The Apple Watch - wow

My Pebble Steel does pretty much everything I want from a smart watch: 1) Shows calendar; 2) Displays text messages; 3) Displays incoming phone call and lets me answer or reject without pulling out my phone; 4) Battery life easily more than 3 days 5) Looks good; 6) Inexpensive.

The Apple Watch display is leagues better, and it does more stuff, but 1-day battery life isn't going to cut it.
 
My Pebble Steel does pretty much everything I want from a smart watch: 1) Shows calendar; 2) Displays text messages; 3) Displays incoming phone call and lets me answer or reject without pulling out my phone; 4) Battery life easily more than 3 days 5) Looks good; 6) Inexpensive.

The Apple Watch display is leagues better, and it does more stuff, but 1-day battery life isn't going to cut it.

Your right on the mark Amin. The pebble watch offers a whole lot in an inexpensive package. Plus have you seen the new color version? Its very cool. Will probably be on my bday wish list this year ;)
 
I was interested in the Apple watch when they made the first presentation. As time wore on I began to realise just how limited it would be, for me. I want (although I don't *need*) a gadget/band/watch that keeps tabs on my sleep. Over time it has become apparent that keeping an eye on that in conjunction with activity etc, is very valuable for someone with a sleep disorder. Apple Watch does not and cannot possibly fulfil the task. I currently use a fitbit for that purpose but I had decided I wanted a Withings product... except I cant get it in Australia.

Its also expensive (for me, perhaps not so much for some of you)... but its a watch first, with a battery that can be replaced, and doesnt need recharging... like any other watch. The fitness stuff is addon. The watch is gorgeous. Even the cheaper option is pretty nice.

http://www.withings.com/us/withings-activite.html
http://www.withings.com/us/withings-activite-pop.html
 
I was interested in the Apple watch when they made the first presentation. As time wore on I began to realise just how limited it would be, for me. I want (although I don't *need*) a gadget/band/watch that keeps tabs on my sleep. Over time it has become apparent that keeping an eye on that in conjunction with activity etc, is very valuable for someone with a sleep disorder. Apple Watch does not and cannot possibly fulfil the task. I currently use a fitbit for that purpose but I had decided I wanted a Withings product... except I cant get it in Australia.

Its also expensive (for me, perhaps not so much for some of you)... but its a watch first, with a battery that can be replaced, and doesnt need recharging... like any other watch. The fitness stuff is addon. The watch is gorgeous. Even the cheaper option is pretty nice.

http://www.withings.com/us/withings-activite.html
http://www.withings.com/us/withings-activite-pop.html
Monitoring sleep seems like one of the key uses of an e watch. Night recharging is a terrible idea.
 
Tech people will buy it for the same reason hiking people want to climb a mountain - because it's there, and because it has secrets and potential to be hacked, and ....
 
My Pebble Steel does pretty much everything I want from a smart watch: 1) Shows calendar; 2) Displays text messages; 3) Displays incoming phone call and lets me answer or reject without pulling out my phone; 4) Battery life easily more than 3 days 5) Looks good; 6) Inexpensive.

The Apple Watch display is leagues better, and it does more stuff, but 1-day battery life isn't going to cut it.
Maybe they are aiming at the group that remembers having to wind watches every day...

Who remembers the Lisa and the Newton?
 
I am interested. I'm already in the Apple ecosystem. One of my biggest annoyances in daily life is needing to fish out my phone every few minutes because of alerts (I know, first world problems) on buses and subways, even just walking down the streets. About half are things I need to deal with right away. A glance at my wrist to tell me if this is something I need to act on right away. I understand that other smart watches can do this but for me, Apple integration is a feature. If it truly lasts all day, I have no issue with charging while I sleep. Siri works pretty well for me and I'm curious how easy it will be to just speak an answer. I may try one of the cheaper models or perhaps wait f0r the next generation.

When the first iPhone came out, it didn't even have apps and most people saw no need for it and thought it was a terrible idea and would never sell much. When the iPad debuted, it was also considered ridiculous and 'just a big iPhone'. The watch may be not much now, but the future may be bright. Just the health diagnostics alone are very, very interesting.

I used to use a phone for only phone calls, now phone calls are one the least important things I do on my phone. Right now, I use my watch for only telling time (and as a piece of jewellery) but this too may change.

I watched the announcement and it started with the opening of a store in Hangzhou, China. In the last quarter, almost 2/3 of Apple's profit came from outside of the United States. I believe they are moving their focus from a fairly saturated western market to the global community. Some of the use case scenarios for products may make perfect sense in, say here in China, but not be very appealing to the western market.

The watches will sell well here. Those stupid drawing on the face and heartbeat sharing functions will be massive here, and not just with the young.
 
I don't like watches. They look cool on other people but I can't stand to have on my wrist. But I can see this as something I might like, have to wait for real users reports and maybe for Version 2.
 
I am interested. I'm already in the Apple ecosystem. One of my biggest annoyances in daily life is needing to fish out my phone every few minutes because of alerts (I know, first world problems) on buses and subways, even just walking down the streets. About half are things I need to deal with right away. A glance at my wrist to tell me if this is something I need to act on right away. I understand that other smart watches can do this but for me, Apple integration is a feature. If it truly lasts all day, I have no issue with charging while I sleep. Siri works pretty well for me and I'm curious how easy it will be to just speak an answer. I may try one of the cheaper models or perhaps wait f0r the next generation.

When the first iPhone came out, it didn't even have apps and most people saw no need for it and thought it was a terrible idea and would never sell much. When the iPad debuted, it was also considered ridiculous and 'just a big iPhone'. The watch may be not much now, but the future may be bright. Just the health diagnostics alone are very, very interesting.

