What does the Apple Watch do?

[birnando]

Not speaking about you personally, but is it really more idiotic to look at a phone screen than it is to speak into a watch on your wrist?

A valid point
Luckily I speak Norwegian, a language not quite native for our friend, Siri.
In other words, not a feature I use all that much.

But hey, when we do, we look real important and stuff.
Like bodyguards or something really cool ya know....

 

[Rok73]

Not speaking about you personally, but is it really more idiotic to look at a phone screen than it is to speak into a watch on your wrist?

I don't know where you live but if you live in a huge city like me where everyone and his dog walks through the streets like a zombie looking at their phones, it sometimes is quite annoying. People don't care about traffic, run into you, abruptly stop on a staircase in the metro etc. with their heads down.

It is so much more convenient to have every info with a quick glance on your wrist. A side effect for me is that I use my phone much less and came to the habit to only react to the important messages, mails etc.

 

[Easttime]

Had my watch two months. My real-world usefulness list, in order of utility:

1. Time. I switch faces for various purposes. Never have to set the time. The world clock, stopwatch and countdown timers are handy, more useful on my wrist than fumbling with my phone.
2. Notifications. No longer need to have my phone out and visible. Don't miss notifications when phone alarm is muted. Can answer calls without fumbling to find phone.
3. "Hey Siri, remind me to (whatever, when)" or "Hey Siri, call (name)".

All the rest are very useful because I don't need to fish out the phone or have it immediately to hand:

1. Calendar. Very handy to have my next reminder instantly on my wrist.
2. Weather: check current temperature and forecast.
3. Messages: reply from the watch with short canned messages or dictate a reply with Hey Siri. It really works.
4. Email. I just use it for awareness of incoming email and to clean out my inbox. Nothing heavy (I'll pull out my phone instead).
5. Activity. It definitely motivates me. Less back pain.
6. Lists. I use OneNote's handy new check off feature.
7. Driving and walking directions from Apple Maps. Much easier to follow than trying to look at the phone, and I can mute the voice instructions on the phone.
8. Travel: Boarding pass, flight notifications, directions from Apple Maps from iPhone in my pocket/backpack.
9. Phone calls. When it's convenient I answer them right on my wrist. It's handy to see who's calling before I go running for my phone.
10. Calculator: basic arithmetic.
11. 1Password: check key data.
12. Tile. Find my keys.
13. Check my iPhone's battery and wireless connect status.

Fun:

1. Sky Guide to check sunrise, sunset, moon phase, major sky events.
2. Music control. I can move around my house and control the music - including volume which is awesome. On the go I use the Watch to quickly see the name of the artist and song that's playing, skip and control volume.
3. Twitter. The bite-sized messages are perfect on the small screen; use it only for urgent news.
4. Photos: tiny, but entertaining ice-breaker.
5. Fashion. It does look very good. Haven't got into swapping straps yet, but I see the point.

Still looking for a tides app that gives correct data in Canada.

 

[Arran]

Here's another two things it does rather well ...

1. Online; it starts arguments.
2. In real life; it starts civil conversations.

Funny, that.

 

[sunapple]

I would say it gets your notification to your wrist, keeps track of health stuff and has some of the iPhone apps in watch-format.

Then I would give my opinion which is that I don't want or need notifications on my wrist, am not using the health stuff and that the apps are way better on my phone. But it looks really cool and it's damn expensive.

No seriously, I like the Apple Watch as a product in Apple's lineup, just as I love the iPad and Mac Pro. I just don't have a use for them in my life.

 

[Arran]

I like to show people when my iPhone is down on floor 3 while I am up on floor 10 and they are shocked that I can send them text messages with siri and can add to do items and notes and more. I honestly never thought I could tell anyone to buy the watch because I didn't think it was an easy sell. Now, I can sell the watch to people by showing them what I can do with the watch without really touching the screen. How many other fitness devices do you know that can track a workout while golfing, can show me the distance to the center of the green, send text messages to anyone, track my heart rate, log it to review, let me add calendar appt's to do items and communicate with work without ever touching or holding anything? Zero...

Also, name another fitness device that can track a workout while working on the yard and landscaping all the while listening to a book on bluetooth headphones and take phone calls, respond to text messages, add to do items, set a timer, with dirty gloves on and never touch the watch or phone. In fact, the phone is sitting in the house charging.

