GenNext smartwatch is here

Vaibhav Sharma

Apple is not a company that believes in being first, the iPhone wasn’t the first touchscreen smartphone and the iPad wasn’t the first tablet, but both devices ended up becoming class leading products. Apple’s strength lies in redefining the norm, in sometimes being fashionably late to the party, and yet producing an object so refined that the world takes notice.

Smartwatches have been in the mainstream conscience for years now, but Apple’s iteration is just starting to hit stores across the world. Unlike smartphones, an additional challenge Apple has is to convince people that they need a smartwatch, it isn’t merely a question of convincing them to buy Apple instead of Samsung or another.

The watch is feature packed. Apple’s put a loudspeaker, a retina-class touchscreen, a mic, a regular button, a brand new piece of hardware that they call the digital crown, and a heart rate monitor inside the small case. Another new technology is ‘force touch’ that gives you even more options while interacting with user interface.

Since watches are by their very definition personal, the company has also tried to diversify its offering with three distinct lines, priced differently based on the materials they use. The aluminium sport model starts at $349. The stainless steel crafted Apple watch retails for $549 and up, and finally the watch edition made of 18K gold starts at an astronomical $10,000. Additionally, Apple offers all sorts of bands to go with these watches that range from $49 for the fluoroelastomer sport band, to $449 for the stainless steel link bracelet.

The pricing that Apple has introduced is certainly higher than what you would expect to pay for something that’s in effect an accessory for your iPhone, and certainly far more that what a regular android wear watch would entail. But is it worth the hype?

Smartwatches bring freedom. You can leave your phone on charge or otherwise, and still be content that a tap on your wrist will tell you if there is something that needs your attention. It also means that you don’t have to pull the phone out of your pocket every time it chimes, only to dismiss a spam text or notification. Having used a Pebble and other smartwatches in the past, that’s all that I would do with them. But in the last one month of using an Apple Watch, I have grown to rely on it for a whole lot more. It keeps track of the number of calories I’ve burnt in a day, the minutes I have actively exercised, the number of hours I’ve stood up, and it even reminds me to move a little if I have been sedentary for long. I also track my runs with the inbuilt heart-rate monitor to see how effective my workouts are, and whether I’m meeting my daily goals.

Next, because of the Siri integration and its new found ability to understand the Indian accent, one can send quick messages and use dictation to reply. The inbuilt speaker is useful for taking the odd short phone call on the watch while driving or exercising. The third party apps on the Apple watch for now are hit or miss, but the new version of its WatchOS operating system promises to dramatically improve their speed and functionality. In terms of battery life, there are no complaints. Even after a long day, I usually have about 35 per cent of battery life remaining, and have easily fallen into the habit of charging it overnight, just like the iPhone.

So should you buy version one? For starters, the Apple watch is easily the best smartwatch in the market and if you are convinced about the utility that a smartwatch brings, you will not regret the purchase. If you are on the fence, it makes sense to invest in the cheaper sport model, as the functionality offered is the same. You only miss out on the scratch resistance of the sapphire glass that the more expensive models bring. WatchOS 2 promises to make the watch much better, and in a few months the functionality that the watch offers can explode, much like what happened to the iPhone post the App Store.

Bottomline: I loved using my space grey Apple Watch Sport, and will be upgrading to the more formal Apple Watch with link bracelet.