The Apple Watch will change everything - but just not this time

[flur]

You gave very specific situations that won't affect the VAST majority of watches users. I for one would rather see the battery be made to take up the space then to add in a SIM card slot. Not to mention that it would cost you $10 a month for this convience.

The trade offs are just not worth it.

The only benefit many people could see is if gps is included for a Find my Watch Feature. But again, that is a narrow advantage.

Um, AGAIN, there's no reason that Apple couldn't offer two models, just like they do with the iPad.

You seem to assume that most users are like you. Given that you're on this forum, odds are good that you're the unique one and that most users are NOT like you.

And, oh gosh, $10 a month! I might have to pass on one drink at happy hour to make up the difference! How will I survive???

 

[zmunkz]

Um, AGAIN, there's no reason that Apple couldn't offer two models, just like they do with the iPad.

There is a reason, though.

The iPad filled a specific void left by the phone, namely content creation. The phone was too small and slow to really work as a creation device, which means the iPad had a legitimate claim to stand as its own device. The iPad came with a SIM option, and it made sense for it to do so.

Unlike the iPad, the watch doesn't make sense as a stand alone device. It doesn't do anything beyond the phone... and even if it could, its form factor and 1-handed interface makes it very unpleasant for many features. It is positioned as a phone accessory, and I really think that is where it belongs. The moment apple gives it a SIM card, even just to throw us a bone, they position the watch in a stance it can't possibly survive as a premium product. Other brands make a habit of doing this sort of thing, beefing up their feature list and responding to customer whims without concern of the big picture, but historically that has not been Apple.

 

[flur]

There is a reason, though.

The iPad filled a specific void left by the phone, namely content creation. The phone was too small and slow to really work as a creation device, which means the iPad had a legitimate claim to stand as its own device. The iPad came with a SIM option, and it made sense for it to do so.

Unlike the iPad, the watch doesn't make sense as a stand alone device. It doesn't do anything beyond the phone... and even if it could, its form factor and 1-handed interface makes it very unpleasant for many features. It is positioned as a phone accessory, and I really think that is where it belongs. The moment apple gives it a SIM card, even just to throw us a bone, they position the watch in a stance it can't possibly survive as a premium product. Other brands make a habit of doing this sort of thing, beefing up their feature list and responding to customer whims without concern of the big picture, but historically that has not been Apple.

The iPad doesn't do anything beyond the phone either (and I say that as someone who uses their iPad daily for content creation, not just consumption). In fact, as I can't make calls on it, it does LESS than the phone. It's the form factor that makes it more well-suited than the phone for certain tasks.

The watch is the same. It's more suited for things you need all the time, like the ability to get messages and make phone calls, to track your health and fitness, and to tell you the time. And hey let's add "to help you find your way if you get lost" to that list, just for good measure. It's not as well suited for things like videos, web browsing, etc., but those are things you generally need some of the time, not every waking moment of your life (and if you DO need those things all the time, you may have some issues that can't be resolved in a forum). So you take your phone-sized device when you need it, and you take your iPad when you need it, and the rest of the time you just have the watch on, and you're always connected to the most important things - family, friends, and (just in case) 911 (or 112, or whatever the emergency number is in your country).

 

[Bromeo]

There's a difference between what people say they want and what people actually need.

When I hear people say they want a SIM card in the watch, what I really hear is that people want the watch to work in a pinch for many tasks even if they left their phone at home or in the car. For example, wouldn't it be great to still be able to receive notifications, texts, and even take a quick phone call?

The compromises of device size, power consumption, battery life, and of course, reliability for the tasks at hand preclude having a cellular radio in the Watch... for now.

I think right now the low hanging fruit to go after is reliable use of WiFi networks to achieve much the same goal.

We saw Samsung add and then remove a camera to their watch. It is hard to get right and takes up a lot of space. Those I heard from with the Gear with camera called it a novelty, and ultimately it was saddled by poor image quality.

A difficult thing in this industry is saying no and focusing on your core experience. Adding GPS would be useful once the technology to integrate it into the existing chipset and form factor without reducing battery life further. Improving WiFi and heart rate sensor performance will be big. Many would like to see thinner bezels on the screen, so more active surface area to display. All that will probably happen in time. Apple has a history of incremental improvements.