Agree entirely on the no-touch use cases. I love being able to accomplish stuff just by talking.

But how do you answer calls? "Hey Siri, answer the phone", or something?

 

[Enygmatic]

I think the thing a lot of people struggle with is that it is an expensive accessory. You can't use it to it's fullest without having your phone with you and your phone does everything the watch does, only better. They don't get the convenience factor of it. Explaining convenience isn't always an easy thing to do.

Exactly. It's all about convenience.

I don't talk much/actually conduct phone calls, so for me, my laptop can do everything that my phone can do... only better. My iPad is infinitely more useful to me, and is more convenient. The phone, by virtue of its size, is the most convenient for carrying around. The Watch just adds another layer of that convenience, or what Steve used to describe as "using the best tool for the job". It really helps me, being in the military, as there are many places I have to go daily where phones (or cameras) aren't allowed; this allows me to still get the important notifications I have set up. (may change in the near future, though)

 

[jaymc]

It's very hard to explain clearly. A person has to wear it and commit to using it for a few weeks to truly identify how it is useful to them, and if it is useful enough. I always say "it depends on how you use your phone now". But I just posted this link to an article in a new thread which I think explains it extremely well:

http://ben-evans.com/benedictevans/2015/8/2/notes-on-apple-watch-and-friction

Loved the article, thanks for sharing. The best line -

"But luxuries are good. If we only bought things that we need, and that have clear use cases, then we'd all wear nothing but overalls and have a single bare lightbulb in each room of our homes."

 

[BlueMoon63]

We had the same thread topic yesterday and I wrote all that the watch does for me... Repeated here...

I use my watch daily for workouts and and to fill the rings for motivation but that is a really small portion. I've had other devices like the Up and Up24 so I like tracking. I also use my watch to track sleep, be my silent alarm each day and graph my sleep and workouts. My favorite workout app is available on the watch and it lets me log my weights and reps and has a timer for rest periods all while writing the info to my phone without my phone in my house gym where it could get damaged or in the way. All why tracking the workout and heart rate and listening to music on my jaybird Bluetooth headphones. All working together on the watch and I don't have to stop to log my workout or ask Siri to take a note a reminder or respond to messages.

Notifications are a big part for me as I rarely use my phone anymore.

When I work on the yard or mow, I use the Apple Watch and Bluetooth headphones to listen to music and books. My phone is now safely tucked away in the house or pocket so I don't have to worry about dirt and damage and sweat. I take calls from the watch and setup meetings and reminders and answer texts using Siri.

I typically golf 2-3 times a week and track my golf as a workout with the phone safely tucked away in my bag. I use Golfshot to track distance/yardage to pins all while tracking my workout and heart rate and respond to texts and take notifications. Often, I am setting up reminders and notes and items to purchase as they come to mind.

I use fantastical 2 for my calendar and 2Do for "to do" using alarms to never forget and the watch never fails all with silent alarms. Almost everything is a wrist raise and telling Siri to do the work. Once third party complications are working this will all be better and even faster and can run in the background for even better multi tasking.

I'm constantly using the timer as I cook and work and never forget something is cooking and my phone I don't hear or forgot in the other room.

I live where it is tough to get a signal so my phone remains fully charged on its base next to a window allowing my watch and me to wonder the house and never miss a text or call. My work email and calendar is tied to my watch so I never miss an email from my boss if I am not at my desk. Just got AT&T wi-if calling up and running with beta ios9 and that has been fantastic.

When I am in the office my iPhone is locked in my desk while my watch is with me 7 floors above my phone still sending me reminders and to dos and calendar and iMessages from my wife and kids and I can respond with canned answers or even use Siri. Everything works even though my phone is down on another floor. I can respond to work emails with others don't even know they have new emails until they get back. I can add meetings as well.

All in all, my fingers touch the watch only to start apps and close apps with some exceptions so even when I workout two plus hours a day, it is usually at 40% or higher at 9pm when I charge and put back on my wrist at 10pm to be my silent alarm and sleep tracker.

It's become my most important daily tool. I still use my phone plenty for a few games and back and forth texting and when I am setting up daily tasks and web browsing or typing this long response with plenty of typos I am sure.