Apple Watch Launches 174
An anonymous reader writes: The Apple Watch's release date has arrived: retailers around the world have quietly begun putting them on their shelves, and customers are beginning to receive their shipments. Reviews have been out for a while, including thoughtful ones from John Gruber and Nilay Patel. Apple has published a full user guide for the software, and iFixit has put up a full teardown to take a look at the hardware. They give it a repairability score of 5 out of 10, saying that the screen and battery are easily replaced, but not much else is. Though Apple designated the watch "water-resistant" rather than "waterproof", early tests show it's able to withstand a shower and a swim in the pool without failing. Ars has an article about the difficulty of making games for the Apple Watch, and Wired has a piece detailing its creation.
This product reminds me of... (Score:3, Insightful)
Google Glass? (Score:2)
Not PT Barnum, because I see this as a niche product that some people will really like. People who are fanatic about their fitbit and facebook feeds. Since it's "Apple" it may be a bit more popular than Glass.. but time will tell.
Re: Google Glass? (Score:2)
One benefit over Google Glass is that it is more discreet, doesn't tramp on other people's privacy and doesn't make you look a tech dude.
Google Glass has plenty of applications, just not where Google invisiged. For example, worn by a surgeon provides both a first person view of what is being seen to a third party and could allow data overlay, when combined with a kinect for positioning.
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You know the famous quote.
This one? [brainyquote.com]
"As a general thing, I have not 'duped the world' nor attempted to do so... I have generally given people the worth of their money twice told."
The one you're likely thinking of is irrelevant here, because I've spent more on dinners than I did on my Sport watch that's due for delivery today. You say "suckers", I say "people who don't mind spending $350 on a watch they'll be using every day and that's easily worth the money in sheer entertainment value".
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I agree with your comment that spending $350 on a watch isn't a big deal. My wife bought me a Samsung Gear 2 for my birthday last year, and I've worn it every day since. I didn't buy one myself because, like so many others, I didn't think any smartwatch was worth the money. But my wife or I usually try to buy something for the other person they would never buy for themselves on their birthday, so now I have a smartwatch. And won't leave home without it. And I can go swimming with it, and have done so!
Apple
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especially since it doesn't have a camera. I use my camera all the time and think not including that will come back to haunt them.
They need to hold back on some feature so they can have some reason to release the Apple Watch 2. Just like the original iPad.
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Well, not every day (or even every month), but that's not impossible at a nice anniversary meal with wine, steaks, and dessert.
(It helps if you live in San Francisco and get used thinking of a $12 burger and fries as a cheap lunch.)
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... PT Barnum. You know the famous quote.
Of course. Didn't he say "Only a fool wouldn't buy an Apple Watch"?
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I don't think anyone's going into debt over the 10K watch. It's for people with more money than they know what to do with, and the desire to spend it all on themselves instead of helping others.
People who have more money than they know what to do with don't buy crap like this. People who want to pretend like they have more money than they know what to do with buy this kind of crap. People who temporarily have more money than they know what to do with and will broke in a few years buy this kind of crap.
Solution looking for a problem? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm still not entirely clear what the Apple Watch is supposed to do for me, especially when it's still reliant on a cell phone to function.
you know, I agree with you? I ordered one and it will be delivered in mid-may (even though I placed the order 3 mins after midnight -_-). I thought the NYT review was most interesting. It said for the first three days the guy had no idea how to use it and then starting on the fourth day it was indispensable. So maybe it's just something you have to experience? There's a return policy, so I can return it if it isn't functional. Also, it's fun to do the whole "stay up until midnight, mash the order button" thing once and a while.
the funny thing is that I often find myself drowning in emails, and there are so many that I end up missing some urgent ones. Will the watch help me manage these messages or will it just be more overload??
Into the Black (Score:1)
I ordered one and it will be delivered in mid-may (even though I placed the order 3 mins after midnight -_-)
Enjoy your Space Black watch, I know I will (sometime in mid May also). Pretty sure every other model is shipping earlier than stated.
Too bad they couldn't be ordered without a band that takes 100 man years of effort per link to create.