 

[solarguy17]

Um, AGAIN, there's no reason that Apple couldn't offer two models, just like they do with the iPad.

You seem to assume that most users are like you. Given that you're on this forum, odds are good that you're the unique one and that most users are NOT like you.

And, oh gosh, $10 a month! I might have to pass on one drink at happy hour to make up the difference! How will I survive???

I don't think I'm alone or even in minority of not understanding the point of having a watch with a cellular connection.
I would say though, given the size and design difficulties (battery life, functionality, etc) I have a hard time believing that adding a SIM will be something that Apple will do in the next several iterations simply because to make the watch work as a standalone device, you need at a minimum a cell antenna and SIM card slot which will take up valuable space. Probably throw a gps in there too.
Could they offer 2 models, yes. Does it seem likely they will, no. They don't offer a cellular version on the MacBook, that seem far more likely to use a cellular connection then a watch.

And $10 isn't a ton of money, but it's what it represents. An additional cost that will see very little use. Now, if you could move your SIM from your phone to your watch, sure no extra cost. But good luck with getting the carriers to agree to that.

 

[Mac 128]

1. FaceTime while holding your phone up is already arm tiring. Now hold your wrist to you face for 10 min...go on, I'm waiting.
Ok now that you have failed at that because your arm got to tired, is FaceTime really feasible. Not to mention the battery life will drain with all that streaming video and audio. And of course the fact that the speaker on the watch is pretty poor (but decent for a watch) makes FaceTime on the watch unfeasible and dumb.

DO you currently have 10 minute conversations on the phone? The watch is for brief conversations, no matter what type. Talking on the phone for 10 minutes will drain your batter too. In fact according to Apple you only have 18 10 minute conversations in a day before your watch dies.And yeah, the speaker is pretty poor, that's why Apple allows you to use it for audio only phone calls! You are really reaching for excuses. The fact that Tim Cook highlighted the ability to make and receive phone calls destroys your argument that Apple would never do FaceTime because of the speaker.

2. Seriously selfies? That's a selling point of a camera? Well ok.
When you grab you phone and hold it out for a selfie, how face is the camera from your face? Arm length, so 2.5-3ft. Now hold you watch up to your face, how far is it? That's right, 1.5-2ft away. So now you self includes no background and it's not your choice, and the picture is worse because the camera isn't very good due to size.
And seriously. Go activate the camera app on your watch, did it take more or less time then just slide the home screen up on your phone to activate the camera?

How is this a factor since you can only hold your iPhone at arms length too? And you're making judgements about the quality of the camera you have no idea about. Link to a critical article of camera size compared to quality and prove a decent camera can't be put into it and we'll have something to discuss. Moreover, you really don't think Apple could set the camera field width to accommodate for the slightly reduced arm length?

3. Face detection is a decent idea. But I don't normally stare at my watch without touching something long enough for the screen to turn off anyway. I can't imagine it this would be super useful.

Again you're using your own personal metric here. There are numerous complaints all over this forum, and elsewhere about how quickly the back light shuts off. And what about accidentally turning on the backlight when your wrist jostles about? If battery life is at a premium, then making sure it doesn't come on unless I'm looking it would be a MAJOR feature.

4. Ok great measure distance, where is that useful? Or more useful on a watch in comparison to your phone that justifies all the drawbacks of having a camera in your watch?

Again the whole point of the watch is to eliminate the need to pull out your phone. Measuring distance to a pin on a golf course for instance. Working around your house, doing home decorating, not having to pull out a tape measure before you run out to the hardware store to pick up something for a room.

The fact is having a camera is a pointless feature and there is a reason no other smart watch offers it and Samsung dropped it from their Gear series.

Your opinion is noted. I do not agree, and frankly could care less what Samsung does. If Apple took their cues from Samsung, we'd all still be using Blackberries.

 

[Aluminum213]

Obvious things coming in future generations

Camera
LTE
GPS

Those will make it a must have, current apple watch is definitely gen 1 product


With all that said how is the battery not going to be ****? Battery tech is still the same, the only reason it got better with the iPhone 6 Plus is because the phone is physically bigger so they could put in bigger battery.

Apple is obviously going to make the gpu and cpu more powerful and power efficient, but the battery life will likely remain the same unless they come up with a magical battery solution no one knows about. The new MacBook has literally battery on top of battery, this shows there is no current solution to this.

