A reader question for the community:
Dear Editor,
I am a longtime reader and have always really enjoyed Salt Water New England. I’m curious what your and the readers’ opinion is on Apple Watches or smartwatches in general? They seem to be almost ubiquitous.
Regards.
I personally prefer my analog Cartier Tank and don't own a smart watch. I feel tied to screens enough, so I don't want my wrist to be "connected" as well. But of course to each their own. :)
ReplyDeletesame
DeleteNo watch, no cellphone, no suits or ties. Life is good.
ReplyDeleteYes!
DeleteI have a job that requires real-time availability for text messages. I'm happy to have an apple watch to (at least somewhat) discretely view those messages without pulling my entire phone out and 'phubbing' whomever I'm in conversation with. The additional benefit is that I'm not tempted to go down the rabbit-hole of all the distractions on my phone if I view texts on my watch. I miss the style opportunities of an analog timepiece (like Anon 8/14 4:09's tank watch), but my apple watch is worth the sacrifice in my situation. I keep it simple with a black bezel and black sport band.
ReplyDeleteI do not have a JOB so no need to be connected to anyone at work.
DeleteI normally buy a large face Timex from Walmart and put an alternate band on it.
We have a daughter away at college so I do keep the cell phone near me.
I simply look at my husband's Timex Indiglo (especially at 2 am...he loves that!). I also have an old Timex somewhere but it is just plain. I can't imagine paying a huge amount of money for any watch. I inherited a fancy gold watch, but sold it as I didn't ever use it. I like old clocks, especially tall case clocks with a slow "tock." They are good for one's blood pressure.
DeletePersonally I'm still running my trusty Citizen Eco Drive but I had considered an automatic watch.
ReplyDeleteI can see how a smartwatch can be useful for work (meeting reminders, calls) but then I could also just look at my phone.
I wear my Dad's Omega. I have enough "smart" devices in my life already. I'd rather think of him when I look down at my left wrist.
ReplyDeleteApple Watch is great for cycling, traveling through the airport with kids (Apple pay on the wrist, timers, kaleidoscope face for distractions) and as my salary man accessory on workdays (catching a notification from a colleague, etc. you might have missed otherwise if you aren't glued to your phone or laptop). I've also been trying out a version of the chronograph face for precise starts in summer regattas - but it's a little fiddly (countdown can be delayed by a second or 2, but still better than squinting at my blancpain while heeled over).
ReplyDeleteMy parents gave me a vintage Tiffany & Co watch many years ago. It is the only watch I wear. I barely tolerate my phone- I can’t imagine my watch beeping and ringing relentlessly.
ReplyDeleteI'm on my second Apple watch.
ReplyDeleteThey're ugly, and they're going to age poorly. Someone mentioned that they're going to look like the 2020s equivalent of calculator watches, and I bet they're right. As a matter of style, they're abysmal.
However, they're an amazing piece of technology for measuring and tracking workouts. I look back on measuring my running routes with a bike (wired Cateye computer!) or the car and keeping a paper journal of times from my Timex Ironman watch somewhat fondly, but what Garmin/Apple/Wahoo are offering now are so much more convenient for measuring and tracking activities that I'm okay with the style penalty.
Oh, you're so right. They're ugly! Something about aesthetics?
DeleteI view watches as timepieces, a masterful piece of precision. If you enjoy culture, a timepiece is a work of art on your wrist. I will bet my oil stocks that in five years those who are wearing Apple watches will have relinquished them to the depths of some technological landfill…which is another way of saying, rendered useless. Very similar to your first Apple iPad! While my timepiece past along from my father will be ticking away on my wrist awaiting it’s turn to be passed on to my son. I like that…:) Enjoy
ReplyDeleteI love my Timex Expedition field watch with striped nylon bands, of course!
ReplyDeleteAmen
DeleteMe, too!
