Here’s what our readers think of the Apple Watch

Long-awaited and eagerly anticipated by many, the Apple Watch finally arrived in April to fairly positive reviews. In our own write-up of Apple’s first wearable, we admired its construction, calling it the finest we’ve ever seen from a smartwatch and similar to “something made by Tag Heuer or Cartier.” In use, we found it “straightforward, if not always intuitive” with good notifications and comprehensive activity-tracking abilities. However, we had our reservations, noting that while it was the nicest smartwatch available, it wasn’t very revolutionary and as such: “It’s probably not compelling enough to buy one.” But many of you did buy one, and you let us know in your reviews whether you were amazed by its capabilities or merely found it acceptable for a first-generation product.

“Everyone that sees it seems to like it.” – LinusX

At first glance, the Apple Watch inspires admiration, with LinusX finding it “not as nerdy or embarrassing” as he originally thought, and more like “a futuristic object.” HornetStings actually went in the opposite direction on the timeline, calling the Apple Watch’s design retro, although still “beautifully crafted and highly stylish.” HighFlyer says it’s “far from being clunky or geeky” and fits snugly “like a high-class accessory.” But the Watch’s high style could still use a few improvements here and there, with nnieman wishing it had a circular display and that the device was “slightly lighter.” HornetStings feels that the added weight “may not be a problem” for men, but concedes that women “may notice it more.”

The squarish screen is a big part of what makes the Apple Watch so appealing, with HighFlyer finding its ability to display clear text and colorful photos outstanding. Thanks to the Watch’s “brilliant” display, jbanning finally understands “why OLED is so heralded as having such deep blacks.” And even though the screen on the Sport model is not a sapphire display like the higher-end versions, LinusX says it’s still “crisp and super high quality.”

“I can perform so many tasks with just a glance, a touch or gesture or two on my Apple Watch.” – HighFlyer

So our users were certainly enamored with the Watch’s style, but what about its substance? Well, LinusX had a laundry list of features he appreciated on the Apple Watch, finding the “text messaging, getting notifications, making AND taking phone calls (with Siri) on the watch to be extremely useful when driving, cooking, walking or at the gym.” Spenumatsa uses it as both a watch and a health tracker, and really enjoys the Watch’s prompts to stand up every hour, though it might be “an annoyance for some people.” HighFlyer found it very useful in a financial sense, using the Watch to monitor “worldwide reaction in real time of events on stock markets, look at my stock and derivative brokers accounts and make timely BUY/SELL/HOLD decisions.” And HornetSting found it very helpful in his work as a chef, making use of several cooking apps as well as the “customizable reminders to keep my kitchen staff up to date with orders.”

“In no way will this product ever take the place of a regular watch.” – mattliptak

However, as much as the Watch can do for them, users noted all the things it still couldn’t do, with mattliptak lamenting that he still had to keep his handset nearby and he “ended up relying on my phone more after glancing at the watch, receiving texts and alerts to emails.” Falleninsea feels a lot of potential in the Watch fell short, saying it “delivers a lot of things, but doesn’t really blow me away on any of them.” Nnieman notes that for everything the Watch is capable of, “it can’t do many of them better than my iPhone.” However, while LinusX concedes, “I can do less on the watch,” he adds that it does keep him “from wasting time on the phone.” And even nnieman says that while he wishes the Apple Watch had more features, he doesn’t know “exactly what else I would want it to do.”

While falleninsea might feel the Apple Watch is being sold “on the strength of its design more than on the stretch of its features” and mattliptak calls it “one of the worst Apple products I have ever owned,” many readers are still happy with their purchases. LinusX finds it “well worth it” and nnieman is looking forward to future updates and more app support. Ultimately, nnieman calls it a “very good first-gen product” and Jd777 says it’s “better than the first iPhone because it works well.”

That’s what readers have told us so far; share your own opinions of the Apple Watch by leaving a review on the product page here. Or tell us about other recent purchases like the Fitbit Surge or the Pebble Time and we may feature them in a future post.

Filed under: Wearables, Mobile, Apple

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