Using Apple Watch whilst driving.

[ddkkpp]

is there a tutorial somewhere for "hey siri" watch commands? i.e. when i dictate a text, it always has another step to tap "send" or say "hey siri, send".

I use the watch to skip songs, and play music when I'm driving. I do find it slightly distracting - a bit more than switching radio stations or trying to get the air conditioning right.

I find that when i'm listening to a good radio documentary (CBC 88.1) i'm actually quite distracted - moreso than when I'm listening to music - i sort of zone out and have that blank stare going for a bit when the doc is especially good.

I think it all comes down to being conscious of what distracts you when you're driving and to avoid those distractions.

anyways, tips to increase my "hey siri" texting efficiency would be much appreciated. cheers.

 

[Newtons Apple]

As others have pointed out, using Siri requires no hands.

While I will agree Siri works quite well, it can not do everything.

 

[Night Spring]

I think it all comes down to being conscious of what distracts you when you're driving and to avoid those distractions.

Thanks, that is exactly the point I was trying to make!

As for Siri, googling "Apple watch Siri" turns up a ton of tips on how to use Siri, but I couldn't find a comprehensive list of Siri commands. Probably because Siri does so many things now, people have given up on keeping a list of everything it can do.

 

[r0k]

I have found it awkward at times even to glance at my watch. I glance down and tilt my wrist expecting to see the time or a nav map when my phone is in navigation and instead I see some awful popup for the activity app. I'm driving. Of course I'm not gonna stand right now. So then I take my second hand and reach across the steering wheel to push the frigging digital crown and get out of the lame popup message. AW could be safer to use if somebody at Apple fully thought out these use cases or at least made it easier to figure out how to make activity monitor go away and hide somewhere until I decide to pull it up. As for divided attention, there's a reason many states have laws that say handsfree devices are allowed. Taken to its logical extreme, laws against even audio devices would make all in-car navigation, chimes and voice prompts illegal as well as being on the phone calling either Onstar or 911.

Update: I figured out how to shut off annoying activity updates. I had to go not to activity on the watch, not settings on the watch, not activity on the iPhone but finally (the fourth place I looked) to the Apple Watch app on the iPhone and pick notifications and silence all those activity alerts that pop up at inopportune times.

 

[sean000]

I don't drive every day (fortunately I can walk or bike to work). On my bicycle it is of course easier to stop when I get a notification, but I don't always do that. If I'm riding slowly enough (and not near any traffic) I will glance at my watch. I also use Siri commands on the bike and in the car to set reminders.

As far as the watch vs the phone: I personally feel the watch is safer and less distracting. I can keep my watch-hand on the steering wheel and rotate the watch so I can see it without removing that hand from the steering wheel. I can tap the watch with my other hand if need be, but Siri is even better. If I'm driving on a fast road and/or in lots of traffic, I don't risk a glance or even a voice command. I just wait until I'm in a safe place to check the notification or a missed call. Even talking on the phone hands-free can be distracting while you are driving. The nice thing about silent notifications with haptics is that nothing seems so urgent to me that it can't wait. A ringing phone can be more distracting in a quiet car.

I usually keep my smartphone in my bag, which is in the back seat or the trunk of the car... unless I have it connected to the car stereo so I can stream music or podcasts. I see people staring at their smartphones while driving all the time... on the road and on the freeway (especially on the freeway). Rather than quick glances at their phones, some will spend more time looking at their phones as they tap out a text and less time glancing at the road ahead. It infuriates me to see because I spend more time as a pedestrian or a bicyclist than as a driver. The watch at least discourages anything more than a quick glance or interaction. You can use either safely for driving directions, but not everyone uses the sound only when they use driving directions. They will keep checking the tiny map on their phone. If I want to glance at my watch to see what turn is next ahead of time, I can get that information in a quick glance and there is no other clutter on the screen. I find this nice when I stop at a stoplight and I want to see where to turn next.