DeleteAbout a year into my first career job after college, I splurged on a nice Movado tank styled watch. One of the first people I showed it to was my grandfather. Now, my grandfather was a plain spoken man who supported his family building bridges for the railroad. A child of the depression, he was very thrifty. He listened patiently while I went on about its movement etc. When I finished, he looked at me and said "Son, any man who spends more on a watch than a good Timex cost, is a damn fool with his money." Over the years, I have stopped at many store display cases and admired a number of Rolex, Bulovas, and Tag Heuers. But, when the clerk comes over and ask me if he can help me, I glance at my Timex, and hear my Grandfather's voice. Then, I smile and say "no thank you" and walk away humming a happy tune.
DeleteI have to chime in with the others that say we have enough smart phones and similar devices to distract us. I have a Rolex and a Jaeger-LeCoultre that I alternate with a Withings, which is the only "smart" watch I wear, recommended by my cardiologist as it has a medical-grade ECG and sleep breathing disturbance detection.
ReplyDeleteFor day to day I wear a Fitbit watch, which allows me to semi discreetly check my messages without removing my phone from my bag or pocket. If it is something that needs to be dealt with I can then excuse myself to handle the matter privately. For dressier occasions, I wear a Timex that was my grandmothers.
ReplyDeleteI have an Apple Watch and a Rolex, and I think there is a case to be made for both watches. I usually wear my Rolex because, as others have said, these days we're all being bombarded by digital notifications all day long. But... as Kaaterskill said, the Apple Watch is an amazing piece of technology. It is fantastic for tracking workouts. It tracks pulse rate, elevation, split times and steps, and and it allows you to leave your phone behind when you go for a run. If you're wearing headphones you can even make phone calls on it without any difficulty. Yes, it's disposable, sadly, like most of the computers, cell phones, and other digital devices that are sold today. An Apple Watch isn't a long term investment, if you buy one today it'll be hopelessly obsolete in 10 years, if it functions at all. But it's a nice piece of technology and performs the functions it is designed to perform very well. I wear my analog watch 90% of the time but the Apple Watch is great for workouts and it's a nice piece of technology.
ReplyDeleteI wear my Apple Watch all day, every day. It has a stainless-steel case, and I use a fairly traditional-looking face with hands, numbers and a sweep second hand. I wear a stainless-steel link band for work and formal occasions, a white sports band for tennis, a black sports band for golf and workouts, an off-white braided band for summer casual wear (sporting that right now on the Vineyard) and a bright yellow leather band for casual wear in other seasons. I love the fitness-tracking functions and the notifications, and I find the appearance unobjectionable.
ReplyDeleteSomething to look forward to: Bloomberg reported yesterday that the 10th-generation Apple Watch, coming in 2024 or 2025, will get a significant redesign that will probably involve slimming the case and coming up with some other way of attaching watch bands. As it stands, the need to maintain the slots for securing bands is the main thing keeping the case as thick as it is.
No thank you. Gruen Veri Thin 1940's, Omega Seamaster 1955, Rolex 1601 Date Just Bi Metallic 1975, & Swatches starting in 1983...don't need anymore
ReplyDeletefriends. Strictly grownup.
None of you need to own a watch today.
ReplyDeleteJust call me, and I'll tell you what time it is.
(Shout out to Fletch.)
R. R., You're the best!
DeleteWhy, thank you Mom!
DeleteWhich Fletch are you referring to?
DeleteFLETCH LIVES (1989) An excellent sequel. Free on TUBI:
Deletehttps://tubitv.com/movies/100005947/fletch-lives
I've long been a watch wearer. I received an Apple Watch as a gift and mentally rolled my eyes. However, it is very useful at times. I wear it when active or when I need to be uber connected. I wear a traditional watch for important meetings, dressier nights out, and any time I don't want to feel connected. In the last year, I have taken to switching it out through the day depending on activities and mood.
ReplyDeleteI have an almost indestructible LL Bean watch I have had for 40 years or so. I also have a fancy schmancy tank watch that I wear from time to time--I like it a lot--it's beautiful to me--but it's sort of too obvious. No Apple watches or the like. The phone is enough of a burden.
ReplyDeleteI've worn the same Timex for the last 20 years — in fact I can't recall when I bought it — but it was at Walgreens! My alternate is a field watch from Bean, which is nearly as old.
