Apple Watch Review

So, I’ve recently come into posession of an Apple Watch. I like to wait before making value judgements on things, so here I am writing a review a month later. For the record, this is a 42mm Series 2 model.

Overall #

In the time I’ve had it, I’ve gained a very favorable opinion of the Apple Watch. Its user experience is definitely one of the best I’ve experienced, and it feels very polished. Notably, integrating it into my daily life felt like second-nature, and I’ve even found myself using the features that I initially saw very little appeal in – in large part due to the incredible user experience that the designers have achieved.

Cool Things it Does #

I’m going to start out by listing a lot of the really cool and useful features of the watch that make an impact in my daily life.

1. Activity Tracking & Health #

Let me just start out by saying that if you’re a hardcore runner or athlete, this watch will not replace your Garmin. It’s a consumer product, not a professional one.

2. Notifications – And the Sweet Sound of Silence #

Next up: the notifications on the watch. Personally, I’ve permanently switched my phone to silent mode, because the tap on the wrist that the Apple Watch gives you when you receive notifications is both more noticeable and less disruptive than traditional phone notification noises. Further, it lets you more efficiently ignore the unimportant notifications you receive – newsletters, facebook comments, unimportant texts – which is ultimately really nice. Of course, since the time is also on the watch (duh), I’ve ultimately wound up looking at my phone much less. For the little things you look at your phone for – the time, the weather, music skipping/volume, notifications, timers – the Apple watch steps up and fills the role more conveniently and with more subtlety.

3. Ping or Mute your Phone #

How often do you misplace your phone right next to you, but aren’t sure where it is? Or go somewhere where you probably should turn on Do Not Disturb mode, but meh it’s on vibrate and it’ll probably be fine. The watch has quick buttons to do both of these things for you. You can instantly turn Do Not Disturb on or off, and instantly make your iPhone make a noise (or if you hold it down, flash the LED too) to help you find it. Honestly, this is one of the smartest things they did.

Ending the Rule of Three #

Of course there are lots of other cool things to do, including: auto-unlocking your mac, being a stopwatch/nightstand-alarm-clock/timer, showing your daily calendar, being a remote for your camera, and more – but this post is already pretty long and I don’t want to bore you too much.

Complaints and Grievances #

Of course, it wouldn’t be a fair review if I didn’t list some negatives.

1. The Screen is Small #

I knew this going in, but ultimately, there are simply limits on what you can do with an interface on a 1.6" (or 1.5") screen. While I think Apple and third party vendors have, for the most part, created good interfaces given the screen size, it ultimately always falls a little short. Force touch, the first time I used it, was a disappointment. For those not in the loop, force touch is a feature in Apple’s touch screen products where applying more pressure when selecting an item (i.e. pressing harder) performs a contextual action, usually a menu related to the item you pressed. The second-gen Apple Watches have this feature, but it doesn’t activate based on the item you pressed, it activates based on the app or screen that is open. This essentially makes force touch a “third button” rather than adding a third dimension to the touch screen and, while it makes sense for a screen this small, is disappointing.

2. No Third-Party Watch Faces #

3. The App Screen #

Closing #

Overall, the Apple Watch is very thoughtfully designed, offers a lovely user experience, and integrates easily into one’s daily routine. Being able to swap out watch bands is easy and cheap, so it can be dressed for any occasion.

Should I buy it? #

…Probably not. While it’s certainly very cool (and useful), the starting price of $269 is, in my opinion, a bit steep. Despite this, if you have money to burn and want a cool, handy gadget this may be for you. It also makes an excellent and thoughtful gift.

It should be noted that Apple offers discounts through its refurbished store, where prices start at $229. In my experience (this was typed on a refurbished Apple computer), their refurbishing program is just as good as brand new.