Pedometer++ Developer Shares Data on Apple Watch Adoption Rates Across All Models

[MacRumors]

David Smith, the developer behind the popular Pedometer++ app for iPhone and Apple Watch, today shared some interesting user data that offers insight into Apple Watch adoption rates, and specifically, how quickly he's seen Apple Watch Series 3 adoption grow.

Smith looked at data collected from August 1, 2017 (a month before the debut of the Apple Watch Series 3) to March 14, 2018. During that time, he's seen rapid growth in the number of active Pedometer++ users who have an Apple Watch Series 3, and a steady decline in users who have an Apple Watch Series 0 or an Apple Watch Series 2, both of which are now discontinued.

Just under 35 percent of Pedometer++ users now have an Apple Watch Series 3, while around 24 percent have an Apple Watch Series 0, down from more than 40 percent in August of 2017.

According to Smith, he's been keeping a close eye on Apple Watch Series 0 usage rates because he's hoping that Apple will soon drop support for the original Apple Watch, which he describes as a "bit painful" to develop for.

It is just slow and honestly a bit painful to develop for. Even basic things like deploying your application to the watch can take uncomfortably long amounts of time. In daily use the Series 0 is probably "good enough" for many customers, especially with the speed/stability improvements added in watchOS 4, but as a developer I can't wait until I no longer have to support it.

By contrast, Smith says the new Apple Watch Series 3 is "a delight to work with" because it's fast, capable, and has LTE functionality that allows for new kinds applications. Smith is hoping watchOS 5 will drop support for the original Apple Watch, which is why he tracks falling Series 0 usage rates, but he does admit that the device is still adequate for many users who just need basic functionality.

When watchOS 5 launches, presumably this September, the original Apple Watch will be more than three years old, and Smith believes, that based on current trends, Series 0 usage could be as low as 15 to 20 percent in his Pedometer++ app, which presumably is reflective of overall usage rates.

For comparison's sake, Apple ended support for the original iPhone, released in 2007, in 2010 when the fourth-generation version of iOS was released. Support for the first-generation iPod touch, also released in 2007, ended with the same operating system update.

Apple ended support for the first-generation iPad, released in 2010, with the launch of iOS 6 in 2013.

Apple clearly has a history of ending support for first-generation devices after a few years, but it's not yet clear if the company will do the same for the original Apple Watch. Some of the original Apple Watch models, which were offered in 18-Karat gold, were priced at up to $17,000, so Apple could have unhappy customers when support for the device eventually ends.

For more of Smith's Apple Watch adoption analysis, make sure to check out his full blog post.

Article Link: Pedometer++ Developer Shares Data on Apple Watch Adoption Rates Across All Models

 

[Dormammu]

Still rocking my S1.
Will consider the S3 after the S4 is announced and the price on the S3 drops

 

[BaracksPhallusPalace]

aren't the CPU and RAM in series 1-3 the same other than waterproofing and LTE? when referring to the "original" apple watch, I'm assuming they mean the series 0 ones that had a single core CPU...

 

[GIZBUG]

Must be a slow news day, read this SAME ARTICLE on 9to5mac about 4 hours ago......

 

[jclo]

aren't the CPU and RAM in series 1-3 the same other than waterproofing and LTE? when referring to the "original" apple watch, I'm assuming they mean the series 0 ones that had a single core CPU...

Nope, different processors.

 

[cambookpro]

aren't the CPU and RAM in series 1-3 the same other than waterproofing and LTE? when referring to the "original" apple watch, I'm assuming they mean the series 0 ones that had a single core CPU...

Series 0 has a S1 chip, Series 1 has a S1P chip, Series 2 has a S2, Series 3 has a S3.

Not really sure what the difference between the S1P and S2 are - both advertised as dual core and S1P looked pretty much identical to S2 in day-to-day performance.

But there are big differences between the S1P/S2 and S3.

 

[bbednarz57]

Must be a slow news day, read this SAME ARTICLE on 9to5mac about 4 hours ago......

What is your point?

 

[nwcs]

The lesson on the rose gold watch S0 is to never spend that much on a fashion statement that's also an electronic consumable unless you're prepared to take the big hit.

 

[Corsig]

Really hoping a new model is announced soon so I can upgrade from my S0. I think mine is slowing dying and im praying I can sqeak out a couple more months

 

[manu chao]

Smith is hoping watchOS 5 will drop support for the original Apple Watch, which is why he tracks falling Series 0 usage rates, but he does admit that the device is still adequate for many users who just need basic functionality.