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I hear ya! I got the space grey sport, which according to this poll is 2.5 times more popular than the silver sport watch (including all band colors for the silver sport).
http://9to5mac.com/2015/04/10/... [9to5mac.com]
retrospect, I didn't like the silver sport band colors cuz they're a little too informal for me, but if there are other rubber band colors like a maroon or navy, the silver would look super sweet.
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't think it can solve any problems for you--if you're overwhelmed by notifications, your watch will just be a new point of contact for your frustrations.
You need to consider what's actually worth being notified about. I have a personal email account and one that I use to sign up for forums and get shipping notifications sent to. Only my personal account displays notifications, and I have a few people on my email VIP list. I switched my other mail account to sound notifications only. That way I know something happened and I can check it when I care.
At first it really feels like I'm missing things, but it actually worked out really well. Start with the assumption that nothing is worth as much as your time, and turn off every notification. Then add them back in one by one if you think it saves you more time to know that information immediately rather than once every hour or so.
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i've had an android wear watch for 3 months. the biggest thing i use it for? a watch. it is interesting and fun being able to pick / design your watch face. is it worth $300? very dubious.
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To me, every 'smartwatch' has to pass this test: would I wear it if all it did was display the time? Does it look and feel good enough? After that, the $300 is either easy or impossible to justify. I'd wear the Apple Watch. I'd wear one of the Withings Activite watches.
I will probably get one once I feel like the first-gen problems are worked out.
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What? You didn't understand that? Grammar rules are a fiction and a way the ruling class imposes control on others by establishing an arbitrary "right way to do things" then castigating those who do not kowtow to it.
I should be able to use any spelling, punctuation or grammar and everybody somehow will understand it even without any established grammar rules.
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blither snyp's frognouth sitely norberg higgle farnard clsan's splff
I assumed that since your sentence ends with "spliff", I didn't understand the meaning but I understood your state of mind!
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:4, Insightful)
This may be true of spoken language, which humans develop naturally and as a matter of instinct. But it is manifestly not true of the written language, and suggesting that your inability (or unwillingness) to correctly capitalise and punctuate simple sentences is not a form of rebellion against those who would control you.
Forms of control exercised through control of expression are, of course, very real. And were I subject to any of them I could imagine that they would also be very effective. But having grammar rules that aim to ease written expression and comprehension is not a form of control in this sense.
The rules are arbitrary, up to a point, and they evolve over time too. But they don't evolve very fast, unlike spoken language, and it is because of this that I am still able to pick up a book written a hundred years ago and read it without too much trouble. And in any case, the article you link to is not a screed aimed at dismantling grammar, rather it suggests that while grammatical rules do exist, they are not as described in the Elements of Style.
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:4, Insightful)
Try a Pebble Watch some time. It'll give you some clarity.
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Did he also tell you to charge your phone in the microwave? Maybe invest in some oceanfront property in Kansas?
Somebody at work told me he heard you're a pedofil (Score:2)
This is fun.
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So, Apple rejected a single app because it referred to a competing platform in the application description. All he had to do to get it accepted is remove the reference.
They are not "refusing to accept Apple Watch apps from developers who sell the same apps for Pebble.".
With that said, it is still a bit of a dick move. Especially when Apple's own apps in the app store refer to "PC Browser" and "Import and edit Microsoft Word documents".
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Like any smartwatch the purpose is to get notifications on your wrist. It's super useful when your hands are full, you're driving, you don't want to start digging for your phone, you want to know whether the notification is actionable, and so on.
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:4, Insightful)
So it's a device to allow you to be so lazy you can't be arsed to pull your phone out and look at it?
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Later in life, some time after you leave your parents' basement, you'll find that free-time comes at a premium. Everybody deals with it in different ways. That's why we have a broad range of computing products from desktop computers to laptops to smartphones to tablets to the gaming card you have in your computer, even Arduino.
'Laziness' is a poor way to describe any given technology and indicates that you do not understand the purpose of it.
