"I regret buying an Apple Watch"
After two weeks of wearing the Watch, nothing has changed. I wear it, but I’m not gaining anything from the experience. My phone is typically nearby. Perhaps I’m just not a smartwatch kind of guy. I like to wear a watch, but when it’s the Apple Watch, it’s not giving me enough bang for my buck. I hand it to a friend to play with, and they press or swipe (or do something) and I see a screen I’ve never seen before — there’s very much a learning curve.
I’m not demanding (and not sure I want) smartphone-like functionality; I like the rigorously lightweight nature of how the Apple Watch deals with things. It takes a while to realize that, unlike iPhones and iPads, it’s not the apps that form the basis of how I use the Watch (it’s the swipe-up Glances for weather, music controls and activity monitoring). But I just don’t gain enough from these easily accessible features. At least not yet. Where the Apple Watch delivers best in functionality (like its fitness monitoring, which I’m continuing to use), I could get from a whole range of devices that are markedly cheaper.
Some interesting and fair points by Smith. I still believe that apps are not the future of Apple Watch in the same way they were the future of the iPhone or iPad. I also still believe that the Watch is not for everyone. Some people will enjoy its features, others will find them somewhat redundant to their lifestyle. It all depends on your life, really.
For example, I spend a lot of my day in front of a laptop, but I’m also moving around a lot. I also tend to be a person who dislikes carrying pretty much anything in my pocket if I can help it (this is why I love ApplePay). I get a few notifications as well as updates on sports news, pings from Slack and I use it to track my running. I’ve been wearing watches for a good 15 years and the idea of wearing a bracelet is not really my thing. For me, the Watch makes perfect sense.
I also think we need to shift the question from “do you need this?” to “do you want this?” Buying nice cloths or going out for a nice lunch or dinner is not something you need to do. It’s something you want to do. To think of the Apple Watch or any watch as a need is the wrong question. That’s what so many of these technology journalists are missing.