ReplyDeleteMy phone is a flip phone that sits on the desk, turned off. I use it maybe once a month for an outgoing call.
Life runs slower when you retire and every day becomes Saturday. Fact.
Just old fashioned 'slim dress' Bulova and Seiko wristwatches for me, thanks. Already saddled with too many 21st century devices that jingle, blink, burp, and chirp.
ReplyDeleteKind Regards,
Heinz-Ulrich
I prefer the liberating subtlety of a watch at which I can glance to tell the time. If I had a digital watch, I imagine my favorite app would be the off button for beeps and reminders. My watches are getting old, a GP pocket watch my great grandfather got in 1904, the very simple stainless Rolex Oyster I got for graduation from high school in 1967, and a Chopard from Tiffany. One day circa 1978 I came home from work. The dog was, as usual, being big and bouncy. My wife asked me to give him a biscuit. Hmmmm, there was a pale blue package in the dog biscuit box! She wears a Tank.
ReplyDeleteUnless one really needs a smart watch for work or some other important reason, e.g., monitoring aspects of one's health, smart watches are unattractive and should be avoided. How connected does one really want to be? A simple analog watch (with or without a date function), whether mechanical or quartz, is really all one needs for daily wear. If you need a stopwatch function to time your laps around the track (or whatever), swap the analog watch out for an inexpensive Casio digital with its stopwatch function. If you travel frequently to different time zones, instead of bothering with a GMT (dual time zone) watch, brush up on your arithmetic.
ReplyDeleteIf one lives in Manhattan there’s no need for even an old fashion watch. There are clocks everywhere.
ReplyDeleteI have double-wristed for years. Garmin device right, analog left. (About a 50-50 split between automatic and quartz watches). The garmin does not do phone calls or texts; I like the health and workout-related data it generates and accumulates. Still, I love and will always wear analog watches.
ReplyDeleteSince I have about 90% of the watches mentioned here and others that are not, it might be time to admit that I have a watch problem.....they all serve a wonderful purpose, though. Reminding me of parents, in-laws, grandparents, special occasion gifts, a splurge. Far and away the most useful is the Apple watch. For those who find them noisy, you can turn that off, lol.
ReplyDeleteI think I also have that "problem" (giggle), as I have a few more than I mentioned above. I also live in Switzerland, surrounded by exquisite watch craftsmanship and history, where it's easier to feed my horological obsession. I'm slimming down my collection (I make many 'donations' and gifts to nieces and nephews now) as I get older though as, in my 60s now, it's more important for me to monitor my health than to fuel my watch pursuits, ergo the Withings.
DeleteAgree w others. Already too many screens so an old Rolex regardless of style works for me
ReplyDeleteCan anyone over the age of 45 easily read a smart watch without putting glasses on? Mine would have to be the size of an iPad or my arm would need to get quite a bit longer due to age related farsightedness. I much prefer my Seiko or LL Bean field watch if I wear anything on my wrist. Plus I'm easily distracted by my phone, which isn't so easily accessible on purpose.
ReplyDeleteI left the Apple cult around 2012. I'm really too frugal to spend money on a smart watch that has to be replaced every two or so years.
ReplyDeleteDitto
DeleteI switch between a Cartier Tank and a Rolex Sub for regular wear; I use an Apple Watch for daily exercise and tennis. I cannot read the Apple Watch without putting on glasses, but I like the ECG and heart rate apps.
ReplyDeleteI have a dozen good to superb mechanical watches worn on my left wrist that I wear sometimes and a Apple Watch for every day as my medical watch-pulse, oxygen, ekg, steps etc.-at age 76 it’s very useful.
ReplyDeleteI love my Apple Watch because it liberates me from my phone. I have the freedom to leave the house without my phone while knowing that I am easily accessible in an emergency. We live in a modern world with modern demands, but also modern conveniences. I can walk the beach without my phone without feeling the need to cut short to check on family. If you have elderly parents that are becoming increasingly less dependent this may make sense to you.
ReplyDelete