I remember my Driver's Ed class in the 1980's made a big deal about distracted driving being a leading cause of accidents. Back then the biggest distractions were fiddling with the radio, looking for a cassette tape, or putting on makeup. Occasionally you would see people reading a book or a magazine/newspaper while driving. I don't know if glancing at a smartphone or a watch is as dangerous and trying to find a specific cassette tape on the floor or in the back seat while you are driving, but it's certainly up there. One of the biggest problems with a smartphone is how many ways people can become more absorbed in their content: Reading email, checking facebook, longer form texting, reading news, etc. A smartwatch isn't good for much more than quick glances and short replies. I would rather people not be distracted at all while driving, but if I had to choose: I would rather be near a driver using an Apple Watch (assuming they could do so with at least one hand on the steering wheel) than near a driver using an iPhone.

Sean

 

[rjlawrencejr]

Feel free to flame away, but I'll be honest, I do glance at my watch all the time while driving, just like I once did when I had a non-smartwatch - I use countdown timers for my commutes quite often. Glancing to see who might have sent a text or email message is no less distracting to me than taking a glance at which radio station to choose next - or when I am deep thought about a major decision I might have to make. As I drive I also glance at my mirrors, I am also looking ahead 500 feet (so that I can decelerate or downshift instead of using my brakes), I glance at the trash or graffiti on the side of the freeway, I glance at the cars passing me (or that I am passing), I glance at the billboards and the freeway condition signs with the useless Amber Alerts, I glance at the exit signs, I glance at the homes and other architecture, and yes I glance at the attractive women I see walking down the street, etc. There are so many things fighting for our attention as we drive - but as an experienced driver with close to a million miles logged I am confident to know when and where to focus my attention.

In fact, I am annoyed by people who only look forward as they are driving - seemingly oblivious to anything around them. They actually seem less engaged and while I have no way to document, I find they may be more prone to accidents simply because they are not anticipating hazards or obstacles or anything other than what is directly in front of them.

 

[Roller]

The older I get, the more I realize that distractions have more of an effect on my driving than they used to. I expect that technology that is finding its way into more cars these days - lane keeping, automatic braking, cross traffic avoidance, and so on - will help.

 

[rjlawrencejr]

The older I get, the more I realize that distractions have more of an effect on my driving than they used to. I expect that technology that is finding its way into more cars these days - lane keeping, automatic braking, cross traffic avoidance, and so on - will help.

Honestly, most of those tech features I don't like because they cause us to rely on them more than our instincts. Malcolm Gladwell wrote a great article some years ago about active safety vs passive safety. With more passive safety features creeping in we may be less likely to actively avoid an accident.

 

[Mac 128]

Feel free to flame away, but I'll be honest, I do glance at my watch all the time while driving, just like I once did when I had a non-smartwatch - I use countdown timers for my commutes quite often. Glancing to see who might have sent a text or email message is no less distracting to me than taking a glance at which radio station to choose next - or when I am deep thought about a major decision I might have to make. As I drive I also glance at my mirrors, I am also looking ahead 500 feet (so that I can decelerate or downshift instead of using my brakes), I glance at the trash or graffiti on the side of the freeway, I glance at the cars passing me (or that I am passing), I glance at the billboards and the freeway condition signs with the useless Amber Alerts, I glance at the exit signs, I glance at the homes and other architecture, and yes I glance at the attractive women I see walking down the street, etc. There are so many things fighting for our attention as we drive - but as an experienced driver with close to a million miles logged I am confident to know when and where to focus my attention.

In fact, I am annoyed by people who only look forward as they are driving - seemingly oblivious to anything around them. They actually seem less engaged and while I have no way to document, I find they may be more prone to accidents simply because they are not anticipating hazards or obstacles or anything other than what is directly in front of them.

There's a big difference between shifting the focus of your attention to information being relayed by the watch, while taking your eyes completely off the road to do it. All those other things you glance at are at least giving you a view of the road at the same time. And yes, they can be as big a distraction ... if you see a billboard that has a paragraph of fine print that you decide to read, that's a major safety concern. Another reason why many places have banned those giant digital billboards. If you glance in the rear-view and see a woman driving topless in the minivan behind you, and take a prolonged view, you might hit the person in front of you. Distractions are bad no matter where they come from. If you glance at the time on your wrist, no big deal. If a notification comes in that you've been waiting for and you start reading it on your watch, then that's a problem.

Personally, I can't imagine using my Watch to check a notification when my phone is mounted on the dash just below eye-level with a much bigger screen. If the contest is which type of distracted driving is safer, then the iPhone wins.

