I touched on this subject in a prior post, but I thought I would devote a post specifically to this subject since the pre-orders have started.
For many, being on the cutting edge of tech is important. You can be the guru on a subject just because no one else owns it. There is also something exciting about opening a box of something that you have never seen out in the real world. I get it and I am happy that we have early adopters to go through the real world beta testing for all of the new tech on the market.
Personally (I should note that the conditions described below pertain to my use cases, yours may be different), with new Apple products, I have adopted a wait and see mentality that grew from past experiences. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."
The very first iOS device I purchased was the iPod Touch 1st Generation. It was a way for me to try out iOS without changing to a new phone. It was okay, but I didn't use it a whole lot because I preferred using my Treo. The Palm Treo, believe it or not, did a lot more than iOS at the time. The main shortcoming for the first Gen iPod Touch was the lack of a speaker and external volume controls. If you ever use your phone/tablet for audio, you realize that that feature is an absolute necessity, especially in the days before bluetooth. Guess what, the second generation version had an external speaker.
The next 1st generation device I purchased was the Original iPad. When the first iPad was announced, I was on board from the beginning. The iPhone in a larger form factor was brilliant. I bought one the day they were released. Unfortunately, you can' even update to iOS 6 firmware. The iPad 2, on the other hand, can run iOS 8 (limited support) and has the Control Center, multitasking, Notification Center, etc. However, for me, it is a bigger deal that it still gets new apps and the Original doesn't. In other words, the Original was practically bricked in record time. The Original iPad also didn't have cameras, which isn't a big deal for me, but it is for people that use Skype.
While I do realize that each generation brings new and better features, I have this uneasy feeling about 1st gen Apple products. I just get the feeling that there are critical features that the watch is missing and that they are holding them back.
For example. the main basic feature for an exercise band is GPS. The watch requires that you carry your phone with you to take advantage of GPS. If this isn't in version 2 of the watch, I will be very surprised. There are also many features for health that were rumored, but not available.. blood pressure monitors, stress monitors, etc..
Sleep monitoring would probably be possible, but when would I charge the watch if I wasn't charging it at night? Speaking of charging, battery power is a huge problem right now. The idea of having a timepiece that has a black screen ninety percent of the time is just a strange concept. Not sure that there is much that can be done about it with current technology, but that is why watches like those from Pebble have a basic screen.
Right now, the app developers are still figuring out how to use the thing and I think that is were the real value will eventually come from. When Apple spent two separate keynotes describing how we can scribble a flower on the face and send that to someone or how we can send someone our heartbeat, I started to wonder how I was going to use this thing.
There are obviously some things in the watch I am interested in. Other than telling time, which I can do with a cheap Timex, there are a few cool features. Notifications would be the most compelling since I can get news right on my wrist without getting out my phone. Being able to answer phone calls. Ability to control the Apple TV (and hopefully Airplay devices). Siri, messages, music, etc. Many of these have "coming soon" on the website, so I wonder if they will even be available at launch? Also, right now, I am doing these things with the iPhone and it hasn't really caused me much stress.
The main question is how much these things are worth to you? Right now, too much is unknown and I think there will be huge upgrades in version two (which is right in line with other Apple products). Of course, we have no idea when version 2 will even be available. While $400 isn't a fortune, I can certainly think of ways I would rather spend it right now than on tech that could seem obsolete in a year or so (right about the time that developers start figuring things out). As a result, my plan is to wait and see what version 2 has to offer (without GPS, I would probably skip it, as well). I know it could be a while before we have Apple Watch 2, but it isn't like pulling my iPhone out of a pocket is a huge problem that needs to be solved in the near future. Actually, when I really think about it, a larger screen is a better platform for 99.9999 percent of the stuff I do now anyway....even the flowers that I scribble look better.
For many, being on the cutting edge of tech is important. You can be the guru on a subject just because no one else owns it. There is also something exciting about opening a box of something that you have never seen out in the real world. I get it and I am happy that we have early adopters to go through the real world beta testing for all of the new tech on the market.
Personally (I should note that the conditions described below pertain to my use cases, yours may be different), with new Apple products, I have adopted a wait and see mentality that grew from past experiences. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."
The very first iOS device I purchased was the iPod Touch 1st Generation. It was a way for me to try out iOS without changing to a new phone. It was okay, but I didn't use it a whole lot because I preferred using my Treo. The Palm Treo, believe it or not, did a lot more than iOS at the time. The main shortcoming for the first Gen iPod Touch was the lack of a speaker and external volume controls. If you ever use your phone/tablet for audio, you realize that that feature is an absolute necessity, especially in the days before bluetooth. Guess what, the second generation version had an external speaker.
The next 1st generation device I purchased was the Original iPad. When the first iPad was announced, I was on board from the beginning. The iPhone in a larger form factor was brilliant. I bought one the day they were released. Unfortunately, you can' even update to iOS 6 firmware. The iPad 2, on the other hand, can run iOS 8 (limited support) and has the Control Center, multitasking, Notification Center, etc. However, for me, it is a bigger deal that it still gets new apps and the Original doesn't. In other words, the Original was practically bricked in record time. The Original iPad also didn't have cameras, which isn't a big deal for me, but it is for people that use Skype.
While I do realize that each generation brings new and better features, I have this uneasy feeling about 1st gen Apple products. I just get the feeling that there are critical features that the watch is missing and that they are holding them back.
For example. the main basic feature for an exercise band is GPS. The watch requires that you carry your phone with you to take advantage of GPS. If this isn't in version 2 of the watch, I will be very surprised. There are also many features for health that were rumored, but not available.. blood pressure monitors, stress monitors, etc..
Sleep monitoring would probably be possible, but when would I charge the watch if I wasn't charging it at night? Speaking of charging, battery power is a huge problem right now. The idea of having a timepiece that has a black screen ninety percent of the time is just a strange concept. Not sure that there is much that can be done about it with current technology, but that is why watches like those from Pebble have a basic screen.
Right now, the app developers are still figuring out how to use the thing and I think that is were the real value will eventually come from. When Apple spent two separate keynotes describing how we can scribble a flower on the face and send that to someone or how we can send someone our heartbeat, I started to wonder how I was going to use this thing.
There are obviously some things in the watch I am interested in. Other than telling time, which I can do with a cheap Timex, there are a few cool features. Notifications would be the most compelling since I can get news right on my wrist without getting out my phone. Being able to answer phone calls. Ability to control the Apple TV (and hopefully Airplay devices). Siri, messages, music, etc. Many of these have "coming soon" on the website, so I wonder if they will even be available at launch? Also, right now, I am doing these things with the iPhone and it hasn't really caused me much stress.
The main question is how much these things are worth to you? Right now, too much is unknown and I think there will be huge upgrades in version two (which is right in line with other Apple products). Of course, we have no idea when version 2 will even be available. While $400 isn't a fortune, I can certainly think of ways I would rather spend it right now than on tech that could seem obsolete in a year or so (right about the time that developers start figuring things out). As a result, my plan is to wait and see what version 2 has to offer (without GPS, I would probably skip it, as well). I know it could be a while before we have Apple Watch 2, but it isn't like pulling my iPhone out of a pocket is a huge problem that needs to be solved in the near future. Actually, when I really think about it, a larger screen is a better platform for 99.9999 percent of the stuff I do now anyway....even the flowers that I scribble look better.
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