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:5, Insightful)
when you grow up you will realize that life is better not being plugged in all the time
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Yeah yeah, I wish everybody'd do things my way, too. So where is that line in relation to debating that with people on Slashdot?
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Learn all that you want about computers and other electronics-based technology. That knowledge will go obsolete very quickly, and those that come after you won't value that you knew it. It's profitable as a job, but for long-term gratification being able to admire one's body of work it's sorely lacking.
Re:Solution looking for a problem? (Score:5, Interesting)
Amen, brother.
I have a side business renting a cabin on my ranch for weekend visitors. The cabin has no internet access, and it's in a valley so there is no cell signal. Many people complain about this when they first arrive, but after they leave they ALL tell me how it was REALLY nice to be unplugged for a few days. Even the 20-somethings.
People forget how awesome life can be without gadgetry.
So did they all buy cabins next door? (Score:2)
Huh, I wonder why not.
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I still remember not being happy when I came home to discover that my parents had purchased a cell phone for me so that they could keep in touch in case anything happened while I was at work for a summer internship in college. I remember staring at it in my hand—even before turning it on or setting it up—and thinking, "This device is a ball-and-chain." It stripped me of the control I had over when and under what circumstances people could contact me, and placed that control in their hands.
At lea
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It stripped me of the control I had over when and under what circumstances people could contact me, and placed that control in their hands.
There's a simple solution turn the damned thing off.
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I find that people sometimes forget that they, or more importantly I am not my job. I have been to lunches with executives that couldn't stop checking their phone for email long enough to finish a meal and I know full well they do it at home while having dinner with the family or helping the kids with their homework. If you need electronics to connect you to your life and work 24 hours a day then there is a problem.
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If you need electronics to connect you to your life and work 24 hours a day then there is a problem.
These watches do not connect you 24 hours a day, they merely reflect what your phone is doing. These devices don't create the problem you describe, instead they reduce impact of it.
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They could in some way but I doubt that is how they will be used.
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All I know is that I enjoy going home the same time every day and that I don't have to deal with panicky situations that arise from not getting the memo.
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Later in life, some time after you leave your parents' basement, you'll find that free-time comes at a premium.
Ah, so rather than get a smartphone or smartwatch and have to peck out tiny misspelled messages on a tiny inefficient keyboard, the current generation instead waits until they are at a full computer with keyboard where they can return messages more quickly and also efficiently since they are not having to task switch constantly.
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Ah, so rather than get a smartphone or smartwatch and have to peck out tiny misspelled messages on a tiny inefficient keyboard...
Who said that? I'm not sure you can even do that on an Apple watch. You certainly can't on a Pebble Watch.
Here's an actual scenario:
Ah, that text message isn't important. Glad I didn't waste time pulling my phone out for that.
There's plenty of reasons to not like smart watches, you don't need to make shit up.
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I'm glad there are people like you who have shitty jobs that require that of you.
Where'd that come from?
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Shit, you must be ancient. The terminal "e" had already fallen off when my dad was a kid.
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I don't necessarily want notifications on my wrist.... all I want is a customizable color digital screen on my wrist.
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unless you use it for work where a text message is a lot of money/revenue/sales i don't care if i don't see a text the second it comes in because i don't care to be plugged into the borg collective 24 hours a day. if my wife texts me while i'm driving i'll answer her when i get a chance to stop.
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actually, the thing I'm looking forward to the most is how easy it will be to use siri. one, the "hey siri" function will be active all the time, whereas on the iphone it's only active when the phone is charging. two, because the apple watch doesn't need to unlock (you unlock it once when you put it on, then it stays unlocked until you take it off), you don't need to enter your passcode before siri can help you (i.e. pull up driving directions). combine this with the added dictation features that apple has
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actually you're probably right. siri can open programs but not directly interact with them, so you'd have to set your fart app to automatically fart upon startup.
Is your username an acronym? I've been staring at it for a while but I cant figure it out.
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I think more likely it'll be iPullMyFinger and will be sound activated by an accelerometer. The scratch-n-sniff model won't be out for another year or two.
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you're driving
big negative there. it's more distracting to try to read a text on an ultra small screen than it is to just pull our your phone.
