# Smart Watch Is Making You Dependable.



## prokhmer

You don't need a smart watch or Fitbit to guide you for your exercise routine. Just run 5k per day under 30 minutes and finish off your stinky sweat on the elliptical for another 10 minutes and and feel like a Superman and call it a day! This smart watch doesn't make you healthy and actually it is the opposite. Beside smart watch look ugly. I am 100% mechanical watch! I love my Seiko SUMO!!









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## j708

interesting.

I wonder the reaction if I post an opposing thread on the Seiko forums


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## Drucifer

Hmm, I’ve got both and believe they can peacefully coexist.


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## ronalddheld

Life is Way too short to own just one or the other.


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## WIS_Chronomaster

Thats a great Seiko, i can see why you like mechanicals.


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## prokhmer

WIS_Chronomaster said:


> Thats a great Seiko, i can see why you like mechanicals.


To be honest with you I am tempted to buy AW but I kept resisting. I don't want to spend more time fiddling around with another gadget. Another problem with smart watch is that after 2 years it becomes obsolete and I need to shovel another $500 plus for the upgrade. I don't know. I will probably stop reading about smart watch. Back to fiddling with my mechanical watch, try to get the accuracy within +/-2 seconds per day.

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## WIS_Chronomaster

yeh i hear what your saying , I Dont Think Mechanical watches can be beat (Even Quartz) , i just like the gadget feel to the AW, and other smart watches


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## prokhmer

WIS_Chronomaster said:


> yeh i hear what your saying , I Dont Think Mechanical watches can be beat (Even Quartz) , i just like the gadget feel to the AW, and other smart watches


I know mechanical watch feel kind of bulky and heavy on the wrist. AW feels smooth on your wrist because of the way it was designed. Does AW produce or mimic that ticking sounds like a mechanical watch?

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## kramer5150

There are pros and cons, strengths and weaknesses to everything. Pick whichever aligns most your preferences. It's really that simple.

Smartwatches and traditional horology are two completely different categories of product, that really only do one thing in common... display time on the wrist. To say one is superior over the other is really saying one is personally preferred over the other.


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## WIS_Chronomaster

The second hand sweeps like an Auto yeh , I do like them .


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## prokhmer

WIS_Chronomaster said:


> The second hand sweeps like an Auto yeh , I do like them .


But does it make ticking audible sound?

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## WIS_Chronomaster

No there is no ticking sound, at least there isn't on mine


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## Drucifer

prokhmer said:


> To be honest with you I am tempted to buy AW but I kept resisting. I don't want to spend more time fiddling around with another gadget. Another problem with smart watch is that after 2 years it becomes obsolete and I need to shovel another $500 plus for the upgrade. I don't know. I will probably stop reading about smart watch. Back to fiddling with my mechanical watch, try to get the accuracy within +/-2 seconds per day.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


When I consider the amount of money I've lost flipping around mechanicals over a two year period, Apple Watch cost is immaterial. I think it'll save me a ton of money!


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## nepatriot

prokhmer said:


> You don't need a smart watch or Fitbit to guide you for your exercise routine. Just run 5k per day under 30 minutes and finish off your stinky sweat on the elliptical for another 10 minutes and and feel like a Superman and call it a day! This smart watch doesn't make you healthy and actually it is the opposite. Beside smart watch look ugly. I am 100% mechanical watch! I love my Seiko SUMO!!
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I appreciate my mechanicals watches for their craftsmanship and design.

But I agree whole heartedly with your statement: I recently bought an AW4, and is has indeed made me more dependable.

I had zero interest in fit trackers and smart watches. Or quartz watches, with the exception of having a few GShocks for sports and yard work.

Notifications are what attracted me to the series 4. My hearing is not so good, and getting worse. I noticed I've been missing calls, meeting notifications, and texts on my iPhone X, either when in my pocket, or on my desk when I've stepped away.

I went to the Apple store 2 weeks before xmas to get air pods, and see what I can do to improve notifications on my iPhone X. The guy I worked with checked out my settings, and we made some adjustments that improved sound and vibrations. I had some things off, and some notification sounds were mild and short. Much better than when I walked in. Then he had me walk around the store, phone in pocket, while he got my AirPods receipt.

Unbeknown to me, what he was actually doing is testing the iPhone changes: he sent me several texts, and called a few times. I noticed the last call. The store was fairly noisy. He had done all he could, so we said good bye.

On the way out I stopped at the AW table, just out of curiosity, smugly wearing one of my Doxa's Subs. I over heard several customers my age talking about the AW and notifications with an Apple rep. One thing led to another and, more than a little embarrassed, I bought one to try out.

Over the next 3 weeks, I found myself wearing it more than I thought I would... even beyond just work hours.

The enhancement of notifications, via both wrist tap and having the speaker up near your upper body vs in pants pocket, made a significant difference for me. I could leave my phone on silent most of the time, and rarely miss a call or notification. For work, that benefit alone was extremely valuable, and justified the AW4.

