Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Series 6 Upgraders - Worth It?
- Thread starter Robdmb
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I am on the fence after having purchased a polished stainless steel series 7 yesterday. The upgrade that persuaded me was the larger screen, but I am not really seeing any better use of the larger screen in my uses. In other words, it’s the same content displayed a little larger. I was expecting that at least some of my uses would actually look different due to more info on the display, rather than just being the same information made a little larger.
I like the watch a lot, but I am undecided about whether it was worth the fairly considerable cost of an upgrade from a series 6 watch that was in great condition and still had 99% battery health.
I like the watch a lot, but I am undecided about whether it was worth the fairly considerable cost of an upgrade from a series 6 watch that was in great condition and still had 99% battery health.
The screen size is the big thing I'm noticing. I wanted things to look bigger on the screen; my eyes have been ruined from years of surfing, so I like bigger font. That makes the 6 to 7 upgrade worth it for me. So if you're looking for that, go for it.
Otherwise, I'm not noticing many differences. The brighter AOD is nice, like right now as I type this, I can see the time more easily. That's nice, wouldn't have gotten me to upgrade, but maybe it would for you.
You could wait for s6 to show up in Apple's refurbished store? Love getting stuff from there.
So maybe think about the differences (reported here, online, by Apple) and imagine yourself with them, see if they make a difference in YOUR daily life.
Otherwise, I'm not noticing many differences. The brighter AOD is nice, like right now as I type this, I can see the time more easily. That's nice, wouldn't have gotten me to upgrade, but maybe it would for you.
You could wait for s6 to show up in Apple's refurbished store? Love getting stuff from there.
So maybe think about the differences (reported here, online, by Apple) and imagine yourself with them, see if they make a difference in YOUR daily life.
I just went from a 6 SS to a 7 SS. The only thing that's materially different is the screen, and you do notice it. After a few hrs, you don't care anymore and it's basically the same watch as the S6. If it's your first AW, get the Series 6. I think those from Series 3-5 will probably find the upgrade to the 7 worthwhile.
The strange thing that I have noticed coming from a S6 to S7 is that charging with the new fast charger is quick but I want to use one of the old charger cables with S7 but unfortunately it is MUCH slower than that old cable charging the S6. Does not make sense at all…. I would expect at least the same speed I was getting charging the S6
Yes... it does not makes sense at all... When starting to charge from low battery (e.g. 20%), series 6 would charge at more than 1% per minute and series 7 charges at less than 1% per minute....
I also have the old USBC charger and has the same problem of the USBA. Really bad. I do not understand why.
the new USBC charger that comes with the watch it is fast but all the older ones they are slower, much slower than the AW6
Is it worth it? I’m not really sure. Do I regret it? Not at all! I’m coming from a silver SS 6 to a graphite SS 7 and I am loving the color change! I do love using the keyboard for texting and the screen is really nice. I haven’t gotten to try the new charger since all my chargers are the old style so I’m also excited to get one of those to have faster charging.
If I get energetic I'm going to put a power meter on the S6 with its charger, then do the same with the S7 with both the "old" charger and the new fast-charge version and see what they're drawing for volts and amps.
100% worth it.
I upgraded from Series 6, and I could never go back now. The new full screen display is just gorgeous and delightful to use.
I upgraded from Series 6, and I could never go back now. The new full screen display is just gorgeous and delightful to use.
I started experimenting with an S6 and S7 and old and new chargers this morning. I think you'd need logging to get a complete picture of how they're charging, starting from the same charge level. The PD charging rules result in changes in the charge rate as the watch charges, so you can't just plug in the meter, drop the watch on the charger and have useful information. I will say that in the limited period of time I was watching, I didn't see the S7 charging more slowly on the old charger than the S6, but both watchers were around 80%, not 20%, and I'm sure that the PD rules provide a different charge rate when the battery is that high. My bottom line, though - I don't have data that shows a reliable result either way.
It would be very interesting to have someone start with two watches with nearly equal health levels and at a low charge level (like your 20%) and log the charge rates for both watches on both the old and new chargers.
I have done that exercise across multiple days always starting from more or less the same level and my conclusions are pretty clear. Starting around 20-30% all the up to 70-80%, AW6 used to charge at more than 1% per minute and AW7 on the old chargers (USBA or USBC) charges clearly at less than 1% per minute.
I just hope that this is a SW and can be corrected by an update and not a HW limitation
PD is probably a software/OS issue, I would guess. It would be nice to get this on Apple's bug list.
I upgraded (mostly because I got the black SS for S6 and realized I didn’t like it) and I love the smaller bezel on the S7. Faster charging is also really useful, but that’s more so for me because I do sleep tracking and multiple workouts a day, so I tend to run my battery down.
