I seem to have this need to date myself, but I will confess that my love affair with smart watches actually started back in the 1990s, with my Seiko Message Watch (shown above). It was basically a pager, but it could show text messages from my office and family, along with stock prices, sports scores, and weather forecasts – all right on my wrist. The thing that made it far more functional to me than a standard pager was the subtlety factor. Looking at a belt pager for a message was a pretty blatant act, but with a watch, I was never out of contact with my office or family, even during a trial, because a quick glance at a watch is socially acceptable (and fully expected during a trial since you must be ever aware of the clock). When Seiko cancelled the service, I was crestfallen.
Now, some 25 years later, technology has finally returned me to this former glory.
For those of you unfamiliar with the very nature of an Apple Watch (which was me until I got one), it is primarily an adjunct to your iPhone. There are a few things the Watch will do standing alone (see the complete list at the end of this article), but for the most part it is simply an interface to your phone. But that alone makes it worth the purchase price.
In my opinion, the single most important feature of the Apple Watch isits location. Almost everything I do on the Watch could be done with my iPhone, but I can do it without pulling out my phone (or even necessarily knowing where it is).
An example just presented itself while I was typing that prior paragraph. I have set up a news service to send me important news updates. My Watch just tapped my wrist to let me know there was in incoming message. Without even pausing from my typing, I looked at my wrist and saw that there are big doings in the current election. Interesting, but not worth stopping what I’m doing in order to pull out my iPhone, hit the button, wait for it to recognize my fingerprint, and then try to figure out which app caused my iPhone to ding. I just saved myself 8 seconds.
It’s dozens of little incidents such as that that add up to some significant time and annoyance savings throughout the day.
“But you should wait and check your phone only once or twice a day, and in that way you would not be having to pull out your phone multiple times,” say the naysaying efficiency experts. To that I respond that earlier today I saw (on my wrist) a call coming in from my wife, who was in a bit of a panic because her (friggin’ new) car had just broken down on the freeway. While she was dealing with calling AAA, she needed me to help deal with a couple of emergencies the break down had created. Would you naysayers have preferred that I left my wife stressed and stranded on the freeway in the name of “only check your phone twice a day” efficiency? Well, would you?! If your answer is no (as it better be), then I am back to pulling out my phone (or finding it on my desk) multiple times a day to see if that is the sort of call that is coming in.
Apple is kind of famous for creating a product, and then letting the public find a use for it. There were many critics when the iPad was released, stating it was just an “over-sized iPhone”, but history has shown the utility of that little gadget.
So it is with the Apple Watch. I read many articles questioning why you would need a smart watch when you can accomplish the same tasks simply by pulling out your smart phone. The simple answer is that I don’t want to always be pulling out and/or holding my iPhone. While wearing the Apple Watch, I can confidently leave my iPhone in my briefcase or pocket, without fear of missing a time sensitive call or text.
So therein are the most important features for lawyers – communication, convenience and time saving. If you are looking for an article on how the Apple Watch prepares jury instructions or offers complete case management on your wrist, I can’t offer you that (yet). But here are the top 9 reasons this lawyer loves his Apple Watch, all of which make my days a little more pleasant and efficient:
1. Being able to make and answer phone calls without pulling out my iPhone (or even knowing where it is).
Totally Dick Tracy. My Watch vibrates and/or rings, and displays the name of the person calling. I can dismiss or answer the call right on my wrist. Whether this is something you will use is of course dependent on your circumstances, especially since it is a speaker phone sort of interaction. I hope we don’t devolve into a society where everyone on the elevator is having a public two-way conversation with their wrists.
But where I really appreciate this feature is when I want my hands free. I’m kind of a monosyllabic guy, so for me most personal phone calls are listening experiences. If I’m doing something around the house, I can take a call and keep on doing what I’m doing. With a cell phone, I either have to stick a Bluetooth thingy in my ear or hold the phone with one hand if I’m moving around (I can’t stand earbuds).
Making calls is equally impressive. While working at my computer, I got a hankering to go to a Lazy Dog restaurant that night, so I searched for the closest one and looked up the number. Without taking my eyes from the screen, I just lifted my wrist and said, “Hey Siri, call 7147319700”, and a few seconds later I was talking to the hostess on my wrist (a tiiiiiny little hostess). I then realized that for a known business, looking up the number is a wasted step. Now I know to just say, “Hey Siri, call the closest Lazy Dog,” and it shows up on my Watch, ready to dial.
No one on the other end of a call has ever noticed or complained about my wrist calls, but the volume from the Watch is pretty low, so you can only take calls in quiet locations.