You shouldn't be doing either one of those things while driving. I really doubt that anyone texting you has something so important to say that it is worth you and those in your car or nearby cars dying for.
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I'm still not entirely clear what the Apple Watch is supposed to do for me, especially when it's still reliant on a cell phone to function.
The same can be said about everything that Apple makes; none of it is needed and there are better / cheaper alternatives.
Many small solutions through a day (Score:5, Insightful)
It extends the battery life of your phone because you are not powering it on as often.
It allows you to filter notifications more than the phone does, so you can know quicker if you should pay attention to an alert.
It allows you to silence a call without even reaching into your pocket doing the Vibration Reaction Dance.
It gives you status on important things happening currently with fewer actions than a phone.
It's like a fitness band you wear all the time but without the single minded pointlessness.
And yes, it also tells the time without having to reach into a pocket...
If you aren't clear what it can do for you, then you may not need or want a smart watch. And that is fine. But there are many small uses which aggregate to form a model, different for each person, of how a smart watch can be useful to them.
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So constantly communicating wirelessly with a device on my wrist is more battery efficient than turning the screen on once in a while?
Except that you can't wear it all the time because it's not waterproof. You even have to take it off in the shower. Also, it only gets around 18 hours of use on the battery, which means you have to p
Yes, BTLE is very low power. (Score:4, Informative)
So constantly communicating wirelessly with a device on my wrist is more battery efficient than turning the screen on once in a while?
The OCCASIONAL communication the watch does over BTLE (it's not continuous unless needed by an app) is in fact WAY lower power than turning on a very large high DPI screen and backlight that most smartphones have now.
Except that you can't wear it all the time because it's not waterproof. You even have to take it off in the shower.
Didn't even bother to read the article summary all the way through, did you.
No it's not waterproof. But it's got a pretty standard level of water resistance, which means you COULD wear it in a shower, and I plan to wear it for visits to the pool (since most of my pool time is technically more "standing in water" than swimming).
Also, it only gets around 18 hours of use on the battery
Hint: That's around as much "battery" as most PEOPLE have also. :-)
which means it can't track your sleep like a lot of other fitness devices.
Then you can switch to a device that doesn't suck at monitoring sleep the way something on your wrist meant to mostly measure heart-rate does.
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What is Apple's warranty policy for water damage? If they say it is only water resistant and you take it swimming, presumably your warranty is void. What about heavy rain? Are there moisture sensors in there like the iPhone has?
Phone has zero tolerance, Watch has much more (Score:2)
What is Apple's warranty policy for water damage?
In terms of warranty support, the iPhone is not meant to be at all water resistant. Thus the sensors, and sometimes refusing to service if it's be obviously compromised (though Apple is sometimes lenient if you have Applecare).
The watch though is a different story. Although they may have water sensors inside, the expectation and warranty promise is that it can take significant contact with water. Rain is absolutely fine, immersion down to one meter up to 3
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I wear my watch all the time, including in the shower. I like it because it does one thing well, tell me the time and date. I never have to set it except for daylight savings (it synchronizes itself every night) and I don't have to wind it up or charge it (it charges itself via solar). It's also waterproof to 100M and pretty tough (I tend to be hard on watches). If it breaks I'm also not out $600 and it won't go obsolete in a year.
Re:Many small solutions through a day (Score:4, Informative)
I wear my watch all the time, including in the shower. I like it because it does one thing well, tell me the time and date.
Because if there's one activity in my life that I cannot do without knowing the time and date while doing it, it's showering!
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No need for sarcasm; if the band is metallic, then wearing your watch while showering will keep the links sparkling clean without any effort. You have to have a water-proof watch though...
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Your watch is *definitely* not waterproof to 100 meters. Those depth marking do not mean what you think they do: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W... [wikipedia.org]
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It extends the battery life of your phone because you are not powering it on as often.
In exchange for wearing a 2nd device you need to charge every day or so. Not much of a win.
It allows you to filter notifications more than the phone does, so you can know quicker if you should pay attention to an alert.
