Will You Be Returning Your Watch?

[MariahSantos32]

I've got a 42mm Sport and despite the convenience of seeing my notifications or the occasional Hey Siri, I'm beginning to think about returning it. Both my Pebble Steel and Microsoft Band will provide me with the information and notifications I'm accustomed to having with a wearable, but I haven't seen anything in the Watch apps side of things that really makes it all that useful and it's slow loading enough that I may as well pull out the phone. The interface itself makes finding a specific app difficult as well.

The screen and graphics do look great though, but I'm not sure if it's worth the $400 right now. There's some promising things coming along with iOS 9, so I'm thinking about returning it for now. It seems a bit half-baked and it bugs me that despite turning notification alerts volume up, there is not a peep from the watch - I just have to rely on the fairly light bump for my alert.

Has the Watch delivered its value for you?

 

[Scatabrain]

So goes the brave early adopter consumers-heh.

As for returning it, my reasoning is that I have a small window of time to actually use it. Having a couple wearables on hand already, I compare the value to cost and of course the redundancy of gadgets on hand. The apps on Watch aren't all that useful - I've tried a bunch of them, so it comes down to the main functions such as telling time, checking schedule, text notifications, fitness and alerts. The advantage that Watch has being an Apple product is that it has full access to the iPhone's APIs, so I can actually reply to text notifications and a few other things. Apple does not allow Pebble nor Band to such APIs, so it's an unfair playing field, but hey Apple owns that field so it doesn't want to compete then it doesn't have to compete at the expense of consumer choice.

Anyways, if I return it now I do benefit by resetting the warranty time if/when I repurchase in store. The Watch isn't too useful now and I can wear the MS Band/Pebble until then or when there is a rumors of what Watch2 will offer. If this is your only smartwatch, I can see how returning doesn't make sense. I have choices, so it's easy to think about it.

There are lots of other main functions your other devices don't have: phone calls, messaging, Siri, control media, navigation, Apple Pay etc.

 

[Witness]

There are lots of other main functions your other devices don't have: phone calls, messaging, Siri, control media, navigation, Apple Pay etc.

The other devices don't have some of those functions because Apple did not allow access to those APIs. It's an unfair playing field because of it, but hey it's their playing field. Even within its own apps ecosystem, they provide second rate APIs - take the camera for instance. You can get a pretty good live view using the built-in camera control - looks to be like 15fps. Then, try using ProCamera's Watch app and try the live view - it's like 2fps. That's just what Apple does, which is why I'm not all that fond of them compared to other companies, but hey they can do whatever they want. So, as for other devices:

Pebble: Receive messaging, phone call notification and rejection, control media, navigation through companion app
Band: Receive messaging, phone call notification and rejection

No way is Apple going to let anyone else use Siri, integrate with their Maps or Apple Pay, so Watch is the only choice. That's how they operate and it has been successful for them to limit consumer choice. For me, I like interoperability. Power to consumer and whatnot. Meanwhile, I sold the Pebble - there's no point in having that now. The Fall update should be nice.

 

[Scatabrain]

The other devices don't have some of those functions because Apple did not allow access to those APIs. It's an unfair playing field because of it, but hey it's their playing field. Even within its own apps ecosystem, they provide second rate APIs - take the camera for instance. You can get a pretty good live view using the built-in camera control - looks to be like 15fps. Then, try using ProCamera's Watch app and try the live view - it's like 2fps. That's just what Apple does, which is why I'm not all that fond of them compared to other companies, but hey they can do whatever they want. So, as for other devices:

Pebble: Receive messaging, phone call notification and rejection, control media, navigation through companion app
Band: Receive messaging, phone call notification and rejection

No way is Apple going to let anyone else use Siri, integrate with their Maps or Apple Pay, so Watch is the only choice. That's how they operate and it has been successful for them to limit consumer choice. For me, I like interoperability. Power to consumer and whatnot. Meanwhile, I sold the Pebble - there's no point in having that now. The Fall update should be nice.

The browser control is like that too. Usually the reason the api is less powerful is due to Apple providing a secure system. The camera is certainly an exception to that. Over the years they tend to loosen up where it makes sense.

My point was that your short list of main features was shorter then Apple Watch features that I consider great. Most of those things are why I love my watch and the other devices just don't provide. The Moto 360 and watches like it would be a great alternative if they can figure out battery life and add health features.

 

[essay2u]

I like it but the inconsistency of the activity app and fitness monitoring are a very big downside. Had I known more about this prior, I would not have purchased...

 

[Trayscragg15]

Still debating on screen size so will see.