps?

I don’t know about those specifics but I looked into other wearables when I ditched my AW. Truthfully nothing seems to really compare yet, which is why I went back to AW. I’d love Apple to roll out a discreet bracelet or something

 

[Analog Kid]

Rotating your wrist 45 degrees at a glance rather than pulling something out of your pocket is easier. It’s much easier if you have something in your hands such as a bag. And of course it’s more subtle if you’re with other people around.

Sources of info here for “rules”: physics, life, facts.

Driving. Being able to glance at my wrist next to the steering wheel, and to get taptic notifications of turn directions is a benefit to me.

 

[juju90]

I found you have to turn off any non critical notifications. You should try trading your smart phone in for a flip phone if you think losing the watch makes you feel free.

Great Job sir && also your carry around less radiation ☢️, & less radiation going into your body.

 

[Digital Dude]

I'm glad you were able to step away from it after all that time. I currently have the Apple Watch 6 Stainless with the Milanese band, and I rely on it. Given my age and health, it serves as a quasi-medical alert device. I have no plans to upgrade unless the new version miraculously offers something useful. My days of updating hardware every year or so are way over. 😒

 

[eyoungren]

The AW is a boon to those using its functions that a phone can't offer, particularly the health and exercise/training related functions for which a dedicated, more focused training watch like a Garmin isn't necessary.

Or, all kidding aside, the AW provides a sneaky way to keep visual tabs on certain important reminders/notifications without being seen as "looking at your phone" during those times you don't want to be seen looking at your phone.

Those looking at the AW as an additional indicator system beyond the phone itself are probably just not the right audience for an AW.

At the time the AW was launched I wanted a LED notification light. Years later, I'm 100 percent work from home and sit in front of multiple computers, seven monitors and a large HDTV all day. My phones are right in front of me. The AW would simply be redundant for that.

And, as I explained to someone else earlier, I'm not interested in the health or fitness stuff. I once almost failed PE, so that should tell you how interested (not) I am in fitness.

 

[Webcat86]

And, as I explained to someone else earlier, I'm not interested in the health or fitness stuff. I once almost failed PE, so that should tell you how interested (not) I am in fitness.

There is an argument to be made that your inactivity makes it a more important device to consider. The “health” component of H&F can tell you if you have signs of A Fib, irregular heart rate patterns, not to mention blood oxygen, your cardio fitness in relation to your age and sex, and other important data points that are genuinely useful far beyond being a fitness fan.

 

[Night Spring]

I once almost failed PE, so that should tell you how interested (not) I am in fitness.

Do schools give out grades for PE? I had PE in middle school, and a year in high school because they were compulsory, but can't remember if I got grades for them or not. I think any grade I got was probably just pass/fail. In any case, as far as I know, all students were expected to do was show up and participate to the best of their abilities. I don't know how you can fail PE unless you skipped the classes completely, in which case you'd get called up to the principal's office way before any grades were assigned.

 

[eyoungren]

There is an argument to be made that your inactivity makes it a more important device to consider. The “health” component of H&F can tell you if you have signs of A Fib, irregular heart rate patterns, not to mention blood oxygen, your cardio fitness in relation to your age and sex, and other important data points that are genuinely useful far beyond being a fitness fan.

I have high blood pressure and am on medication for that. I walk daily as prescribed by my doctor. Due to the sporadic nature of our health care coverage over the last 24 years I do not wish the additional anxiety that an AW might cause me, particularly during periods without coverage.

Honestly…I'd really rather not know. Particularly when there isn't much I can do about it without health coverage.

 

[eyoungren]

Do schools give out grades for PE? I had PE in middle school, and a year in high school because they were compulsory, but can't remember if I got grades for them or not. I think any grade I got was probably just pass/fail. In any case, as far as I know, all students were expected to do was show up and participate to the best of their abilities. I don't know how you can fail PE unless you skipped the classes completely, in which case you'd get called up to the principal's office way before any grades were assigned.

You could in the late 1980s. I graduated high school in 1989. But to be fair, 1st through 12th grade were private Christian schools. I spent a lot of time simply walking around the baseball field with friends for 45 minutes while the rest of the 'class' were actually playing baseball or whatnot. The other students were okay with that because my friends and I had no sports skills to contribute and could potentially cause the game to be lost.

Teachers on the other hand, handed out grades based on participation (and not skill level). So, at some point my other classmates had to suck it up and deal with me and my friends. We always got picked last though.

Not a fan of sports.

 

[trip1ex]

I thought I'd be able to leave the phone behind on my walks, but then found that I liked taking pictures of things I see while walking, so I need my phone. I also like being able to read on my phone when I sit down to take a break on longer walks. Maybe your wife also has something she needs her phone for during her walks?

yep exactly. pictures. emergency. a phone call or text. ...etc.

maybe the cellular version would put her over the edge. lol.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

At the time the AW was launched I wanted a LED notification light. Years later, I'm 100 percent work from home and sit in front of multiple computers, seven monitors and a large HDTV all day. My phones are right in front of me. The AW would simply be redundant for that.

