Apple Watch (redux)

Posted by: Peter Dinh on 21 May 2015

I’ve been using the Apple Watch for a few weeks now, I must say that I am very much impressed, and like it a lot:

Things I like:

A great piece of engineering
Very comfortable to wear, much more than my Swiss watch (do not want to say what it is, but it is very expensive)
Works just like a [miniature] iPhone – The interface is very intuitive
Colors are vibrant; blacks are inky; and it's viewable in direct sunlight
Notifications on the Watch are actionable -- such as e-mail messages, calendar events. Each is accompanied by a short pop or ding and/or a bit of haptic feedback
Make and take phone calls, send and receive text messages – Telephone conversations are seamless, and clear, the opposite sides do not know that I am actually talking through the watch
Using Apple Pay is easy
Navigation while driving using map is less distractive
Time keeping is of course excellent
Future – Apps for App Watch is fairly limited, but hopefully everything that you do with an iPhone can be done with the Apple Watch

Posted on: 22 May 2015 by Chris G

Hi Peter - glad to hear you're pleased with your watch. The big question - what's the battery life like? Which version and strap did you choose?

Posted on: 22 May 2015 by Peter Dinh

Originally Posted by Chris G:

Hi Peter - glad to hear you're pleased with your watch. The big question - what's the battery life like? Which version and strap did you choose?

I just have the basic 42mm Space Gray Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band as I see no need to spend money on the cosmetic things because all models do the same thing.

I wear it all day, and before recharge at night, it is left with 70%.

Posted on: 22 May 2015 by Chris G

Thanks Peter, that's very encouraging. I'll see about getting one when they are available in my Apple store. I hope you continue to enjoy yours.

Posted on: 22 May 2015 by Guy007

Peter, what functionality does the watch loose if you don't have your iPhone with you ?

Posted on: 22 May 2015 by Peter Dinh

Originally Posted by Guy007:

Peter, what functionality does the watch loose if you don't have your iPhone with you ?

I would think the followings still work without an iPhone:

Timekeeping - After all, it is a watch
All of the watch’s onboard sensors, such as the accelerometer and the heart rate monitor - So you can do jogging, leaving your iPhone at home
Playing music - I think you can store up to 2 GB of music data, but you will need a bluetooth headphone
Apple Pay - Yes, you can pay without an iPhone
You can store your photos on the watch
You can get the snapshots of whatever you have the last time when it syncs to the iPhone

And probably more, I am still on the learning curve.