I used to use a phone for only phone calls, now phone calls are one the least important things I do on my phone. Right now, I use my watch for only telling time (and as a piece of jewellery) but this too may change.

I watched the announcement and it started with the opening of a store in Hangzhou, China. In the last quarter, almost 2/3 of Apple's profit came from outside of the United States. I believe they are moving their focus from a fairly saturated western market to the global community. Some of the use case scenarios for products may make perfect sense in, say here in China, but not be very appealing to the western market.

The watches will sell well here. Those stupid drawing on the face and heartbeat sharing functions will be massive here, and not just with the young.
For me, it's less a matter of public doubts than MY doubts. There was a time I had a separate cell phone, Palm pilot, and MP3 player and I knew it was just a matter of a few years until all of these functions would be integrated into a single device. And I knew I wanted one, to the extent I owned a couple of pretty primitive Blackberries in that quest. I wasn't an immediate iPhone adopter, but by the 3GS I was on-board and it all seemed like a logical progression. Up through the 6+ I have now...

At some point in that progression I had a primitive Timex smart watch that held a calendar and contact information, downloadable from a PC... One way communication, and I think that was BEFORE I had a Palm Pilot in my pocket with the same information and interactive. I knew it would be done much MUCH better someday, but I never got the basic point then, and for ME, I still don't. I don't envy your life if you have so many alerts going off all the time, half of which you have to deal with right away, that fishing your phone out of your pocket is actually a hassle! But I guess if that's your reality, one of these could be useful. At this point in my life, I'm quite sure I'll never be in that place again, and I don't actually think I ever would have been, even at my busiest. But things change, and technologies respond. Or vice versa - there are lots of chickens and eggs to sort out here...

In any case, enjoy it!

-Ray
 
Maybe they are aiming at the group that remembers having to wind watches every day...

Who remembers the Lisa and the Newton?

I wear watches that I have to wind every day, and I actually enjoy that process. Charging a watch every day is somehow different - takes longer, more cumbersome to do without removing watch from wrist.
 
A few years ago I indulged myself and bought a Botta watch. Along the way I've also chosen watches by Skagen, Noon Copenhagen and Hygge. The idea that any intelligent human being would choose to wear something as **** ugly as the Apple watch in public is beyond comprehension.
 
I was considering the Apple Watch but they lost the sale when they decided not to put a GPS in the watch. Instead, I bought the Sony SmartWatch 3 and can listen to music via Bluetooth headphones and track my runs for automatic uploading to Strava while leaving the phone at home. Battery life is about 2 days, although it does feel kind of risky to start day 2 with just 50% charge. Luckily, charging takes just 30 minutes with a standard micro USB plug so topping off is easy.

Granted, it's kind of homely with the black band but I'll get the steel band in the spring. And it's kind of thick - too thick to wear beneath a motorcycle jacket and perhaps too thick for a dress shirt but I've yet to test that.

For anyone interested, I blogged about the Watch here - Apple Watch and Revenge of the Skeuomorphs

I think Apple's lost some of their mojo.
 
..
I think Apple's lost some of their mojo.

I own a "normal" watch or three, but they haven't been out of my dresser drawer in several years. Not a watch guy, or jewelry guy. I also have no interest in the Apple Watch, though I can see how it would be useful from a work standpoint.

Having said that, I don't think Apple has lost their mojo just yet. I can't count the number of people who are extremely anxious to give Apple a nice pile of cash for one of these devices. As Colin said a few posts back, it's not so much about what the watch is now, but what it will be. Apple has earned lots of consumer trust in that regard. "Make it and they will buy" has worked in an extreme way in the past, and I'll be a bit shocked if that doesn't continue.
 
I prefer my Casio Wave Scepter. Understated and functional. A mixture of analogue and digital, solar-rechargable battery and no time setting - not even to switch from Standard Time to Daylight Savings Time.
 
I'm actually offended by these watches, and I didn't expect that. I don't have a problem with the aluminum/plastic version for $350, nor do I have an issue with the $10000 or so gold watch. What bothers me is they are asking $650 to $750 more in addition to the $350 just for a stainless steel case and band. Lest anyone think that's an OK addon for $700, I buy a lot of Chinese-made premium knives, and those have excellent steel for really low prices.
 
I can't disagree with you, Dale. I have an iMac, iPad, iPhone and even an older iPod. But the pricing structure for the Apple Watch just strikes me as cynical. I wasn't using the term "offended" but that's as good as any. I hope anyone who buys an Apple Watch loves the product and I wish them all the best of luck with it. But I personally have no interest in yet another device to carry around and charge each day that promises to serve me but then demands that I think the way it does - with quite an entrance fee to boot.
 
Ah well, nothing new here. Apple's products have often managed to evoke an irrational emotional response. Hence the whole "religion" meme. But I have yet to see anyone posting messages in photography forums about how offended they are re: the cost of Burberry raincoats, or Louis Vuitton handbags, or, yes, Rolex watches.

Just to clarify, I wasn't offended by the absolute price, since I had no problem with the $10000 watch. I was offended by the notion of paying $700 extra just to get a stainless steel case. I think someone will do that calculation eventually.
 
No, it's $350 versus $1000 - an exact $650 difference. And I already addressed the premium steel issue - as a collector of premium knives made in China by Spyderco et al, the "really premium" stainless is rather cheap. It's not machined to a large extent today - it's injection-molded from powder, baked, then polished as needed.
 
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