New Watch

When smart watches first started showing up, I thought they were pretty cool.  I love new gadgets.  I just didn't see a need for one.  Then the other day my bank account equaled my credit card debt.  So, I paid off one of the cards, and purchased an Apple Watch.

The Good

It is fantastic at being a watch.  You can have many faces to switch between depending on what you are up to.  For example, I use the Mickey Mouse face when I'm in bed.  It lets me clearly display when I have an alarm set for, without any other clutter.  And Mickey reads the time if I tap it, without having to open my eyes.

Plus Siri is really good at setting alarms and timers.  That is very handy in a watch.  And just in general, more features than I've ever had in a watch.

Another important function of a watch is to look good.  I specifically got this because I had a really flashy watch band that needed a flashy watch.  My grandmother had a men's gold watch band that she found more comfortable because her wrists were a little swollen in later in life.   I got it when she died.  I do think they look good together.

The Bad

It is not super functional as a cell phone peripheral.  I had hoped it could control my phone some, and it's really not good at that.  I can't start music or podcasts.  It doesn't display the artwork of the music that's playing, although it does say the track info.  I can play and pause the music, but I could do that already with my headphones.  And there have been several times I have asked Siri to do something, and she did understand me, but told me I'd need to ask again on my phone.

I have some hope that functionality will increase.  Google certainly could make an app for it that lets me control my music more, for example.  Or Apple could.  Also, Apple teased a lot more powerful Siri automation that is supposed to be coming in the next few months.  So, we'll see.

The Ugly

The most disappointing feature of this watch has been the charging situation.  I have charged it every day for a few minutes since I got it, and it seems like I needed that.  I think it would be dead if I ever let it go 48 hours without a charge.

And the charging cable is... odd.  It connects magnetically, but not super firmly, so I have unplugged it by bumping it.  I could get peripherals that would help with that.  But my thoughts were to find a different kind of cable, so I would have a couple of options, and a spare.  It turns out these cables are start at $20.  That's a lot for a cable.

 I did have to buy the watch at full price, because I couldn't find any good clearance or refurbished deals on it.  Knowing what I know now, I would not have payed $350 for the watch.  In a way, not knowing a good thing, because I'm really glad I have it, and it does make me happy.