Posts Tagged → apple watch

A Few Thoughts Following Apple’s “It’s Glowtime” Event

Today Apple announced its latest crop of Apple Watches, AirPods, and iPhones. Here are a few thoughts.

The Video Events

  • Apple has perfected these video presentations. There are so many nice small touches throughout the videos and I like the way they are featuring bits of the Bay Area beyond Apple Park.
  • Another thing about these video presentations is how information dense they are. So much information comes at you so fast. No more silly demos.
  • That said, I still miss the anything-can-happen tension of the live events. These million-dollar executives should have to sweat once in a while. Although I expect actual live events from Apple are a thing of the past.

Apple Watch Series 10

  • The thing about Apple Watch saving lives is real. I know two people that experienced that. I’ve heard more from my audience. That’s got to feel pretty great if you work on the Apple Watch.
  • The new design doesn’t look like the revolution we’d been hearing about. Thinner and bigger but, generally, the same.
  • I’m relieved they didn’t change the band system.
  • 80% battery in 30 minutes. Nice.
  • The Sleep Apnea feature looks to be a nice improvement. The white whale, however, remains blood pressure and blood glucose monitoring.
  • I love that they brought titanium back to the standard Watch. It’s such a great case material. Strong and light.
  • I’m not a fan of polished titanium. Well, I’m generally not a fan of any polished metal. They show so many more scratches than other finishes. I’m guessing they wanted the titanium watches to look different from their aluminum variants.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 (again)

  • There were last-minute rumors that there would not be an Apple Watch Ultra 3 but instead a black variant of the Ultra 2 and that’s what we got.
  • I know a lot of folks are going to love this, but I prefer the natural titanium. Looks like I’ll be holding on to my Apple Watch Ultra another year. It’s still doing great.
  • It seems odd to me that the Ultra didn’t get a proper update this year. Now it’s behind the standard (and less expensive) Apple Watch Series 10. I don’t think they are backing away from the Ultra (I see them on people’s wrists everywhere) but maybe something went wrong in development?

AirPods 4

  • This feels like a substantial update to the standard AirPods. A lot of the features from the AirPods Pro trickled down this year and that’s great. Increasingly the AirPods are tiny computers in our ears.
  • There are a lot of people that don’t like the fit of the AirPods Pro. This will bring them a lot of the Pro features and at a lower price.
  • This is the first time there have been two flavors of standard AirPods in the same release. The Active Noise Cancellation version will run another $50.

AirPods Max

  • New colors and a USB-C port for charging. That’s about it.

AirPods Pro

  • AirPods Pro 2 as Hearing Aids: This is one of those great angles that only Apple seems interested in. Create a consumer technology and then use it to solve a health problem. Granted, they are awfully big for hearing aids, but a lot of people can benefit from this feature.
  • Note that they also are now doing hearing testing, which will also be a big deal.

iPhone 16

  • The new iPhone looks great. I prefer the stacked lens layout.
  • Apple continues to push the envelope on unbreakable glass. I’d love to see some scientific tests against the different glass iterations Apple’s used over the years.
  • I haven’t heard any blowback from members or listeners about the bigger size. I still wish they made a small one every year.

The New Camera Control Button

  • I hd hoped that this button would be programmable, but it sure seems dedicated to the camera based on the presentation.
  • There are a lot of camera controls once you master the new button. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on it.
  • The combination with the Apple Intelligence looks interesting. I didn’t expect that.

iPhone 16 Pro

  • I was in the MacSparky Labs Discord during this event and there was a lot of talk about how the big difference every year is just the camera. But the fact is that cameras improvements sell phones.
  • That said, I am looking forward to an improved Ultra Wide lens.
  • “The Largest iPhone Display Ever” plus the ever shrinking bezels will be fun to test. It seems like Apple is leaning into something with the way it’s increasing screen sizes across the board.
  • I think all that talk about improved microphones is as much aimed at Apple Intelligence as anything else. The better the voice input, the better AI result.
  • There are some big claims about the increased battery life (33 hours on the Pro Max!). I’m looking forward to testing that.

The Apple Intelligence Sales Job

They spent a lot of time talking about Apple Intelligence. That’s probably necessary given the market pressures. But these promises for an undelivered product also raise the stakes. Ultimately, there has to be more than hype behind Apple Intelligence, and soon.