Thereby saving you time only if you can ignore most notifications, or actually wasting more time as you first check your watch, then pull out your phone every time instead of just pulling out your phone.
It allows you to silence a call without even reaching into your pocket doing the Vibration Reaction Dance.
Lol. true, but how much is that worth, right?
It's like a fitness band you wear all the time but without the single minded pointlessness.
But retains the pointlessness of wearing a fitness band.
And yes, it also tells the time without having to reach into a pocket...
Functionality handled better by a non-smart watch. (which runs for months, even years on a single battery...) and whi
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THAT is the main source of my derision for the device. If you want a smart watch fine, but have the sense to buy one that works with any phone.
Which is why I got a sub-$100 Pebble after reading the price and specs of the Apple watch.
It doesn't integrate as well into Apple iOS, but I can leave my phone in my pocket while cycling and see my data from my cycling GPS app, see notices from the phone, etc.
Plus, battery life of almost a week, e-ink screen that is gets easier to read in direct sunlight, and actually waterproof.
Re:Many small solutions through a day (Score:5, Insightful)
Separate money from wallets? Bring smiles to Apple fanbois faces? Usher in a new wave of corporate privacy invasion?
Christ, this is so obnoxious. Look, just because you don't have a use for this watch, it doesn't mean NOBODY does. Your implication is that this watch is literally useless except for making people that buy Apple products feel good.
First of all, it actually has functions that people theoretically feel useful. There are certainly Android Wear and Pebble owners that have similar functionality that feel that those devices fill this need. So as long as the Apple Watch does at least as much as those watches do, there's utility to some people. Even if all it does for someone is tell the time, $300 is not even close to the high end of what watches cost.
But it's also jewellery. People wear that stuff for lots of reasons. Do you understand how insanely dumb it is to buy a mechanical watch except as jewellery? They're not terribly accurate timekeeping devices. But they look good, and there's a aesthetic value to knowing that what you're wearing is mechanical and hand crafted. It's over $5000 for a Rolex STEEL wrist band. But you're not here criticising the idea of all luxury watches in general, or even all Smartwatches, just the Apple Watch.
You finish by saying that it's about the lock-in, but that's a ridiculous complaint. You think someone buying the first-gen Apple watch is the kind of person that is normally so capricious about their tech decisions?
What you don't like is that Apple made it and that other people like it. Just say that out loud and move on. Or don't comment at all. I think we can all safely assume by now that when Apple makes something there are a bunch of people that don't like it, so let's all pretend that you've said your piece and not use up the space from now on, hmm?
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Christ, this is so obnoxious. Look, just because you don't have a use for this watch, it doesn't mean NOBODY does.
Christ, I literally suggested my own possible use for this watch.
But it's also jewellery. People wear that stuff for lots of reasons.
I mentioned that too in my post.
Do you understand how insanely dumb it is to buy a mechanical watch except as jewellery? They're not terribly accurate timekeeping devices
Accurate timekeeping for a handheld watch? If its within 2-3 minutes of being right, its good enough for what nearly everyone wears a wrist watch for.
You finish by saying that it's about the lock-in, but that's a ridiculous complaint. You think someone buying the first-gen Apple watch is the kind of person that is normally so capricious about their tech decisions?
And yet it's my complaint. As for people buying it, I think they are idiots.
What you don't like is that Apple made it and that other people like it.
Hmmm. I gave this some real thought, and no. That's not the issue. I think its a genuiely stupid product. There is an apple angle to it though... I think if anybody else had made it but Apple everyone else would agree that its a stupid product. For example if HP had made a smartwatch that only worked with Apple iphones nobody would give a shit about it. (And rightly so.) If HP had released a $10,000 version that was gold plated and only worked with the iphone it we'd be speculating what drugs their management was taking.
Remember the tablet that only works paired to a blackberry? It was a joke. This product is no different.
Buying an apple smartwatch is like buying a trailer for your car... one that can't be towed by any other car.
I think we can all safely assume by now that when Apple makes something there are a bunch of people that don't like it, so let's all pretend that you've said your piece and not use up the space from now on, hmm?
