On Watches

I’ve been an Apple Watch user since day one. I still have my original “Series 0” Apple Watch, just without the battery, which I had to remove due to swelling. I loved that Watch and every Apple Watch I’ve owned since.

I’m currently using an Apple Watch Ultra 1, which I’ve had for about three years now. I originally swallowed the price tag for it mostly because of the battery life. Prior to the Ultra, I absolutely had to charge the battery once a day. Given I was working some early shifts at that time, I didn’t have as much time to charge my Series 7 in the morning, which made me nervous about if I could make it through the day. The Ultra took battery life out of the equation, easily giving me two days of peace of mind that the thing wasn’t going to die on my mid-shift. It also charged faster than the Series 7. Even now, I can still get close to two days, which is pretty good after three years.

The Apple Watch was my first time wearing a watch since middle school. I had a fairly cheap Chicago White Sox watch. I wasn’t a fan of the team at all; I just thought the logo was cool. I remember cracking the glass on it during basketball practice, and that might have been the point I stopped wearing it.

One of the things I love about the Apple Watch is also one of the things I dislike about it: constant connectivity. I can quickly look down at my watch to see if I have a text message while I’m at work, something very useful to me as I communicate with 15 different vendors frequently.

Once I’m home, I’m not as willing to be reachable. I have a friend who’s known to put their phone on the charger and leave it there while they focus on other things in and around their home. They’ll come back to many missed messages, all of which would have broken their focus had they been allowed to be more connected, either through leaving sounds on or wearing a smart watch.

Smart Watches are in part a leash to their smartphone counterparts. They still mostly rely on a smartphone for full functionality. As someone who’s looking to disconnect more, I’m starting to think more about traditional watches.

Anytime you compare digital to analog, there are some trade-offs in both directions. I mentioned connectivity. There are times it’s nice to be alerted to notifications. However, I remember when I first got the Watch and the constant checking of it had friends wondering if I wanted to be elsewhere. At that point, I had every alert possible going to my wrist. I’ve since tamed the alerts to make the device much more peaceful, but there’s still the urge to check and fiddle. A traditional watch comes with none of that. Sometimes that’s a good thing.

Let’s look at battery life. My Apple Watch Ultra can get about 45 hours of life before it dies. A traditional quartz watch can get years, and mechanical watches may never need a battery. This leads to long-term cost. Apple Watches can last 3–5 years before needing replacement, either through lack of software updates or battery depreciation. Over a 15-year period, it’s possible a traditional watch will cost you much less to own and maintain compared to the constant replacement of Apple Watches.

I honestly sit somewhere in the middle with this. I love the idea of a traditional watch. They look better and last longer, potentially being something I can pass down. But, I love the health tracking and connectivity of a smart watch. I feel like I’m going to end up being the type that wears their Apple Watch in certain occasions and a traditional watch in others, like when I want to be more present or just simply want to be left alone.