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S0 -> S3 = revelation.

W

WilliamG

macrumors G4
Original poster
Mar 29, 2008
10,043
3,953
Seattle
Yes I was overdue a new watch, but boy oh boy is the S3 worth it.

Whether you’re interested in LTE or not, the speed increase is nothing short of sensational. The S2 didn’t feel enough faster to me when it came out, but the S3 is a whole other story.

App opening, Siri speed, smoothness of scrolling (especially through preset replies to texts etc). Everything is blazing fast.

For those on the fence, jump off and join me. It’s well worth it.
 
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Lag between scrolling watch faces has gone?

What about boot time and your general experience with set up?
 
I also held off on the S2 and upgraded to the S3 Apple Watch Sport w/ LTE this go around. The speed difference is amazing and I can actually use Siri on my watch now and use apps without getting annoyed at how long it takes them to load.

DJTaurus said:
Lag between scrolling watch faces has gone?

What about boot time and your general experience with set up?
Click to expand...

There is zero lag when scrolling between watch faces, and I haven't noticed lag anywhere else for that matter. I haven't timed the boot time but I've read it takes about 65 seconds for S3 and almost 3 minutes for S0.

The setup experience with WatchOS 4 and iOS 11 was awesome. Just bring your iPhone near the watch and it picks the language, region, etc. and all you have to do is take a "picture" of the display to pair, like before. I set my watch up as new and it took about 5 minutes for it to set up and I'd say no more than 15 minutes after I pulled it out of the box, I had it on my wrist and ready for the day.

Apple even shipped it to me with a 98% charge. How nice :D
 
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DJTaurus said:
Lag between scrolling watch faces has gone?

What about boot time and your general experience with set up?
Click to expand...

No lag between watch faces. Boot time is 3x as fast as S0. Setup was super easy. Can restore straight away from your current to-the-second Apple Watch S0. No pre-prep needed. A flawless setup experiment (LTE aside).
 
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I moved from the S0 to the S2 last year and I thought the speed boost there was significant and worth the upgrade. The S0 was so slow as to be questionably usable for things other than just notifications IMO. I wouldn’t call the S2 super fast, but it definitely made working with the watch and using apps much better. I just upgraded to the S3 today and even the speed increase over the S2 is definitely noticeable and makes the watch even more usable.
 
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I Think the speed increases will make the watch experience more enjoyable. Because when you have applications are running slower or just general lag, it takes away from the experience. And it seems many are reporting the speed increases are fairly noticeable, so that alone would might be worth the upgrade for those coming from the first generation Apple Watch. You have to experience it firsthand.
 
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BrettDS said:
I moved from the S0 to the S2 last year and I thought the speed boost there was significant and worth the upgrade. The S0 was so slow as to be questionably usable for things other than just notifications IMO. I wouldn’t call the S2 super fast, but it definitely made working with the watch and using apps much better. I just upgraded to the S3 today and even the speed increase over the S2 is definitely noticeable and makes the watch even more usable.
Click to expand...

But was the S3 that much faster then the S2 ?
 
trnjackie23 said:
Damn these threads are really making me want to upgrade. Can't decide whether I want the SS again or get aluminum for cheaper.. ugh
Click to expand...

For notifications my S0 still seems fine, and I don’t feel any great need to use apps - it’s a triage device with occasional yes/no/ok replies to messages.

But it is getting tempting - partly form the speed increase, partly from upgrading before my SS is completely worthless - reckon I’d get £150 for it?
 
If you haven’t got AirPods, get those and the aluminium Watch 3 :D
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mrklaw said:
For notifications my S0 still seems fine, and I don’t feel any great need to use apps - it’s a triage device with occasional yes/no/ok replies to messages.

But it is getting tempting - partly form the speed increase, partly from upgrading before my SS is completely worthless - reckon I’d get £150 for it?
Click to expand...

I’d say so, aluminium S0 are fetching 120-140...
 
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WilliamG said:
For those on the fence, jump off and join me. It’s well worth it.
Click to expand...
LOL, I'm still on the fence, in part because I'm content with my S0. Battery life is the exception, though I'm seeing a drop off, mostly because of the age of the watch.
 
I just upgraded from S0 to S3, and I’ll have to echo what everyone else is saying. For the first time since owning the AW it’s finally a convenience to use. It’s so much faster than the S0! Siri is blazing fast and accurate...
 
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It is interesting the number of people who still own the S0 stating their main reason is that they own it mainly for notifications. That is mainly what I used it for (and the workout tracking aspect). It simply wasn't fast enough to reliably do much else.

With the Series 3 I can finally see this watch actually being useful for numerous things. The S0 was just too slow to make it worth using for most apps and situations. For example... trying to get boarding passes pulled up to scan was embarrassingly cumbersome when flying. If you've ever had a group of people in line behind you rolling their eyes as you try to use your apple watch to board a plane you know what I'm talking about.
 
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Glad to hear it’s a worthwhile change - I’ll be joining you in a few weeks when my S3 watch finally arrives.

Planning to gift my S0 watch to my Dad, primarily as a fitness device. He’s recovered from some pretty serious illness over the last year and want to gently push himself back into fitness.
 
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stu.h said:
S0 to S3 here also.
First thing I noticed was how vibrant the screen is.
Even silly things like putting it on to charge is instantaneous whereas with the S0 it would take 2 seconds or so to register.
Really pleased here!
Click to expand...

Yes! I noticed that, too!
 
The OS4 lag was about to push me over the edge, and I think this thread is helping :p

My S0 is such a chore to actually use for anything beyond just looking at the watch face.

Can you guys confirm that with S3 using your watch with airpods paired you can play anything you want from Apple Music? i.e. just shout at Siri and she'll serve it up over wifi? No pre-syncing playlist nonsense required?

I hate how unclear all the guff is from Apple about what can do what and how it actually works under various situations.
 
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Cowmonk said:
The OS4 lag was about to push me over the edge, and I think this thread is helping :p

My S0 is such a chore to actually use for anything beyond just looking at the watch face.

Can you guys confirm that with S3 using your watch with airpods paired you can play anything you want from Apple Music? i.e. just shout at Siri and she'll serve it up over wifi? No pre-syncing playlist nonsense required?

I hate how unclear all the guff is from Apple about what can do what and how it actually works under various situations.
Click to expand...
I don't think Apple Music (streaming) is enabled yet. I think next month?
 
Wear my S0 at night now for sleep monitoring. Just swap the watches on the charger - worked out great!

The crystal clear audio is incredible and my 10 minute cell call used barely any power. It also seems to charge much faster. Happy!
 
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BrettDS said:
It really is. I wasn’t expecting a significant difference, so I was surprised at what I saw. But it is definitely noticeable and worthy of the upgrade IMO.
Click to expand...

Really I will go try one out
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maflynn said:
LOL, I'm still on the fence, in part because I'm content with my S0. Battery life is the exception, though I'm seeing a drop off, mostly because of the age of the watch.
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Same here battery life on my S0 Watch is bad. Plus I have connectivty issues with mine.
 
Just got my S3 as well. Was using S0. The speed increase is phenomenal. Makes the experience so much better. Siri is so much more responsive now. Everything is buttery smooth. Wow!
 
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