Apple has some decent products. (steadily fewer of them lately though.) But this watch is up there with the RIM playbook for stupid... except it might be successful because: Apple
But god forbid any one criticize anything apple does? Lets keep this space clear so we can just post praise and declare how badly we want one?
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I don;t mind if they say they don't like it and back it with intelligent commentary. It does happen and I'm fine with that. I may disagree with a great deal of it but it's an opinion based on intelligent information.
I just find it idiotic when they voice their dislike of it and back it with nothing of value other than insulting and idiotic commentary.
And, for the record, that opinion applies to pretty much any item, not just an Apple item. If you like something, back it with an informative post. If you disl
Possible huge win (Score:3)
In exchange for wearing a 2nd device you need to charge every day or so. Not much of a win.
For those that run down phones in less than a day they may not have to do a mid-day charge any longer. That's actually quite a huge win.
Thereby saving you time only if you can ignore most notifications
You are ignoring the tiering of notifications possible with this arrangement.
Lol. true, but how much is that worth, right?
I guess you don't mind people wondering why you find the insides of your pants so suddenly intere
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For those that run down phones in less than a day they may not have to do a mid-day charge any longer. That's actually quite a huge win.
I'm extremely doubtful.
You are ignoring the tiering of notifications possible with this arrangement.
Sort of, but better tiering of notifications really should just be part of the phone OS. iOS in particular is terrible at letting you filter notifications -- android is better but only because you have more 3rd party app options, but the OS is severely lacking.
I think if our phones were better at tiering notifications, that would moot a lot of the point of a smartwatch doing it.
I guess you don't mind people wondering why you find the insides of your pants so suddenly interesting.
Meh, when my phone rings in my pocket and I know I don't want to answer it without even looking, I can easil
One filter = no tier (Score:2)
Sort of, but better tiering of notifications really should just be part of the phone OS.
it is. Inherently though you can only get a simple sense of a notification happening in your pocket. Allowing more trusted notifications only on the watch means some that you may way to look at later but don't care about now, can be ignored. With just the phone they otherwise all get mixed up (unless you have sound on all the time which I find too annoying to those around me to do).
Meh, when my phone rings in my pocke
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How do you KNOW that? There are plenty of times when I may want to take a call if it's important.
How do you KNOW that? How do you know its important until you answer it?
And if you don't know, but expect it might be important, then you'll need to check. Checking your phone to see who is calling is just as obnoxious as checking your watch. Moreso probably because after checking your watch, you have even less time to answer it so your panic answer dance will be that much more urgent.
I do that too but it's not AS EASY. Again it's the layering you are missing here.
Its pretty easy. Certainly not difficult enough nor something that occurs frequently enough for being able to do it from my
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How do you KNOW that? How do you know its important until you answer it?
It's called CallerID.
False.
Since you didn't say why, True wins.
Lol. Seeing as they are inextricably tied to itunes and ios,
loolololol since it's not tied to iTunes in any way, invalid.
Android wear at least works with android not-tied-to-google
Without Google Now it's a paperweight.
The apple watch? Not so much.
I could use only third party apps and no Apple services. And since there are more of them, the Apple watch is vastly less relian
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It's called CallerID.
And I don't need to look at my phone to know whether someone important is calling, because that's what distinctive ring/vibration is for.
Since you didn't say why, True wins.
I said why in the parent post, and in the post I made before that too.
loolololol since it's not tied to iTunes in any way, invalid.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/ap... [apple.com]
"lololololol" right back at you. What's the domain called? Maybe you thought I meant the itunes application? If so your retort is understandable, but you still misunderstood.
I could use only third party apps and no Apple services
How do you get third party apps without using Apple services (for example without using itunes.ap
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It extends the battery life of your phone because you are not powering it on as often.
At the expense of the battery in your watch. So total battery usage is still up though yeah?
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Bluetooth low power can use very little power. I have some Bluetooth Stick 'n Find stickers that claim to go 9 months on a cr2032 battery. My experience with them is that they last at least that long. It's great when I misplace my keys.