 

[Mac 128]

again very small use cases. (lol @ selfies used as a serious argument btw )
Battery, space on the watch, & it'd be a crappy camera anyway

Tim Cook spent a substantial amount of time gushing about the ability of the iPhone to do a front facing camera burst mode. He said "customers will love it". Why do I need a burst mode on a front facing camera? Well Tim told us -- for taking selfies. I don't know what world you live in, but I live in a world driven by selfies, where selling "selfie sticks" are big business, so much so that they have to be specifically banned from events now.

And please do post your engineering degree and links to your conclusion that the inclusion of a camera is not possible to due battery, space and quality of the camera. I'm sure Apple is incapable of overcoming any of those obstacles ever. /s

 

[solarguy17]

DO you currently have 10 minute conversations on the phone? The watch is for brief conversations, no matter what type. Talking on the phone for 10 minutes will drain your batter too. In fact according to Apple you only have 18 10 minute conversations in a day before your watch dies.And yeah, the speaker is pretty poor, that's why Apple allows you to use it for audio only phone calls! You are really reaching for excuses. The fact that Tim Cook highlighted the ability to make and receive phone calls destroys your argument that Apple would never do FaceTime because of the speaker.



How is this a factor since you can only hold your iPhone at arms length too? And you're making judgements about the quality of the camera you have no idea about. Link to a critical article of camera size compared to quality and prove a decent camera can't be put into it and we'll have something to discuss. Moreover, you really don't think Apple could set the camera field width to accommodate for the slightly reduced arm length?



Again you're using your own personal metric here. There are numerous complaints all over this forum, and elsewhere about how quickly the back light shuts off. And what about accidentally turning on the backlight when your wrist jostles about? If battery life is at a premium, then making sure it doesn't come on unless I'm looking it would be a MAJOR feature.



Again the whole point of the watch is to eliminate the need to pull out your phone. Measuring distance to a pin on a golf course for instance. Working around your house, doing home decorating, not having to pull out a tape measure before you run out to the hardware store to pick up something for a room.



Your opinion is noted. I do not agree, and frankly could care less what Samsung does. If Apple took their cues from Samsung, we'd all still be using Blackberries.

You are correct. I don't have 10 min conversation on my phone. They are either 2min and less. Or an hour. But either way. Holding your arm up is a tiring experience. And yes. I know phone calls kill my iPhone battery. The only difference the iPhone battery is designed to last longer with a larger storage. The watch battery is small and will die quickly under heavy loads.
Just because the watch has a feature, phone calls, doesn't mean it's good for it. Unless my watch is faulty, the audio quality on the watch is extremely poor. Speaker isn't loud enough and to tiny and the microphone isn't sensitive enough. The fact is, again unless my watch is faulty, phone calling on the watch is about as dumb and useless as Ping (apple failed social network).

And you are correct, these are my opinions. But they are opinions also held by many people (dare I say the majority, if necessary t the vast majority). Spend a few minutes trying to use you watch as a camera and positioning it in a manner to get pictures. Because of the presumed location in the front face (for FaceTime) taking pictures of anything in front of you is difficult at best (you arm doesn't bend that way). To distance calculations are going to be hard to impossible also.
I don't disagree that a useful feature of the watch is keeping the screen on when you face is in view, but that's really The only good use and can be mitigated with a time for screen lock, similar to iPhone.

The reason I use Samsung as the example is because the Gear 1 received such poor reviews, Apple was wise to step back and be patient rather then rush to the market. Apple has clearly learned from missteps of Samsung. And so has Samsung, hence the redesign of the Gear.

 

[flur]

And $10 isn't a ton of money, but it's what it represents. An additional cost that will see very little use. Now, if you could move your SIM from your phone to your watch, sure no extra cost. But good luck with getting the carriers to agree to that.

Or, ya know, just don't have a "phone" because your watch is your phone. Extra cost problem solved.

 

[Appl3FTW]

The problem is you have the aluminum... Stainless steel looks so much sexier haha. Jp

 

[Aluminum213]

I don't think I'm alone or even in minority of not understanding the point of having a watch with a cellular connection.
I would say though, given the size and design difficulties (battery life, functionality, etc) I have a hard time believing that adding a SIM will be something that Apple will do in the next several iterations simply because to make the watch work as a standalone device, you need at a minimum a cell antenna and SIM card slot which will take up valuable space. Probably throw a gps in there too.
Could they offer 2 models, yes. Does it seem likely they will, no. They don't offer a cellular version on the MacBook, that seem far more likely to use a cellular connection then a watch.

