Apple Watch - Initial Impressions

 I have mentioned in the past that I usually don’t buy first generation Apple products after being burned with lack of updates on the iPad Original.  As a result, I had no intentions of getting an Apple Watch.  However, when Best Buy dropped the price by $100, I decided to put it on my wishlist.  Well, long story short, I got one for Christmas.   

Now that I have had it for a couple days of home use, I thought I would go over some of my initial thoughts on the product.   It is kind of strange, I have read or heard that it is very slow, but  I guess that tempered my expectations because it is a faster than what I expected.  No, it isn’t as fast as my iPhone 6s Plus, but I wasn’t expecting it to be.  

Below are my 10 favorite features, so far:

Apple Music

The Apple Music app on the watch is simply awesome. You get the following options for playing via your iPhone:

• Now Playing. Play or pause what's currently playing on your iPhone. 
• Quick Play. If you have an Apple Music membership, you can tap Quick Play, which chooses a list of songs for you. 
• Beats 1. Listen to Apple's 24/7 worldwide radio station. 
• My Music. Browse your music library by Artists, Albums, or Songs, and choose what to listen to. 
• Playlists. Listen to any of the playlists already on your iPhone. 

​The “My Music” sections gives you access to any albums you have matched in the “cloud” and any albums on Apple Music that you have saved.  The Playlists work the same way.    Of course, you still have Siri access, so you can say something like “Play to Songs from 1979” and “My Sharona” will start playing on the iPhone.  

Overcast/Downcast

I am a huge podcast fan and use both of these apps to access different shows.  Overcast and Downcast both give you access to most of their features, so you can skip ahead or listen to a different podcast.  It is very convenient to have on your wrist. ​

Airplay ​

Airplay with Apple Music is AWESOME!  When you are using the app, you get a volume icon that you can force touch.  This takes you to the “Connected” screen where you can click on the Airplay symbol to pull up your Airplay options.  I haven’t been able to get this to work with other apps (I am guessing that the feature isn’t currently available to third parties).  However, if I want to listen to Overcast in my bathroom, I can pull up the Apple Music app to get access to the Airplay options, click on Bath, then start Overcast.  It works fine, even if it requires the extra step of launching Apple Music.  Below is a picture of the Airplay options (you can scroll down to access Airplay receivers that don't fit on the small screen).

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DirecTV

This gives me access to DirecTV even when a remote isn’ nearby.  Very convenient for pausing programs, pulling up the guide, recording, etc.  Also, since I have my receiver feeding two rooms, this gives me out of site control from my watch.

Calendar/Mail/Messages/Notifications/Twitter

I am grouping these all together because they really all accomplish the same thing.  They give me quick access to new communications without picking up my phone. ​

Watch Faces

A lot of options ranging from Time Lapse of a hand full of cities, to photos, to photo album (it randomly chooses a photo from you gallery), to Micky Mouse, etc. A lot of options and once you choose a face, you may also get access to “Complications” which can give you weather ( I am using the excellent, snarky Carrot Weather for complications), calendar information, temperature, battery available, etc.

Phone Calls

Just like Inspector Gadget and Dick Tracy, you can take or receive calls right on the watch.   They also made it easy to hand off the call to the iPhone for longer conversations.

Siri ​

As I mentioned, this is fantastic with Apple Music, but it is also nice for launching apps, and other Siri requests.

Weather ​

There are a lot of weather apps that work with the Apple Watch.  If you put it in the watch “complications”, it is very easy to access more information, as well.  One reason I like Carrot is that it resides on the phone and gives you snarky comments that can add some humor to that rainy day.   It works fast, too.

Remote/SimpleControl

The Remote app gives you easy control of the AppleTV.   I prefer using the AppleTV 4 Remote for Siri, but it is still nice to be able to pause/play a program from my wrist.  SimpleControl (formerly Roomie Remote - see my review here) is what I typically use to control my entertainment center.  It isn’t perfect yet (the volume can be controlled by the digital crown, but in my case, it only turns volume up at a very rapid pace when using the TV’s volume control.).  However, it gives you access to remote features for many components from one wrist accessible app.  Since I use my entertainment center to also feed my office, the ability to control everything from a separate room is very useful.  

Note:  I also had a problem using the SimpleRemote watch app with my AppleTV 4, so I usually just switch to Apple's Remote app when I want to control all of the AppleTV's features from the watch.  

Wunderlist

We use Wunderlist as our main shopping app for Groceries, visits to Home Depot, etc.  The app is awesome because you can check off completed items as you add them to your cart or dictate items to the app you want added to a list.

To Wrap Things Up

I have read several reviews of the Apple Watch and I would have never paid $400 for one after reading those reviews.  Yes, the watch has some lag with some apps, but after using the Apple Watch, it isn't the deal breaker I thought it would be.  While I have only owned for a couple days, I look forward to using it more and finding new features.   I will eventually write a full review after I get a month or so under my belt, but I also plan to have articles on how some of the individual apps work on the watch, so stay tuned. 

Right now all I can say is that it may be a first gen product, but it also feels like the future.