Why I Bought My Wife an Apple Watch — But Didn’t Get One for Myself
It’s been nearly five months since the Apple Watch hit the market. Unless you were an early adopter, you might be on the fence still, wondering whether the Watch would actually add something substantial to your life — or just be another nice-but-not-necessary bauble cluttering your dresser. Apple’s recent announcement of some fancy new watchbands and additional apps might have you pondering that question anew.
The answer depends almost entirely on some very personal specifics: How you use your iPhone, the apps you like, the fitness activities you prefer, even the kind of watch (if any) you have now.
I found myself facing all of those questions not long ago, when I was trying to figure out what to get my wife for our 25th anniversary.
To mark the occasion, I wanted to get my wife something significant. The Apple Watch seemed like it might be a good choice: A classy, nice-looking timepiece with lots of practical uses. Sure, a gift marking such a momentous occasion should probably be something that will stand the test of the time, and a first-generation Apple Watch will be outdated in a few years. But I was willing to overlook that: She can keep the Watch around as a reminder that she had the first version of a revolutionary product.
The funny thing is, not long before I made that purchase, my wife asked me if I wanted one. I told her no, I didn’t. Here’s why I decided it was right for her but not for me.
No time for a phone
When it comes to watches, my wife has never been exactly cutting edge. She’s been wearing an old Tag Heuer for years. She had a brief fling with using her iPod nano as a watch, but then she got frustrated because she couldn’t get the watch face to appear when she needed it. With the Apple Watch, there would be no such problems. And it does two things for her that her old Tag Heuer never could.
First, it would allow her to keep an eye on incoming text messages and phone calls during the day, making it possible to contact her quickly if an emergency arose. My wife works as a first grade teacher. Surrounded by kids and constantly busy, she can’t really pull out her iPhone in the middle of a lesson to check incoming texts.
The Apple Watch lets her check those messages with just a glance at her wrist. She can even quickly answer them, with the watch’s short, pre-programmed responses (“OK,” “thank you,” and so on; she hasn’t taken the time to customize them yet). She can, if need be, go all Dick Tracy and answer phone calls on her watch — but she still prefers to talk on her phone.
But the feature she ended up loving the most is the Activity app. She’s become obsessed with meeting the three daily fitness goals — stand, move, and exercise — that are displayed on the Apple Watch’s activity rings.
Standing (the goal is at least a minute per hour) is a piece of cake for her: As a teacher, she’s on her feet much of the day anyway. Moving (expending a specified number of calories) and exercising (30 minutes total of activity) are more challenging, especially on days she can’t make it to the gym.
She gets frustrated when she can’t meet all three goals — but she still appreciates the Watch’s challenges and the reminders. The moving goal increases every week, even if you didn’t meet the previous one. She could decline that increase, but she refuses to go that route: She’s no quitter.
Not waterproof? No deal
As for me, I can certainly appreciate the Apple Watch as a brilliant piece of tech gear. I just don’t need one now.
For one thing, I work mostly at home at my laptop and I usually have my iPhone within easy reach throughout the day. I don’t really need to get texts, calls and emails on my wrist.
And while I think the Activity app is kind of cool, I’m pretty good about getting out of my chair regularly to take a break away from the computer. I go to the gym at least four days a week and walk our dog at least a mile nearly every day. Those habits are pretty well ingrained already; I don’t need an app to remind me.
Also, I can already track my walks on my iPhone, using the Health app. And while I can’t track my activity in a spinning class or on the Stairmaster at the gym on my phone, I know I’m working hard, so it’s not a huge deal to me. If I’m swimming, I can track my progress with my old Timex Ironman digital watch. It might not be as cool or fancy as the Apple Watch, but it is waterproof — which the Apple Watch isn’t.
The one time where the Apple Watch might be helpful is when I’m golfing. On my iPhone, I use the Free Caddie app, which (using the phone’s GPS) helps you determine how far your ball is from the hole. That’s helpful, but it’s a pain to pull my iPhone out of my pocket before every swing. With an Apple Watch, that information would be handy on my wrist.
That last one could be a selling point for me. But I’d still want a watch I could wear daily and get wet. So for now, I’m holding out — at least until the waterproof Apple Watch hits the market.
So that’s how our particular buying decision worked out: Yes for my wife, not yet for me. How about you? Have you made the plunge already? Still thinking about it? Let me know in the comments below.
Craig Rosen writes about music, technology and lifestyles. You can find him on Twitter @CraigRosen.