And $10 isn't a ton of money, but it's what it represents. An additional cost that will see very little use. Now, if you could move your SIM from your phone to your watch, sure no extra cost. But good luck with getting the carriers to agree to that.

You think transferring the SIM from the iPhone to Apple watch is a good idea?

 

[jm5309]

I'd love a camera on the watch. I keep my phone in a fitness belt when I'm out walking and miss many gorgeous photographs because I don't want to dig it out then put it back into the belt. It's kind of a pain.

 

[amirite]

Um, AGAIN, there's no reason that Apple couldn't offer two models, just like they do with the iPad.

You seem to assume that most users are like you. Given that you're on this forum, odds are good that you're the unique one and that most users are NOT like you.

And, oh gosh, $10 a month! I might have to pass on one drink at happy hour to make up the difference! How will I survive???

It's just entirely unnecessary for the VAST majority of people. Apple knows what they're doing. Smart watches are not yet ready to entirely replace phones. No normal person is giving up their phone for a watch. Right now it's just not able to be done WELL. The tech isn't there, the problems of having such a small screen don't have enough acceptable solutions (maybe for some manufacturers it's "good enough" but this is Apple), the social acceptability isn't there, the market isn't there, and so on...

There are a few tech geeks who might want to completely replace their phone with a watch, but they're a ridiculously small minority, and if you're one of them you can buy one of those huge android wear watches with cellular. But there's a reason those things aren't going to sell millions in the next year or two.

 

[flur]

It's just entirely unnecessary for the VAST majority of people. Apple knows what they're doing. Smart watches are not yet ready to entirely replace phones. No normal person is giving up their phone for a watch. Right now it's just not able to be done WELL. The tech isn't there, the problems of having such a small screen don't have enough acceptable solutions (maybe for some manufacturers it's "good enough" but this is Apple), the social acceptability isn't there, the market isn't there, and so on...

The question wasn't "should Apple do this now?" It's "should Apple do this in the future?" So yeah, obviously the tech isn't there now, but it will be, and IMO anyone who thinks that isn't the direction this is going is a bit shortsighted.

 

[tom2517]

We won't see SIM card in a watch sized device for a long time, the battery drain makes it prohibitive.

Unlike semi-chips, battery and practically every other things does not double in performance every few months. Yes, lots of companies are working on it, but there are no breakthrough yet. Almost all battery performance are improved by having a bigger battery.

 

[versifiercsvt]

My guess is we won't see a new Apple Watch for no less than two years from now...and that might just be the announcement and so gen 2 might be close to 3 years away.

This isn't the iPhone...a product that needs to be updated to keep up with the Market. If we see a new Watch in less than two years...the design will likely be very similar to what we have now and it'll have a little more power.

Next year they might allow people more configuration options:

"Sport with Sapphire screen"

"SS Edition with ion-x"

"new Black Sport"

Who knows but I think gen 1 will have a longer shelf life than people expect.

 

[solarguy17]

You think transferring the SIM from the iPhone to Apple watch is a good idea?

In not saying it's a good idea. I'm saying its a maybe a solution to the idea that the watch would cost $120 a year to have connected to a cell tower for only a few used situation.
Personally I hate the idea of there being a SIM card in the watch, it's a stupid idea and is fairly useless. But flur has specific situations in which it might be useful, so a swappable SIM card might work, although I doubt the cell companies would allow that.

 

[happycadaver]

For me the watch won't change a thing, i will never have one. I hate wearing something on my wrists - put unfunny handcuff joke in here - so a wrist watch will never be an option for me. I own a pocket watch, but rarely use it in addition to my smartphone.

 

[solarguy17]

I'd love a camera on the watch. I keep my phone in a fitness belt when I'm out walking and miss many gorgeous photographs because I don't want to dig it out then put it back into the belt. It's kind of a pain.

Trust me. Any photos you can take on watch won't be gorgeous.

 

[Aluminum213]

A camera on the apple watch should just be FaceTime only, the image quality would make iPads camera seem like a professional DSLR