Things I use my Apple Watch for.
I have had my Apple Watch a little over two weeks. I’m really impressed with it. I’m using pre-release software so i can’t review the watch yet, but once the final version is released i will probably do a more in depth review.
For now, here is a general overview of how i am using the watch.
Daily or more.
Here are the top things I use my watch for daily or more.
Calendar – i store my routines in the calender and they show on my watch face. To make them more visual and memorable i use emoji of keywords (eg, a bath at bathtime etc)
Heartbeat logging – It’s been useful to have a quantitive measure of how stressed i am in certain situations. It’s helping me to plan days which stress me out less.
Apple Pay – Paying for things at the cafe without needing my phone is neat.
Bank Balance – I use a dedicated account for my spendable money each months. Being able to see that balance has been very useful. Helps me to keep within my budget.
Music playback – listening to music on the watch rather than my phone means my phone battery last longer.
Activity tracking – i didn’t expect to use this much, however it’s proved to be really useful.
Triage Notifications – I route important notifications to my watch, i often silence my phone and rely on the watch to interupt me if needed.
Most days.
And thing I find useful most days days:
Two Factor Authentication – many things i sign into send me a code via a text message before allowing me. Seeing these codes on my watch saves me finding and fussing with my phone.
Email (!) – being able to quickly check subjects etc of emails is useful. I have VIP emals set up to notify me too.
A few times a week.
And the things I use a few times a week.
Timers – useful when baking with my freind.
Workout tracking – I time my walks and keep track of them that way. Its satisfying to see the data about how much i walk each week
Proloquo4Text (speech app) – the watch app just shows text, but its handy, i’ve used it to order food in the cafe a few times.
Remote controls for audio – means i can leave my phone in my bag when listening to podcasts.
Reply to messages – being able to OK something or send a thank you from my watch in two quick taps is handy.
Final words.
I think the Apple Watch is a great bit of kit. I am excited to see how it evolves over the next few years. I’m also working on my own apps which will hopefully make my day to day life a little simpler.