Is The Apple Watch Worth It + How I Use It
I’m all for anything that makes life seem a little easier these days. In the last 12 months, my life has done a full 180, and I’ll be honest in saying that 90% of the time it all feels like too much.
I adored my Fitbit Flex. I wore it religiously. I raved about it. And the truth is, I still love the Fitbit franchise. But a few months before Christmas, I started to finally feel what the Flex was lacking. I needed a screen. I needed a watch. And life would be that much easier if I could screen calls from my wrist. So the Charge HR went right onto my Christmas list.
Things I was concerned about:
- As “plugged in” as I might seem, I take disconnection seriously. I don’t like being glued to my devices. I was worried it would make me feel too connected.
- The size/weight/appearance. I’m extremely picky about wearing stuff on my wrists. I’ve always found bracelets/watches/etc uncomfortable. The Fitbit franchise worked wonderfully for me because they are perfectly designed to be lightweight. I wasn’t sure the Apple Watch would be.
- Is it even really that necessary? It’s a pretty sizable investment (especially when you actually end up paying $1000 at the end of the day–but hey, that was just me), and I was pretty convinced it was another Apple marketing ploy making me believe I just had to have it.
The Truth:
- NOTE: I do not have all of the alerts set up. That would drive me absolutely insane. The only notifications I get “tapped” for are texts and calendar events that I have reminders set up for.
How I Use It:
I use it very simplistically. I know I haven’t even BEGUN to tap into all the fancy features. But it serves my needs this way without leaving me feeling overwhelmed. Instead, it feels like the assistant I’ve always needed.
- Watch: Because, well, duh. Everything at my day job is time sensitive. I have pick ups and drop offs sprinkled throughout my busy day. I have set, repeating alarms, that remind me when it’s time to stop what I’m doing to go pick up a kid. Trust me, it’s easy for time to get away from you, and kids get pretty pissed if you forget to pick them up
- Calendar: Did you hear me? Let me repeat it. CALENDAR!!! I’ve admitted more than once that I’ve become heavily reliant on my iCal. I absolutely love that I can see my next appointment on my watch face (these are customizable, so you don’t HAVE to see them, but this is the #1 feature that makes my life so much easier). It lets me me know where I need to be next, when, what I need to do/bring/have. I’m telling you–this watch is the assistant I’ve always needed.
- Notifications. I don’t have my phone on me 99% of the time. Aside from allowing me to glance at my texts (which prevents me from having to STOP what I’m doing to make sure the text that comes through isn’t important), it also allows me to see if it’s another stupid google website telemarketer calling or if it’s my Mom. Again, it helps prevent me from stopping what I’m doing to check my phone. I love this.
- Fitness Tracker. I haven’t tapped into this one as much as I’d like–but it DOES have a ton of options for tracking fitness. As a general, daily activity tracker, it does pretty well. There’s a lag when you go to check your heart rate (unlike the Charge HR), and it’s harder to hit your 10,000 steps. I need to research this further, but I’m fairly certain the Apple Watch is a more accurate pedometer. I consistently get somewhere between 6 and 7 thousand steps daily (without working out) when I used to track easily 11,000 or more with the Fitbit. I’ve noticed the watch does not count my hand motions as “steps.” So when I sweep the floor, I’m not racking up a gazillion steps.
- NOTE: I do miss the social network of the fitbit community. I find that I’m less motivated to track my exercise because why bother? I found that having “friends” on Fitbit and the challenges to be extremely motivating. Perhaps Apple will add this in the future?