Who else is sick of the stagnant watch faces?

[MisterSavage]

Good recent article about the sorry state of watch faces.

Apple Watch faces are broken — and Apple’s latest move isn’t helping - 9to5Mac

Apple Watch Series 10 features a larger display, thinner design, and smarter watch faces. It’s the only model that displays...

9to5mac.com

quite happy with ultra modular doesn’t fall into that too much information mess that said im sure the devs at apple consider too animation too much information etc destroys the battery performance. ultra modular perfect for my old eyes. ive seen some good stuff on clockology but the software itself is far from efficient or reliable

It will never not annoy me that the Series 10 has a screen as big as an Ultra and a CPU better than an Ultra but isn't allowed to have this watch face.

 

[dotnet]

They are happy designing and selling new straps, but can’t/won’t design new watch faces.

I personally think that new faces should come with new straps.

Don't they release new watch faces as often as new straps, i.e. with every major watchOS version and watch model?

 

[cjsuk]

Just bought a Garmin Instinct 2 because I’m fed up of more than that.

 

[ZebraDude]

I've fallen in love with the Snoopy Video face...

 

[Ctrlos]

I want custom watch faces, SDK please.

After seeing the graphic design vomit of the Android custom watch faces an SDK is the last thing we need.

 

[redcarian]

I doubt I’ll ever get bored of Modular Ultra. I sometimes switch to Snoopy. But always back to this.

 

[CyberDavis]

To be fair whilst I use a variety of straps I tend to stick with the Wayfinder watch face, maybe in a different colour occasionally but I tend to leave it alone as I like the layout and know where stuff is.
I do have a modular setup as well but tend to revert to this.

 

[Godspeed8230]

I wish Apple would release a Modular Ultra equivalent for the regular AW. I want the digital time to be front and center in addition to some complications. I mean, I will not buy an Ultra just for the watchface and I doubt anyone would shy away from the more expensive Ultra if the normal AW had this kind of watchface if he or she really is in the market for a tough and more durable smart watch.
The lack of decent looking digital watch faces is somewhat appaling. And I still do not like the Smart Stack with the weird clock and date at the top. I mean, why? I cannot believe someone thought that this was useful and should be implementend. I really dislike it.

Also, please give me more options to choose different colors for the seconds hand, the numbers etc. Now that I can come up with monochrome app icons on my iPhone this type of customisation should also be made possible on my Apple Watch.

 

[mansplains]

Apple should add more faces more frequently, but I can understand why it isn't open to third-party designers. Apple would prefer to retain a certain, somewhat strict, image for the products. I could also see Apple caving and opening the designs up, primarily for monetization.

What bugs me more than the watch faces themselves is the face gallery in Watch.app. It's a poor design UX-wise, to simply list faces, and have drop-downs for choosing complications. There is a lot of wasted space, and the flow is a bit clunky for my liking. I've thought about putting together a better concept for it myself, but I doubt many users interact with it more than a few times a year, not worth refining.

 

[mansplains]

I think it’s very Apple and very WRONG to bundle watch face colors with seasons though, the first Apple Watch didn’t have YELLOW until one year (two season) after release. And how often can you reinvent beige and blue?

I cannot agree more. All bands should remain available, aside from special releases like the country-themed nylon bands. A pure white and pure black band should also be available always, for as many band types as reasonable. The various shades in between, or bluish tinted hues, are not neutral enough for certain desired styles.

 

[mansplains]

The lack of decent looking digital watch faces is somewhat appaling. And I still do not like the Smart Stack with the weird clock and date at the top. I mean, why? I cannot believe someone thought that this was useful and should be implementend. I really dislike it.

I hate it so much. I can see the date and time on the watch face if I really want to, it's super redundant.

 

[redcarian]

I wish Apple would release a Modular Ultra equivalent for the regular AW.

Almost certainly never going to happen, beyond the existing Modular faces.

I want the digital time to be front and center in addition to some complications. I mean, I will not buy an Ultra just for the watchface and I doubt anyone would shy away from the more expensive Ultra if the normal AW had this kind of watchface if he or she really is in the market for a tough and more durable smart watch.

Almost no-one is buying an Ultra just for the watch face, but plenty of people who buy Ultras want other people to know it’s an Ultra. Having an always-on Modular Ultra or Wayfinder face that’s absolutely not available on anything other than an Ultra is one way of doing that.

 

[redcarian]

Apple should add more faces more frequently, but I can understand why it isn't open to third-party designers. Apple would prefer to retain a certain, somewhat strict, image for the products. I could also see Apple caving and opening the designs up, primarily for monetization.

What bugs me more than the watch faces themselves is the face gallery in Watch.app. It's a poor design UX-wise, to simply list faces, and have drop-downs for choosing complications. There is a lot of wasted space, and the flow is a bit clunky for my liking. I've thought about putting together a better concept for it myself, but I doubt many users interact with it more than a few times a year, not worth refining.

I would like to be able to show/hide faces and indeed entire sections of the face gallery. I’m never going to use any of the “Breathe”, “Fire and Water”, or “Kaleidoscope” faces, for example.

 

[Godspeed8230]

Almost certainly never going to happen, beyond the existing Modular faces.

Almost no-one is buying an Ultra just for the watch face, but plenty of people who buy Ultras want other people to know it’s an Ultra. Having an always-on Modular Ultra or Wayfinder face that’s absolutely not available on anything other than an Ultra is one way of doing that.

You can clearly tell it’s an Ultra without the watchface.