That is a bad way to live a life (Score:2)
Sorry to call you out on this, but your attitude will destroy you in the end and I cannot help but warn you. Living a life with hate as a focus consumes you. Other people can sense it and will push away from you.
I'm not interested in Android Wear, but I wish it (and it's users) no ill. Same for Android. It's not for me but I am happy to admit, it is for someone.
It's why I ordered a Pebble Time too, because I like competition and different ideas and think the world is better for it. If you hate someone so
Re: Solution looking for a problem? (Score:1)
I want to use it for Facetime calls. I also think Apple should sell yellow suits to help me stand out as a detective.
Yours,
Dick T.
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I don't know what the Apple Watch can do for you, but I have loved my Moto 360 watch since I got it last year. I can quickly view/dismiss notifications, appointments, and calls without taking out my phone, Track my steps and heart rate throughout the day, and many others things, plus it is an attractive timepiece with an infinitely customizable face that is far more useful than my previous watch which cost a lot more.
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"What use is a newborn baby?"
I shouldn't have to point this out to geeks, but the Apple Watch is only the start of something. It will be years before it really comes to fruition. And remember, unlike some companies (*cough* Samsung *cough*), Apple doesn't come out with a bazillion products and then sees what sticks. They tend to heavily research and internally test things beforehand. The size of the rollout tells me that they are pretty confident this is a worthwhile product (and product category) that will
Banal question is banal. (Score:2)
You don't have to get an iWatch anymore than you need a FitBit. Asking why anyone would want to use either, though, is "so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring.".
Re:Solution looking for a problem? Talk and drive! (Score:2)
I'm still not entirely clear what the Apple Watch is supposed to do for me, especially when it's still reliant on a cell phone to function.
It does have a GREAT use. I see everyday people using their cell phones in their cars while driving, phone on the ear. All new and luxury cars even. Im sure those cars have bluetooth, but somehow people dont know how to use or dont like how it sounds or whatever.
Since Apple watch allows to talk through it, Im sure it will diminished the chance of accident for those who drive with the phone on the ear. Since talking to the wrist allows the hand to grab the wheel, while if fit is holding a phone it is more di
Yawn... (Score:1)
What time is it?
The video does not test full water resist claims (Score:3)
The watch conforms to the standard IPX7, which states "withstand immersion in water up to 1 meter for up to 30 minutes"
The video only tests fifteen minutes... I would have liked to see a half hour test, then see if it works, then back in for an hour and see what happened.
Apple recommends that you not swim with the watch, but if you're hardly going under water or not swimming very long it seems like it would be fine.
As for wearing the watch in the shower, it seems like it would be fine but it sounds creepy to me (yes I know Tim Cook says he does that). Even when I had fully waterproof watches I never wore one in the shower, it's like taping over parts you don't want to actually clean... defeats the point.
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If you can't Google, I can't help you - but far worse, you cannot help yourself. You will not eat fish in your lifetime I fear, much less a day.
Games? (Score:5, Interesting)
Ars has an article about the difficulty of making games for the Apple Watch
Honestly, I think games are a bit of a stretch. Maybe I'm just a stupid old man, but I kind of feel like smart-watches should do very little, but everything they do, they should do in a simple, obvious, transparent manner. If you want to play games, just pull out your phone.
Now of course someone is going to say, "What's wrong with extra functionality? If you don't want it, just don't use it." All I would say is, if I had my say in the design, I'd make the UI as simple as possible, and make the battery last as long as possible. Adding a bunch of unnecessary features and games that require a bunch of processing power are likely to run contrary to both of those goals. If you gave me the choice of being able to play Angry Birds on my watch, or shaving off a couple of ounces while extending battery life for 5 hours, I'd definitely choose the latter.
Limited gaming possible on a smart watch. (Score:2)
I mostly agree. Games where you are just doing things on a smart watch, make no sense to me either. The phone you have really would make more sense.
MAYBE a game where you were just responding to notifications every now and then and response time matters, would work.