 

[Mac 128]

When I get a text alert on my watch, my left hand is usually at eye-level on our near the steering wheel. At a stop light or sign it's much easier/quicker (and safer) to use the reply function on the watch rather than reaching for the iPhone.

I'm 6'2 and my left hand is nowhere close to eye level on my steering wheel. There's a dramatic difference in where I look between the iPhone and the watch, with the iPhone affording more of the road in my peripheral vision. I'm not sure why you think using the watch is quicker or faster either. I find the watch harder to read at a distance, and the phone is equally as responsive to both reading texts and responding to them via my hands free bluetooth. Then again, my phone is less than a foot from my hand without so much as a reach. Whereas to operate my watch I have to cross one hand over the other to interact with the much smaller screen.

 

[sean000]

I'm 6'2 and my left hand is nowhere close to eye level on my steering wheel. There's a dramatic difference in where I look between the iPhone and the watch, with the iPhone affording more of the road in my peripheral vision. I'm not sure why you think using the watch is quicker or faster either. I find the watch harder to read at a distance, and the phone is equally as responsive to both reading texts and responding to them via my hands free bluetooth. Then again, my phone is less than a foot from my hand without so much as a reach. Whereas to operate my watch I have to cross one hand over the other to interact with the much smaller screen.

Personally I find the watch to be less distracting and more efficient for things like driving directions, answering the phone, telling Siri to get reminders or appointments, etc. but my eyes are probably much closer to my watch when my hands are on the steering wheel. I have no trouble reading the watch as long as it's a short message. I like that the watch-based driving directions are both haptics and a display with just an arrow and the name of the street to turn on.

It just goes to show that we are all different and we also interact with our devices differently. There have always been 101 ways to become distracted while driving. Driving is often boring...especially when you drive the exact same route every day, so of course people's eyes drift, they get sleepy, they start fiddling with the radio, and nowadays they increasingly multi-task and text or read while driving. Commutes have gotten longer on average, and we now have more ways to multi-task in our cars than we did before. Many people are so used to their routes that they feel they could drive them with their eyes shut, so they practically do just that.

If you're paying attention 99% of the time then I don't think glancing away 1% of the time is going to matter much...whether you're glancing at a watch, a smartphone or an in-dashboard display... as long as you know the tech you are using well enough to get what you need from it quickly...and as long as it is positioned such that you still have peripheral vision of the road. I worry more about the folks fumbling with tech they don't know how to use efficiently, as well as the ones who decide that driving is a fine time to tap out long text messages that take their eyes off the road for extended periods of time. Some places have laws banning cell phone use while driving, but these laws vary from country to country and from state to state. Here in Washington State only texting was banned while driving because the law was out of date. The loophole was that you could browse the web or use maps. It was just updated this year to include all cell phone use except for hands-free... and it's a primary offense. I don't think it is being widely enforced because I don't hear much about it and I see people staring at their smartphones while driving all the time. I don't think the new law says anything about smart watches, but I could see the hands-free rule expanding to include smart watches (although the actual code might be written to be vague enough as to include all mobile technology).

Actually I think many laws specifically ban the use of "handheld devices" unless they are used hands-free. They also allow a smartphone to be mounted to the dashboard so it can be used for navigation. Even though the watch is worn on the wrist instead of held in the hand, some places have already issued fines to drivers who appeared to be distracted by their smart watches.

Sean

 

[BarracksSi]

This test by the magazine Car And Driver is older than the iPad, never mind the Apple Watch -- but I think it still applies when we're talking about looking away from the road.

 

[sean000]

This test by the magazine Car And Driver is older than the iPad, never mind the Apple Watch -- but I think it still applies when we're talking about looking away from the road.

I love the shot of driving while using an actual typewriter at the end

I know most of us are talking about quick glances at a notification or navigation map, but of course even a brief distraction at the wrong time can be dangerous. Personally I see people tapping out long-form text messages while driving, exactly as shown in this video, all the time... even though it's illegal in the state of Washington. Sometimes accidents are attributed to driving while texting, but I'm sure it is under-reported.

From my experience the best way to text while driving to a destination is to ride the bus! ...or at least let somebody else drive. When my wife and I drive places that require navigation, she does the driving and I do the navigating. She gets car-sick if she tries to look at her phone in the car.

Sean