With the latest iteration of the Apple Watch, it now has it’s own cell service for $10 per month. I’m on the fence as to whether that added cost is justified, but I will say that it frequently keeps me from missing calls. I’m not the sort who always has his phone with him. At the gym, for example, it’s just one more thing to deal with, so I leave it in the car. But with the watch, I still get all my calls, text messages, and news updates. I leave it to you to decide whether that is a feature or a glitch.
2. Being able to receive and respond to text messages.
Responding to texts is soooo much faster with the Watch than with the iPhone. “But how can you type a message on that little screen?”, you may ask. The answer is, you don’t.
When you receive a text, you can respond with one of several canned responses (yes, no, thanks, I’ll call you back, kiss my ass, etc.) or, and here’s the fun part, you can respond verbally, and then elect to either send that response as text or a voice response.
It doesn’t rate a “top 9″, but I also like being able to see emails as they come in. Technically, I could read the email and dictate a response, but it’s a little too kludgy for me. I don’t even like responding to emails on my iPhone. But just seeing the subject line appear on your Watch can give you added warning of any crucial emails that require attention. Don’t worry; you won’t see every dang spam email that comes to your inbox. You can set your Watch to only show emails from the people you have deemed to be important.
3. Being able to find my iPhone.
Come on, be honest, how often do you have to look around for your cell phone? If never, then you’re a better man than me, Gunga Din. With the Watch, you push an icon on the screen and your iPhone begins to ding. I use that feature A LOT.
4. The ability to control podcasts, music or audiobooks.
I absorb many podcasts and audiobooks. In this case, I do stick a Bluetooth thingy in my ear so that I can listen to whatever I want while shopping, working around the house, or jogging (like that’s gonna happen). The Watch has a “now playing” screen that controls whatever you are listing to. You can pause, skip and adjust the volume.
Again, this screen controls WHATEVER is playing, but you can also access specific audio apps through the Watch. If I’m listening to Pandora, I can switch between stations — even create a new station — and give Stairway to Heaven a thumbs up, all on my Watch.
Speaking of podcasts, I use an app called Overcast as my podcast player, and it is fully functional on the Watch. The advantage of Overcast is that it has what it calls “effects” that you can apply to any podcast, including the abilities to speed up the playback (while still maintaining a perfectly normal sounding voice) and to eliminate long pauses. However, I think this effects may be taking a toll. After using Overcast for a couple of years now, I feel like everyone I talk to is talking waaaay tooooo slooooow.
If you’re interested, at the end of this article I explain the setup I use that allows me to listen to podcasts, audiobooks, sports or whatever, anytime I find myself killing time; even while waiting in court.
5. So much information on my watch face.
I touched on this already. For each of your apps, you can decide which ones will display information on your Watch (assuming the app has been made Watch compatible, which is more and more the case). So, in addition to texts and phone calls, I can see updates to sport scores, weather, Amazon package deliveries, or whatever.
I especially like the Watch’s integration with the Maps app. I use my iPhone as a navigation unit in my car (which has a nav unit, but it doesn’t do real-time traffic). When I enter a location, the iPhone automatically makes my Watch a part of the process. When it comes time to make a turn, the Watch taps my wrist and makes a turn signal sound, with the sound differing depending on whether it is a left or right turn. This tactile (also called Haptic) feedback has kept me from missing many a turn.
6. Instant access to Siri.
Because of battery concerns, I don’t use the automatic “Hey Siri” feature on my iPhone. With the Apple Watch, Siri is ready at your beck and call.
Billy Bob Thorton comes on TV, and I notice he’s really aged. I lift my Watch and say, “Hey Siri, how old is Billy Bob Thorton?” She responds that he’s only about six months older than me, and I get really depressed. I couldn’t have gotten depressed nearly that fast if I had to pull out my iPhone.
Siri is also great for reminders and appointments. I sometimes prefer location reminders over reminders based on time. Siri knows where I live and work, so if I remember a task while I’m getting ready in the morning, I just lift my wrist and say, “remind me when I get to work that I need to call Joe Dokes” and it will do just that.
7. Being able to pay for purchases.
This really happened to me; like something out of a commercial. I have Apple Pay set up on my iPhone and Watch. I thought the Watch feature was just for convenience, allowing me to pay for a purchase without taking out my iPhone, but still dependent on having the iPhone nearby.
I was checking out at a store, and realized I’d left my iPhone in the car. I gave my Watch a try anyway, and it worked just fine. You need to set up Apple Pay in the Apple Watch app, but once done, service will continue to work even when your iPhone is absent. A unique token that acts as your card number is stored on Apple Watch, allowing you use Apple Pay with just your Watch. Just hold your watch near the terminal.
The Passbook feature is also available on the Watch, so anything you have stored in it, such as electronic tickets, Starbucks cards, boarding passes, gift cards, and anything else that is scannable, should work with just your Watch.
