Half a year later, the Apple Watch feels like a stalled platform

At some point technology will permit iPhone-level computing in a form factor the size of a watch. When that happens, it will require new UI concepts to make that power usable. Apple has started the learning process by seeing what works in the market.

I can now leave my iPhone6 on my desk at work, and on a table and home and never have to carry it around with me (at those locations). It does exactly what a >Watch< should do. It's not a computer it's a 2nd screen for my phone.

Do you think the purchase of a Watch could have a bearing on iPhone purchase decisions based on the phone's battery life (if we do not see untethering in the near future)?

But, the iWatch is more fashion than function, so I'm not surprised it's stalled. v2 or v3 might pose some more appealing features, but for now i'm iWatchless, and i'm totally fine with that.

I understand they need a smart watch. Like another person pointed out, the last thing Appke wants is "Will this (any brand smart watch) work with my iPhone."

So they need a smart watch? When they figure out all the problems it might be a easier sell? Until they get to that point, I think they should work on making it waterproof.

A waterproof watch is not an easy engineering feat. Most watches, even high end watches, are not waterproof. Yes, they say they are, but unless you are vigilant on servicing a high-end watch; it will leak. I have had so many water resistant/proof watches cloud up while river rafting, or even sea kayaking.

I think Apple should focus on a truly waterproof watch. I think it would be a great selling point. It seems like it would be an easy engineering feat, but it's hard. They could do away with the crown. That would be one less gasket to worry about. And then you still need to access the internals for repair? You want customers thinking they will have this watch for life?

I think what Apple forgot about when designing the Iwatch is this; When people decide to buy a high-end watch, a little part of them is thinking, I'll have this watch for life? If it needs repair/servicing--I can easily it repaired. (If it's out of warranty it's very difficult/expensive to repair these high end watches.) "Hell, if I get tired of it, I'll sell it?" "I love those 60 year old Bubble-backs--they must be bullet proof?" "If I buy this watch, I give it to my kid eventually?"

When I look at the Iwatch, none of these thoughts come to mind. Actually, maybe Apple should have never tried to play up the luxury branding of the Iwatch. Forget about the 18k gold, and all that. Lower the pricing point. Make it truely water resistant. Maybe even waterproof?

But then again, what do I know? I do collect/repair old watches. I really wanted to like the Iwatch. Maybe the next model?

I use it for telling the time, tracking my activity, and reading iMessages, but I now know that attempting to do anything else I'd possibly want to (like replying to a message) will take twice as long on the watch as it does to take my phone out of my pocket and do it on there. It even lags while scrolling a notification, sometimes.

Many of my friends are the same, although don't dislike it enough to sell it. They don't plan to upgrade to the next version, however.

Edit: I also wish notifications were smarter. I like that you can choose which apps have their notifications show up on the watch, but it's currently all or nothing. I'd like to be able to choose what type of notifications show up. For example, I want notifications for Twitter DMs on my watch, but not notifications for likes, retweets, etc.

But a smartphone solves problems. lots of problems. GPS, camera, email... it does a lot. A smartwatch has to solve different problems, or current problems better, to be useful. Whereas right now it's more fashion than function.

I'm surprised to hear that. I've found the apple watch to have very significant errors for measuring heart rates, often over 20% versus a chest strap.

For my purposes that makes it largely useless. I'm admittedly serious about tracking my exertion levels: I run about 40+ miles per week, use a Polar Ft7 for comparison.

I don't expect to get these. But you asked what I wanted.

I think this is a great future market. It's quite unfortunate that, although the Apple watch has a pulse oximeter in it, the functionality is currently disabled. Reportedly because it would then be a medical device in the eyes of the FDA.

Good sleep tracking, just that one function, could conceivably sell millions of units.

Notifications are actually really nice. My phone has been on silent for months. When I'm at home, I never, ever have my phone with me anymore. Basically wherever I go I just put my phone down and forget about it because the watch is a sufficient proxy. Is it life changing? Nope, but it's definitely convenient.

I've taken phone calls through my watch when cooking before. That was actually really cool.

I think you're forgetting that it's also, well, a watch. I always find it silly how people underplay the fact that smartwatches are also just watches. In my case, I have the time, date, temperature / weather conditions, next meeting time, activity tracking, and the time of sunrise/sunset all available with a split second glance on my wrist. Again, it's not life changing, but it sure is convenient. The sport band is also way more comfortable than almost all traditional watches I've ever worn; I often barely notice I have it on.

I flew a bunch recently and I loved having my gate and terminal information for my next flight right on my watchface.

I don't regret getting the watch at all. It's been a really pleasant companion on my wrist.

I've never really understood why people are mystified by smartwatches. They're just watches that do more and provide more information. People wear them for the same reason they would wear any watch. They're not even that expensive. Maybe $350 sounds like a lot, but I can find you hundreds of Citizen quarts watches for that price or more. $350 is just not high in the watch world.

I also no longer have notification noises on, I just have a thing on my wrist that vibrates. Again, a not insignificant quality of life improvement.

If I used iOS instead of Android I'd probably have an Apple Watch instead of a PT, since that works better with that platform.

I don't really care about smart watches being a platform for apps. Maybe that has stalled, but it doesn't matter to me. I haven't found a single app for the PT I think is useful. It doesn't mean I don't find my PT useful. If I lost it today, I'd order another one without hesitation.

I think expectations are to high and it has a low ceiling in terms of potential. Apple shouldn't have gotten into this market for years to come but the pressure from investors forced them.

To flip around, you mean for all the money I pay for that designer watch, all it does is tell time? Hell, I've got my phone for that. An expensive device that takes up space on my wrist just to tell time in a world full of clocks is just a silly gimmick, but so many people have buyer's remorse about it, that they forced themselves into the habit of using it.

Of course, I don't believe any of that. Different strokes and all, and if folks want to blow cash on time-telling jewelry that can't even tell me what the weather is tomorrow, more power to them.

Signed, happy Pebble Time owner

Does anyone else not remember this?!

From comments online, I find it really hard to believe that the world has collectively forgotten that. Did I live in a bubble, or is everyone else's memory of 2007 just way off? From what I remembered, it was outright mass hysteria.

The watch, OTOH, just doesn't excite people the same way. Critics and skeptics have not been silenced. It doesn't even excite their owners the same way. People are buying and returning the watches. Owners are defensive when talking about the watch, instead of the cult-like adoration and mass hysteria that followed the original iPhone.

1) One of our server goes down. 2) My watch tells me about it. 3) I can decide a) Reboot it b) Replace it c) Send a callout to my Ops team.

All in less than 10 seconds ... used to take 10 minutes, including taking out my laptop, checking what's going on, finding out who's on call.

We have a few dozen of these.