And, as I explained to someone else earlier, I'm not interested in the health or fitness stuff. I once almost failed PE, so that should tell you how interested (not) I am in fitness.

The Watch has helped a lot of people get into fitness and for inactive people like yourself it should be worth considering.

 

[eyoungren]

The Watch has helped a lot of people get into fitness and for inactive people like yourself it should be worth considering.

I get it. But I'm already following my doctor's advice concerning physical activity. I'm not entirely inactive. I just choose not to engage in fitness as an interest. It's something I have to do - like going to work. I hate working, but if I want to eat and pay my bills I have to work. If I want to continue to live, I must exercise my body.

I get no pleasure in doing it, although I do acknowledge it's benefits.

 

[Night Spring]

You could in the late 1980s. I graduated high school in 1989. But to be fair, 1st through 12th grade were private Christian schools. I spent a lot of time simply walking around the baseball field with friends for 45 minutes while the rest of the 'class' were actually playing baseball or whatnot. The other students were okay with that because my friends and I had no sports skills to contribute and could potentially cause the game to be lost.

Teachers on the other hand, handed out grades based on participation (and not skill level). So, at some point my other classmates had to suck it up and deal with me and my friends. We always got picked last though.

Not a fan of sports.

Ha! I went to a private Catholic school myself. And I don't think I ever noticed any of my classmates goofing off like you describe. I believe the teachers assigned students to teams, so people didn't get left last like you describe. Me, I was always the score keeper, because my physical disabilities made me totally useless at actually participating meaningfully in a game, but my teachers always made me feel included, for which I'm very grateful.

 

[Night Spring]

yep exactly. pictures. emergency. a phone call or text. ...etc.

maybe the cellular version would put her over the edge. lol.

Well, if she's using the watch to track step count, heart rate, walking speed, and other metrics, it's not totally useless, even if she still keeps her phone with her.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I get it. But I'm already following my doctor's advice concerning physical activity. I'm not entirely inactive. I just choose not to engage in fitness as an interest. It's something I have to do - like going to work. I hate working, but if I want to eat and pay my bills I have to work. If I want to continue to live, I must exercise my body.

I get no pleasure in doing it, although I do acknowledge it's benefits.

Like yourself I have high blood pressure and a liver condition so I have to exercise. I run about 15 to 20 miles a week and make sure I walk on my lunch break when the British rainy weather isn’t stopping me. My Apple Watch has been a good device for recording it and dare I say it’s a more interesting gadget than my iPhone. I was more excited to see it tonight in the keynote than any of the phones.

 

[trip1ex]

Well, if she's using the watch to track step count, heart rate, walking speed, and other metrics, it's not totally useless, even if she still keeps her phone with her.

she isn't training for the olympics. just walking. And the phone keeps track of steps. And has a timer etc.

that reminds me I also poke fun at her once in awhile because she insists on using her watch to start map my run every time we walk (with a big pause and getting the app on the watch ready) and i'm like you're carrying your phone and it already keeps track of steps automagically. That's all you need to do.

But I'm looking at the bigger picture. Which is you need to walk 4-5x a week. Yet you aren't doing that regularly so there is no need to bother with this other stuff...it's noise and distractions. blah blah blah .../tangent

 

[Night Spring]

I get it. But I'm already following my doctor's advice concerning physical activity. I'm not entirely inactive. I just choose not to engage in fitness as an interest. It's something I have to do - like going to work. I hate working, but if I want to eat and pay my bills I have to work. If I want to continue to live, I must exercise my body.

I get no pleasure in doing it, although I do acknowledge it's benefits.

Too bad you feel that way. Have you ever seen Mary Poppins? There's a song about how looking for the fun in tiresome chores makes them easier to do. I've always thought that's a good outlook to have. Especially with something like taking walks for health reasons, there are ways to make it pleasurable as well as good for you. Like find a scenic route to walk, or walk back and forth to a favorite shopping spot, etc.

 

[Night Spring]

she isn't training for the olympics. just walking. And the phone keeps track of steps. And has a timer etc.

I'm not training for the Olympics, either, but find the step counts motivating. Like I might walk an extra block to meet a step count goal. You're right the phone can do that too, though.

 

[trip1ex]

I'm not training for the Olympics, either, but find the step counts motivating. Like I might walk an extra block to meet a step count goal. You're right the phone can do that too, though.

i actually found my 10 yr old Wii U Fit meter 2 weeks ago and have been going on walks with just that. Very low tech but battery life is long, and it shows steps, calories burned, time, temp, a little graph and your Mii (avatar) on a cheap tiny b&w lcd screen. Mostly it stays off. It does play a little diddy when you reach your calorie burned goal or 10k steps etc.

I guess that's my idea of the Apple Watch I would buy. Something in the spirit of the iPod Mini sort to speak. Cheap, low tech but with other advantages...like battery life and price and focus.

Closer to an Apple version of the Wii U Fit meter. simple and cheap. Serves a use or two.