On the Plastic Apple Watch SE

There is a rumor afloat that the next Apple Watch SE will be made of plastic. Mark Gurman recently stated that Apple using rigid plastic in the Apple Watch SE is “increasingly likely.” I think this is a good idea for several reasons:

  • Hopefully, it would allow them to lower the price. Lower prices should equal more Apple Watches on wrists. The Apple Watch is an excellent device. Not only does it tell you the time, but it could save your life. Whether you’re in a crash, suffer a fall, or develop a bad ticker, the Apple Watch is there for you.
  • Second, plastic would hopefully give them more options regarding colors. Apple, the company that brought us the Bondi Blue iMac has been off its game lately regarding product colors. Maybe plastic would allow them to be a little more experimental.
  • Finally, it would be a lot lighter. Lately, I’ve been making a real effort to wear my Apple Watch Ultra while I sleep, and I notice the weight. Granted, I’ve the heaviest of Apple Watches. But there is a market for people who prefer a lighter wristwatch.

The internal argument against a plastic watch would be that Apple doesn’t make things out of plastic. Hopefully, the powers that be see that Apple should make things out of whatever materials make the most sense for the product. And in the case of the Apple Watch SE, a plastic watch makes a ton of sense.

Don’t Forget About the watchOS Update

Today, Apple publicly released iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. I’ve got plenty of content coming about the new releases, but if there is one thing you should check out that you may have missed, it’s watchOS 10.

This year, Apple made some significant changes to the way watchOS works, and it may end up being divisive. You no longer swipe up for Control Center but instead, you press on the Side Button. When you turn the Digital Crown up from the main screen (or swipe up from the bottom edge of the display), you get you a dynamic scrolling list of Widgets (Apple calls it Smart Stack) with information like upcoming events, running timers, and whatnot. Long pressing on an app’s card in this view allows you to pin it at the top this list.

A bonus is that because good, contextual information is now a dial spin away, you don’t have to rely on information-dense watch faces anymore.

All the Gory Details of The Apple Watch Survey

A few weeks ago, I did a survey on Apple Watch usage. I summarized the results in today’s newsletter (Sign up) along with some thoughts about how it relates to the future of the Apple Watch, but I wanted to share the entire survey results somewhere, so here you go.

There were just under 1,100 responses. I think you can assume the responses skew a bit on the nerdy side because, well, me. But overall, the data reflects that the vast majority of folks are very happy with their Apple Watches. 

The data below speaks for itself, but there were a few items that stood out to me:

  • The Apple Watch users are overwhelmingly satisfied with their watches. Those of us on the edges forget that most people just love their Apple products.
  • Many People (~40%) are wearing older Apple Watches (3+ years). At the same time, the Ultra is very popular (19.5%).
  • The big watch is much more popular than the small one. I know there are more men than women in my audience but I also suspect my gang thinks about battery life more than most consumers.
  • The cellular watch is more popular than I thought it’d be. I try not to think about the money I spend to have a cellular watch vs. the amount of actual usage it gets.
  • Seventy percent of those responding sleep with the Watch on at least sometimes. That is a much bigger number than I expected.
  • The feature usage numbers were not that surprising, except for Focus modes. I expected more people to be using the watch for Focus Mode shifting, and the numbers didn’t bear that out. I’ll be doing my next survey on how many people are actually using Focus Modes.
  • I got lots of email and comments from people using their Apple Watches in unique ways. While for most the watch is a time, notification, and activity device, for some users it’s a lot more.

Apple Watch and Early Detection of Parkinson’s Disease

Scientists have been studying motion tracking as a method for early detection of Parkinson’s Disease, which initially shows up with symptoms of rigidity and tremors. Researchers in the UK are looking to use smartwatches and their motion tracking to help prove an earlier Parkinson’s diagnosis.

Early results are positive, with AI models providing accurate early diagnosis. Further studies are underway, but it makes sense that a sensitive motion-tracking device on your wrist all day would notice things you may not.

Do you remember when the big story about the Apple Watch was that it was a fashion accessory? As the years go by, it becomes so obvious that the Apple Watch is primarily a robust health and fitness device in addition to telling you the time. I’m already starting a campaign to get one on my mother-in-law’s wrist. (Hat tip to Amber Neely at Apple Insider for turning me onto this research.)

A Brief Review of the Orange Nomad Sport Band

I’ve been leaning into the orange bands with the Apple Watch Ultra. They look great, particularly with that big orange button on the side. The problem is that my Apple Orange Alpine Loop is getting filthy. I wanted an orange band appropriate for working in the yard and whatnot so I ordered the Nomad Orange Sport Band.
It arrived a few days ago, and I’m digging it. The material is “Premium” fluoroelastomer. It feels good on my wrist and the abundance of holes makes it comfortable, even when I’m working outside and sweating. It feels secure and looks easy to clean. If you’ve got the orange watch band bug, this is one to check out.