A question is whether Series 0 will still be adequate running watch OS 4 (and the last version of the respective third-party watch apps) for the next year or two anyway (Apple might consider security fixes only).

 

[deanthedev]

That chart makes a lot of sense. The Series 3 is a fantastic watch and the price actually went down (if you consider what it includes vs previous versions). No surprise to see it take off so fast.

 

[MrMaxwell]

As someone that upgraded from the series 0 to the series 3...what an upgrade!

I feel the S3 is ultimately what Apple should've launched with, it's lightning fast and just works.

 

[goobot]

Some of the original Apple Watch models, which were offered in 18-Karat gold, were priced at up to $17,000, so Apple could have unhappy customers when support for the device eventually ends.

Which was why it was always stupid for Apple to originally push the device as a fashion statement. Everyone knew that its hardware would be left behind making its software unbearable and thus turning it into an expensive paperweight.

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

Still on Series 0, which works okay for my modest needs. It is slow to start a work out, especially since OS4, but I just load that app and then change clothes. It's usually ready to go after that!

 

[cmChimera]

Still with an S0 right now, but I definitely plan to upgrade to the S4 this year, redesign or not.

 

[wesley96]

Series 0 has a S1 chip, Series 1 has a S1P chip, Series 2 has a S2, Series 3 has a S3.

Not really sure what the difference between the S1P and S2 are - both advertised as dual core and S1P looked pretty much identical to S2 in day-to-day performance.

But there are big differences between the S1P/S2 and S3.

It’s already been confirmed way back that S1P is S2 minus GPS. The performance should obviously be identical.

https://9to5mac.com/2016/10/04/is-apple-watch-series-2-faster-than-series-1-video/amp/

 

[TouchMint.com]

Yea s0 is a bit rough. I’d prob consider dev for watches again if I did not have to worry about those.

 

[gplusplus]

PedoMeter is such an unfortunate name.

 

[Wizpod96]

Still on Series 0, which works okay for my modest needs. It is slow to start a work out, especially since OS4, but I just load that app and then change clothes. It's usually ready to go after that!

For a while I wondered if I was the only one suffering with this issue. Pretty much do the same thing, sometimes the rings app fails to load for a while. Definitely going to have to consider upgrading sometime this year or early next.

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

For a while I wondered if I was the only one suffering with this issue. Pretty much do the same thing, sometimes the rings app fails to load for a while. Definitely going to have to consider upgrading sometime this year or early next.

My first iPhone was the 3G, so I expected S0 Watch to be similar. In some ways, amazing, in other ways, frustrating. My S0 is still trucking along, so I'll likely ride it to the end, or maybe upgrade next time I can get a new model for $180 like I did this S0 (Black Friday).

 

[dannyyankou]

The Series 3 is finally the smartwatch Apple users deserve. Series 1 and series 2 were good, but were lacking performance-wise

 

[joeblough]

Still on Series 0, which works okay for my modest needs. It is slow to start a work out, especially since OS4, but I just load that app and then change clothes. It's usually ready to go after that!

the river Temarc in winter! i also have a series 0 and the workout app does not take that long to load... it seems to preload because i never get the spinny thing, and while it seems a tad sluggish to start it can't be more than 2 or 3 seconds.

 

[AFDoc]

Really hoping a new model is announced soon so I can upgrade from my S0. I think mine is slowing dying and im praying I can sqeak out a couple more months

Mine too.....

My series one (or is it 0? the first watch) watch battery is pooping out on me..... barely 12 hours of use out of a charge now. Of course I went to apple and they (according to the aspen grove apple store in Colorado) won't replace the battery but they'll charge me to OOW replace it for $199.... why can I still go and see battery replacement online but can't get it in store?

 

[mlody]

I got S2 SS few months ago when Best Buy had a deal. I am happy with it, but the performance could be better especially when opening the work out app.

I will most likely keep it on the latest Watch OS 4 version and skip any newer versions unless tests prove significant performance improvement. I do not need my watch to do anything else than it does now, so I do not feel like upgrading and risking lower performance is worth the risk.

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

the river Temarc in winter! i also have a series 0 and the workout app does not take that long to load... it seems to preload because i never get the spinny thing, and while it seems a tad sluggish to start it can't be more than 2 or 3 seconds.

Mine loads okay, but it won't let me select a workout mode for several seconds.