Also odd is that it's not like you can have a standalone Apple Watch app. You have to have a phone app also. So what does that do? Have a version of the game with a watch sized screen?
I guess if you consider a Tamagotchi (sp?) a game, that m
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Yeah, what about flappy bird, you could repeatedly tap your wrist to gain altitude, whilst everyone around you wonders if you've perhaps strayed too far from your mental institute and if you have some kind of helper they should perhaps call to pick you up.
Honestly, gaming on a watch strikes me as one of those things that just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Just like you can write code on a phone or tablet, but you shouldn't unless you're simply trying to make your life as difficult as possible.
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$350 for a Tamagotchi game. $650 for an iPhone to play mobile games.
Look , I SAID I didn't think games were very useful on the watch. At best they are a tiny side use, and there has been only one game I've read about that makes sense (where you direct a time-critical spy mission).
But the $650 for a mobile game platform? THAT makes a ton of sense. You simply have no idea of the vast range of games for mobile devices now. It's easily 10x more valuable than a gameboy for mobile use, because it's so much mo
My prediction for the Apple Watch's success (Score:2, Flamebait)
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For one thing, you're forgetting that relatively few people (in the US and many other places) pay full price upfront for phones. They buy an iPhone for $99 / $199 / $299 / $399 / etc and then have a subsidized contract over two years. Sure, you could buy it outright, but with most of the US carriers you're not going to get a reduced monthly, so what's the point?
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"Can't stop masturbating!" (Score:5, Funny)
said every writer at Wired.
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...yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before...
At last. My childhood dream came true. (Score:2)
When I was the child I have been dreaming of the television on my watch. I can have tv, apple watch, on my wrist.
I realize that I no longer want television on my wrist, when i have smartphone and computer around.
What we really want is a telephone that would fit to a wristwatch, possibly supplement with a hearing aid like almost invisible earphone.
I have a second cellphone, dumbphone, that holds the charge for 20 days. Thus, long battery life in the new wristphone would be nice too.
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android phones on watches have been around for at least 5 years
no I dont mean an accessory to a android phone, the whole damn thing in a watch
Use as a cock-ring? (Score:2, Funny)
Is there a version that has a cock-ring instead of a wrist band?
Thanks!
Water resistance ... (Score:2)
There's no such thing as 'water proof' -- everything is simply water resistant up to a certain level, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I... [wikipedia.org]
Re:OMG who the hell cares?! (Score:4, Insightful)
...who even wears watches anymore?
At least a million people.
Yes I want a tiny screen, inferior battery and all around crap experience please!
So... all you want is a desktop computer and everybody else in the world should, too. You know what's funny is I remember this reaction to tablets, smartphones, and cameras with cell phones. Nerd hipsterism is strange.
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At least a million people.
At least. The articles the other day all misreported the source material, since the source material said there were a hair under 1M purchasers who ordered an average of 1.3 devices each, yielding about 1.25M watches pre-ordered, and that was just in the US alone on the first day for pre-orders. Later numbers from other sources indicated that global pre-orders on day one were closer to 2.5M units.
But yeah, watches are worn all over the world by hundreds of millions of people. His question is just plain sill
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The fact you are rated "Troll" for besmirching an Apple product tells a lot about the new breed of slashdot user.
Personally I have been coming here for well over 10+ years and it seems all the self-described "in tech" overly opinionated trend slave trolls will be it's undoing. Oh, and Dice "articles".
Yes I'm bitter. The web is going to shit, we all see everyday.
Speed should be 60FPS (Score:2)
The selection screen appears to operate below 60 fps, it looks a bit jumpy to a gamer trained eye.
In theory the Apple Watch is supposed to update at 60FPS (that is what developers are targeting for animated sequences).
I could be in that case something uses a framerate drop... although aren't the video links posted here all below 60FPS, which which case how could you tell?
You can't zoom in on photos with pinch, which I felt was a MUST for such a small screen.
And Apple has said (rightfully I think) that pin
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You can put a pin code on it that has to be entered if you remove the watch from your wrist.
Once back on your wrist, you have to enter the pin code once until the next time you remove it.