8. The health benefits.
Here is one example where the iPhone cannot do what the Watch does. With its ability to monitor my heart rate, it can go far beyond all the fitness apps that rely only on the accelerometer of the iPhone, which can only track steps in order to offer a very rough estimate of activity.
I use the MyFitnessPal app to track my caloric intake and exercise. It pulls activity information from the Watch and uses it to calculate the calories I burn. The calories I’ve burned show up in the calculation, so I know if I’m entitled to an extra lettuce wrap.
9. Adjusting my thermostats.
This little feature has more than paid for the Watch.
I have ecobee thermostats in my home, which permit me to communicate with them from anywhere in the world. From my watch, I can set different temperatures upstairs and downstairs, or turn off the heating/cooling altogether. Again, like most everything on this list, I can also do this from my iPhone, but perhaps because of the gadget factor or just the increased convenience, I find myself using this feature far more often with my Watch, and thereby saving money on utilities. More than once, I’ve pulled out of the garage, realized that I was the last one to leave, and with a flip of my wrist I can turn up the temp to minimize the AC. (My research has revealed that it’s actually more efficient to just turn off the AC altogether, rather than to just set it to a higher temp, but I don’t want to bake my animals.) Ecobee thermostats actually have sensors that will eventually figure out that no one is home, and raise the temp, but the Watch makes the process instantaneous. When I head home, I use my Watch to turn the temp back down, so it’s cool when I arrive.
You can control any number of smart home features with your Watch, such as lights and even shades.
Things you can do with your Watch without your iPhone.
Although you need your iPhone nearby to do many things with Apple Watch, there are things you can do when you don’t have your iPhone with you or when it’s turned off:
- Play music from a synced playlist on Apple Watch
- Use the watch , alarms , timers , and the stopwatch
- Track your activity with the Activity app
- Track workouts using the Workout app
- Display photos from synced photo albums in the Photos app
Apple Watch uses Bluetooth® wireless technology to connect to its paired iPhone and uses the iPhone for many wireless functions. Apple Watch can’t configure Wi-Fi networks on its own, but it can connect to Wi-Fi networks you’ve set up or connected to using the paired iPhone.
If your Apple Watch is in range of a Wi-Fi network that iPhone has connected to before, you can still do the following (even if iPhone is turned off):
- Use Siri
- Send and receive Digital Touch messages
- Send and receive messages using iMessage
- Make and receive phone calls (if you have Wi-Fi calling enabled and you’re within range of a Wi-Fi network that your iPhone has connected to before).
The Information Junkie’s Secret Setup
As I promised, here is the setup I use to enable me to fill my otherwise wasted time to listen to podcasts, audiobooks and sportscasts.
It involves an iPhone and a Bluetooth earbud. Nothing revolutionary there, but with the Apple Watch and a particular earbud, it all becomes very incognito and much more efficient.
As stated, when I’m walking, running, shopping, or waiting in line, I use that time to absorb information. I find any kind of wired connection to my cell phone to be annoying, so I just wanted a small Bluetooth earbud I could stick in my ear. After testing a number of different models, I came across one called the Tronfy, which fits the bill perfectly, and is actually better than anything I had envisioned.
The Tronfy earbud paired flawlessly with my iPhone, and I really like that it uses verbal prompts. It tells you when it powers on, when it links, and when it powers off; no need to look at lights or remember what “beep bop boop” means. An unexpected surprise was the “VoiceDial” feature. I’ve had this on other Bluetooth headsets, but this one activates Siri. The entire face of the earbud is a button. Press the button once, and it pauses whatever I am listening to. Hold down the button for a second or two, and it switches to VoiceDial mode (and tells you that it has done so). Yes, you can then ask Siri to make a call, but you can also use any of Siri’s features. Thus, without the iPhone ever leaving my back pocket, I can send text messages, have my text messages read to me, check the weather, etc. I’m sure most Bluetooth headsets now have this ability, but somehow it is cooler that I can do it all with just this little thing in my ear.
Again it’s probably standard technology and I just missed the memo, but this works amazingly with my car’s Bluetooth. If I’m listening to a podcast on my cell phone with the earbud, and start my car, the podcast switches to the car’s Bluetooth. When I arrive at where I’m going and leave the car, the podcast starts playing in my ear again. I don’t recall such a seamless hand-off experience with other Bluetooth headsets I’ve used.
It comes with ear hooks, and an assortment of sizes of the rubber part that goes in your ear, including one that that is twice as long as the others to really hold on. I must have the perfect sized ear canal or something because the pre-installed one fits me. I don’t use the hook and the earbud stays put with no problem.
The Tronfy is small and most people don’t notice I’m wearing it. The Apple Watch then completes the incognito equation because I can control whatever I’m listening to without ever looking at my iPhone. If you want to listen in both ears, it comes with a strap that connects to an even smaller earbud in your other ear.