What’s the Point of an Apple Watch?

The Apple Watch is a smartwatch with a wide range of functions, but what’s the point of owning one? In this blog, you’ll learn about the useful features and benefits of an Apple Watch.

What is an Apple Watch? (and What It Isn’t)

An Apple Watch is the smartwatch developed by Apple. It’s one of the most advanced smartwatches, offering a variety of functions. Before purchasing an Apple Watch, it’s important to understand its purpose and where it might not be useful.

An Apple Watch is a smartwatch; it’s not a MacBook for your wrist. Don’t expect to use it actively all the time. It’s primarily a passive tool, something you wear constantly that enhances your health and complements your smartphone.

Fitness & Sport

One of the most useful features of an Apple Watch is still tracking your activities, sports, and fitness. A smartwatch excels here compared to a smartphone, thanks to sensors that collect data like heart rate, temperature, and blood oxygen levels.

A smartphone can track speed via GPS, but an Apple Watch can do this too. It also includes altimeters and gyroscopes to gather detailed information about your speed and location. This is especially useful for activities like running, cycling, swimming, or walking.

Even if you’re not into sports, the Apple Watch provides valuable health insights. You can set it to send a signal to stand and move occasionally. It can also track calorie intake, and newer models can alert you to abnormal heart rhythms or blood oxygen levels.

Not a Phone Replacement, but an Addition

An Apple Watch is not meant to replace your phone, but rather to complement what you do on your iPhone. You can read news or Twitter on an Apple Watch, but the small screen makes it impractical—far better to use your phone or MacBook.

The real value of an Apple Watch lies in its addition to your phone. All notifications, alerts, and messages that usually require you to pull out your phone now appear on your wrist via a watch-sized screen. The Watch vibrates when you receive a message, so you don’t need to keep your phone in hand. You can skip setting vibrations or ringtones on your phone and still stay updated.

Can I Use My Apple Watch Without an iPhone?

Yes, and no. As mentioned above, some tasks are better suited for your iPhone. Can you leave your iPhone at home and do everything on your Apple Watch? Theoretically, yes, but you might find it frustrating quickly. An Apple Watch is primarily intended as a companion for you and your iPhone.

What you can do without an iPhone includes running or cycling. All Apple Watches come with built-in GPS, allowing you to track your route, speed, and performance without your iPhone. This is a big plus if you enjoy sports, as it means you don’t need to carry your phone.

You can also message and call without your phone, but whether this is practical on an Apple Watch is debatable. Calling is possible, but it defaults to speaker mode, so others can overhear. Messaging works too, but the small screen and typing challenges make it tricky—though voice messages are easy to send.

Another useful feature without your phone is Apple Pay. You can quickly pop to the shop without your wallet or iPhone by setting up this function on your Watch.

Is an Apple Watch Useful with an Android Phone?

In short: No, not really. There are ways to use an Apple Watch with an Android phone, but it’s generally not worthwhile. You miss out on many features you’d get with an iPhone. We wouldn’t recommend pairing an Apple Watch with an Android phone.

Without an iPhone, you can’t download new apps on your Apple Watch or make payments. Siri works, sort of, but not very well. A Bluetooth connection isn’t possible without an iPhone.

An Apple Watch is a Passive Tool

When you buy an Apple Watch, you might expect to use it all day. And you will, to an extent. You’ll wear it all day and enjoy many features daily, but you won’t use it actively all the time.

The strength and purpose of an Apple Watch lie in its passive role. It assists you throughout the day with notifications and health tracking. You won’t spend hours on the Apple Watch, as tasks are faster and better handled on an iPhone or MacBook.

Fall Detection

Since the Apple Watch Series 5, the Apple Watch can detect if you’ve fallen. This can be highly useful for people with health issues or older individuals who might struggle to get up. Using the gyroscope and accelerometer, the Apple Watch detects falls and automatically alerts your contacts and emergency services.

If you fall, the Apple Watch will sound an alarm. Tapping ‘I’m okay’ stops the alarm if you’re fine. Alternatively, you can contact your Emergency Contacts or emergency services. If you remain motionless, the Apple Watch will automatically call emergency services.

Navigation

One of the useful features on an Apple Watch is its GPS. Newer models can not only track your location and integrate it with sports data but also navigate using Maps. This lets you navigate without your phone, handy for running or cycling, but also for driving or walking.

The Apple Watch provides haptic feedback to indicate directions, so you don’t need sound or to look at the screen. The haptic feedback for left differs from right, letting you know where to go without distraction.

Straps

The Apple Watch is increasingly a fashion accessory today. Straps allow for extensive personalisation. Check out our wide selection of Apple Watch straps!

Conclusion

An Apple Watch can be very useful and add value to your daily life and sports. It’s crucial to understand what it’s not useful for before buying. An Apple Watch enhances how you use your phone but won’t replace it. It’s especially beneficial if you enjoy sports, thanks to its sensors and software supporting your fitness goals.

Convinced about the Apple Watch and curious about which one to choose? Read our blog ‘What is the best Apple Watch?’.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Apple Watch for women?
For the Apple Watch, you can choose between two sizes, 41mm and 45mm. The size depends on your wrist measurement and personal preference.

What is the cheapest Apple Watch?
The Apple Watch SE (2022) is available from £299.00. The SE is known as the entry-level Apple Watch and is a good choice if you don’t want to pay the full £499.00 for the Apple Watch Series 8.