 

[MisterSavage]

I wish Apple would release a Modular Ultra equivalent for the regular AW. I want the digital time to be front and center in addition to some complications. I mean, I will not buy an Ultra just for the watchface and I doubt anyone would shy away from the more expensive Ultra if the normal AW had this kind of watchface if he or she really is in the market for a tough and more durable smart watch.
The lack of decent looking digital watch faces is somewhat appaling. And I still do not like the Smart Stack with the weird clock and date at the top. I mean, why? I cannot believe someone thought that this was useful and should be implementend. I really dislike it.

E-X-A-C-T-L-Y. I have been screaming about this for years. I don't care at all about analog watch faces and they definitely outnumber the digital faces.

Having the digital time (with some complications) that looks like it does on modular ultra be front on center on a WATCH shouldn't be something special. There should be dozens of faces like that. We have zero! Saying you have to buy a much more expensive and much bigger watch to get a face like that is absurd.

I love all the options that Pebble watch faces had/have.

 

[RPhoto]

I would like to be able to show/hide faces and indeed entire sections of the face gallery. I’m never going to use any of the “Breathe”, “Fire and Water”, or “Kaleidoscope” faces, for example.

This. 100% this. The ability to hide faces in the gallery. Also the ability to copy a face to more quickly setup a variation of it.

 

[Dented]

If you want a watch, Casio sells them for $10. This is a notification device, and a fashion accessory.

The Apple Watch is also a watch, just like the Casio is also a fashion accessory.

 

[Howard2k]

The Apple Watch is also a watch, just like the Casio is also a fashion accessory.

Come on. Next thing you'll be trying to tell us that the AW can show the time! Get outta here with that nonsense.

 

[redcarian]

You can clearly tell it’s an Ultra without the watchface.

Sure, which is why I qualified it with “one way”. For people who care about such things, multiple vectors to signal their ownership of an Ultra are welcome.

 

[Night Spring]

I hate it so much. I can see the date and time on the watch face if I really want to, it's super redundant.

Me, I really like the Smart Stack. I want that as a watch face -- that is, I want my watch to show the Smart Stack all the time, instead of having to swipe up to get to it.

Still, the way it is now isn't bad. I've taken to using simpler watch faces without much information, and swiping up to Smart Stack when I want to see the data. The date isn't redundant when my regular watch face doesn't have the date. Which, a significant number of my watch faces don't show the date, because I've filled it up with other complications. I've spent a lot of time trying to arrange my watch faces so a face with the date is only a few swipes away. Now the date is always just a swipe up, no matter how I arrange my watch faces.

 

[Night Spring]

Sure, which is why I qualified it with “one way”. For people who care about such things, multiple vectors to signal their ownership of an Ultra are welcome.

Does anyone who don't have a Ultra even know that there are exclusive watch faces for the Ultra?

 

[mansplains]

Me, I really like the Smart Stack. I want that as a watch face -- that is, I want my watch to show the Smart Stack all the time, instead of having to swipe up to get to it.

Still, the way it is now isn't bad. I've taken to using simpler watch faces without much information, and swiping up to Smart Stack when I want to see the data. The date isn't redundant when my regular watch face doesn't have the date. Which, a significant number of my watch faces don't show the date, because I've filled it up with other complications. I've spent a lot of time trying to arrange my watch faces so a face with the date is only a few swipes away. Now the date is always just a swipe up, no matter how I arrange my watch faces.

I like the stack in theory but the execution wasn’t great for me. Have you tried the Siri watch face? It’s similar to the smart stack.

The date and time use more space than they need to in the smart stack, to me. When it was unveiled, I thought I could have an analog watch face, with a digital time in the stack. If anything I’d like the option to tweak the clock style, or toggle date/time off. Or at least make them smaller

 

[Night Spring]

I like the stack in theory but the execution wasn’t great for me. Have you tried the Siri watch face? It’s similar to the smart stack.

The date and time use more space than they need to in the smart stack, to me. When it was unveiled, I thought I could have an analog watch face, with a digital time in the stack. If anything I’d like the option to tweak the clock style, or toggle date/time off. Or at least make them smaller

I thought the Siri face was discontinued?

Anyway, I find the date and time in the Smart Stack to be the perfect size. I have the three complications widget as the top stack, so when I first swipe up, it looks like this.

Then, when I swipe further to scroll through the rest of the stack, the date and time shrink, like this.

I find this behavior very convenient, and I like it.

 

[mansplains]

I thought the Siri face was discontinued?

Anyway, I find the date and time in the Smart Stack to be the perfect size. I have the three complications widget as the top stack, so when I first swipe up, it looks like this.
View attachment 2486213

Then, when I swipe further to scroll through the rest of the stack, the date and time shrink, like this.
View attachment 2486215

I find this behavior very convenient, and I like it.

I don't have a watch anymore and I didn't remember the Siri face being discontinued.
Your second image would be my preferred format to start with. I know it shrinks when you interact, but I'd rather lose the extra swipe.

 

[Night Spring]

Your second image would be my preferred format to start with. I know it shrinks when you interact, but I'd rather lose the extra swipe.

Personally, I like the view in the first image, because the date is more prominent. But I can see how people could prefer having the view in the second image coming up without the extra swipe. And there are countless examples of things like that, where I wish a face was customizable in some small way, but it isn't. For me, it's not the number of available watch faces that feel stagnant, but the fact that despite the number of watch faces and customization options, somehow that one customization option I want isn't there. First world problems, for sure, but there it is.