Apple Watch Review

Like many people I received my Apple Watch on April 24th, which for me was great since it was not supposed to arrive until at least May 17th. So thank you Apple for getting that sorted out quickly. It became apparent within a couple of hours that this little device was going to change the way I do lots of things, something I did not expect.

Now here I am Sunday afternoon writing up my thoughts which I think will be of interest to those considering if Apple Watch is for them. There is so much more I could write, but I have distilled the important items to maybe help you get to a place of deciding if it is for you or not. This review is based on the model I own which is the Apple Sport 42mm with a White strap.

Before we start remember this is from my perspective, I am a software developer, designer, artist and tech head. I also had the view that there was no reason why I needed Apple Watch when it was first announced.

Whilst the price is high, I feel it maybe justified when you consider what you now have on your wrist.

Packaging and Setup

Unboxing

As always Apple has done a great job with the packaging, the box is heavy and when you open it there is the feel of a quality watch on par with many of the other big name watch companies. Presentation is simple yet elegant, although it was a surprise to find this is the first Apple hardware with no stickers in the packaging(?). The sport edition does indeed come with a plastic charger with a very long cable which is a nice consideration for all those people that will be charging from the night stand.

Setup

Setup requires you to use the application on the iPhone, you take a photograph of an animated fractal pattern that is used to successfully pair the Watch to the iPhone. Once that is out the way you answer a series of questions on the watch for things like the health tracking (weight, height, sex etc.) and then start configuring the hardware and software in the iPhone application. This is by far the most sensible way to go and I applaud Apple for making the choice to get users on a new platform comfortable by using one they already know. During the setup process you are asked if you want to install applications available, what this really means is any applications on your iPhone that are compatible with Apple Watch can be installed right there and then, I suggest doing it manually later personally as many applications serve no purpose being on the Watch. Application developers be warned, just because you can make a Watch interface it does not mean you should or that we need it.

With the setup complete you could just starting using the Watch and leave it at that, but as I mentioned I chose to then go further into the iPhone application and configure various settings and install applications and glances. Developers like myself just cannot resist tweaking those settings!

As with many things Apple does, they clearly understood how this device should fit in with users to the point that you forget about it and get on with life.

Hardware

As mentioned I have the 42mm sport version with the White strap. The anodized aluminum case adds little weight, in fact I barely even notice I am wearing the watch. The stories about the weight I feel are greatly exaggerated, this watch weighs less than most of my other conventional watches. The Ion-X glass screen offers good protection and the display is crisp and very readable even with the smallest text. What I really want to highlight is the fluoroelastomer band, it feels exceptionally smooth and you barely even notice it against the wrist making it very easy to wear all day under any condition. The design of the hardware I have never been a fan of, honestly I still feel Apple could of done better and I have a high expectation for version 2 when it arrives to be more inline with the Apple design esthetic.

The thickness of the watch is far less than you would think given the images out on the Web, I would say it is the same as many conventional watches and after a non-scientific comparison with a friends Moto 360 it is actually slightly thinner.

Many that have seen my watch commented that they thought the screen could actually be bigger and were surprised when I said it was the biggest 42mm version. I agree with this, the 38mm seems too small even on thin wrists and everyone so far has said they’d pick the 42mm after seeing my one in the flesh.

Despite my reservations regarding the design I will sum up the hardware by saying Apple has done a great job at making the watch feel like a quality item with solid construction and seamless edges that you are comfortable with and do not feel the need to baby like those iPhone 6’s.

Battery life

The battery is proving to be way better than I anticipated, the watch came with 61% charge which I naturally charged to 100% on Friday and so far I’ve not had to go back and charge again getting almost 2 days normal use with 40% remaining as of this write up. I stress that 3rd party applications will clearly be a factor in the battery life along with GPS and Bluetooth usage. If at any point you are curious about battery status you can use the glance to see estimated times, on Saturday my watch was still predicting 2 days of standby time.

When the battery gets low the watch is designed to go in to a power save mode than essentially makes it a watch that tells the time.

Core Software

Navigation using the digital crown comes naturally very quickly and there is an interesting take on the scrollbar location graphic which you notice but mostly ignore. I still do not like the icon layout view, I feel it is weirdly out of place and a pain to navigate on a screen of this size, you can rearrange the icons on the watch by holding your finger on an icon and either dragging it around or clicking the ‘x’ to remove it, this is not trivial and I deleted apps by mistake several times. I recommend using the iPhone application. At any point during watch usage you can push the crown to return to either your last screen or the clock depending on configuration choices. Pushing again brings up the application icon screen with a further push returning you again to the clock face of your choice.

The only other button on the watch brings up your favorites, it seems a waste at this time and I hope Apple plans to take better advantage of this in future software updates.

The force push will take some getting used to but I think the best way to approach this is to see it as a right click on a computer screen since it essentially seems to serve as a way to reach the most obvious options in applications at any given moment.

The choice of clock faces and custom configurations are plentiful and will keep you amused for a while as you design ‘your look’ for the watch face. Personally I have the battery level, activity, date and temperature widgets with a basic clock face. You can touch any of the widgets to go to that application with the exception of the remaining battery level that appears to do nothing(?).

Swiping down on the clock face brings the notification panel, something familiar to iOS users on iPad, iPhone or iPod. A swipe up moves you down to what Apple calls glances, these are essentially the today widget views for the watch much like the widgets on the iOS today screen or OS X’s sidebar. As expected tapping any notification will take you to a screen where you can make quick simple choices like replying or dismissing a text message or to the application in the case of many 3rd party apps.

Living with Apple Watch

Quickly you will stop playing with the watch, this is where the watch starts to shine. Within hours I was replying to text messages, talking with Siri and taking regular stand up and move around breaks as if I had been doing it all along. As with many things Apple does, they clearly understood how this device should fit in with users to the point that you forget about it and just get on with life.

The Wrap

Pros

• The iOS applications I use are now with me all the time.
• Comfortable to wear and within minutes you’ll stop thinking about it and just use it.
• Battery life is better than expected.
• Comfortable hardware that does not get in the way.
• No need to walk around with your iPhone attached to your hand.

Cons

• It seems that the display always turns off way too soon, even before some applications have loaded at times.
• It really needs to be fully sealed for at least swimming given the activity and health tracking abilities.
• New force touch interaction method will take a while to become natural.
• A new UI that will frustrate some current Apple iOS users.

Conclusion

It will take a while for the interaction with Apple Watch to become ‘normal’ just like it did when we first got the iOS touch interface, once mastered though you will be flying around in no time. I can appreciate the many challenges that had to be overcome both with the physical size and the UI to make interaction ‘just work’. It has to be remembered that even though years of design and development went into the product it is version 1. With out doubt Apple has made another leap forward in the way we interact with each other and our own data and whilst the price is high, I feel it maybe justified when you consider what you now have on your wrist.

I find myself already just leaving the iPhone on my desk or around the house and doing the basic tasks on my watch including responding to messages, to-do lists, redirecting calls and even checking the time!

My recommendation is to get to an Apple store and try one out if you are interested but do your best to ignore the sales pitch and focus on whether or not the device does what you think you need it for.