The ability to simply talk to text improved my response to texts. Up to that point in my life, I had always treated texting as a - very - distant second to emails or a phone call. My response rate to texts had been abysmal. Now I could now keep up with my daughter and son, my sister, co-workers, etc. The wife is a mild texter. So convenient!

I returned in on the last day I could. Two reasons. First, over the 3 weeks, I found it increasingly harder to remember to put on my mechanical watches. That was not what I wanted: the AW was to be for work only. Second, I always considered the AW to be ugly. Still do. Just a soulless piece of technology.

I missed the AW immediately, driving home from the Apple store. I hated that, and tried to suppress. After a week to so, I realized I hardly glanced at my wrist with a mechanical. And when I did, I realized what I was looking for something I could see at a glance on the AW, but now required getting my iPhone out of my pocket.

That's when it hit me: the AW is not a watch. It's an extension of my iPhone.

At a glance and a tilt, I can see a number of things, customize to what's important to me ... in addition to 100% accurate time. Weather, who just sent me a text or email, next meeting, etc. I can change the entire face, with one swipe, to see other things important to me. With one or two more swipes, I can can respond text-to-talk to a text, check my next meeting, set a timer ... customized to what I want to see. In bright sunlight or total darkness.. All my mechanical did was tell time.

I travel a lot. with the AW, at airports, I can leave my iPhone in my backpack.

One week later I was back at the Apple store. Bought a SBSS AW4, and ordered an Erika's MN, and a Jack Forster leather. Both straps transform the watch.

I still see it as ugly. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder: I had a Camel Toe toe, and flipped it almost immediately. Although the Camel Toe is a nicely made watch, and has the soul of a mechanical, IIMHO it's Seiko's fugliest dive watch. I'd take Tuna over it. Or even an AW.

See what I mean? Your Sumo is like art: we all like different paintings, or music. The AW is like a laptop or smart phone: we choose on tech features, not beauty.

The AW is disposable tech, with perhaps a 2, maybe 3 year lifespan. Negligible resale value, and not an heirloom piece by any means.

I'm keeping my mechanicals. But the AW has transformed my life in many ways, and as you point out, made me more dependable.

For your enjoyment:


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## WIS_Chronomaster

Terrific


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## nepatriot

j708 said:


> interesting.
> 
> I wonder the reaction if I post an opposing thread on the Seiko forums


I've been into dive watch for at least 15 years or so, so I stated an AW thread on the watch dive watch forum, to see how other WUS think about the AW. Very interesting and polite discussion.

There aren't too many of us WUS mechanical guys with AW's yet.


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## nepatriot

prokhmer said:


> I know mechanical watch feel kind of bulky and heavy on the wrist. AW feels smooth on your wrist because of the way it was designed. Does AW produce or mimic that ticking sounds like a mechanical watch?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


IMHO, a mechanical watch, one that also fits your wrist properly, is effortless to wear. In almost all cases, when someone describes a mechanical as bulky, heavy, or unforforyable, the watch case (i.e. case length, or "lug to lug") is too big. If so, the watch will be unstable.

The AW case design, I find, to be bulky, androgynous, a box with rounded edge. The case back lifts if off the wrist. It lacks the artistry that is often found in mechanical watches.

But the AW designers had challenges traditional watch makers don't face. Apple seems to have wanted simplicity and continuity in its design. vs. different style cases. Therefor it had to be androgynous. it is limited by the components inside, and the need for as large a display size as possible, while still fitting an average wrist. All about trade offs, like so many things in life.

It is often said that mechanicals are men's (or lady's) jewelry; the AW is a tech tool.


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## Azizu

i am a mechanical watch guy too
but i have both on my hands. Mechanical watch on left hand and fitbit on right hand.
although having to constantly charge fitbit annoys the hell out of me. that is the exact reason i hate quartz, i don't want to worry about charging and battery


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## prokhmer

This is good discussion! With that said I just bought a very slightly used Seiko Sumo SDBC069 for $460. I was going to use that fund to buy a low end AW but I just can't do it for my circumstance and life style.









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## BarracksSi

nepatriot said:


> IMHO, a mechanical watch, one that also fits your wrist properly, is effortless to wear. In almost all cases, when someone describes a mechanical as bulky, heavy, or unforforyable, the watch case (i.e. case length, or "lug to lug") is too big. If so, the watch will be unstable.
> 
> The AW case design, I find, to be bulky, androgynous, a box with rounded edge. The case back lifts if off the wrist. It lacks the artistry that is often found in mechanical watches.
> 
> But the AW designers had challenges traditional watch makers don't face. Apple seems to have wanted simplicity and continuity in its design. vs. different style cases. Therefor it had to be androgynous. it is limited by the components inside, and the need for as large a display size as possible, while still fitting an average wrist. All about trade offs, like so many things in life.
> 
> It is often said that mechanicals are men's (or lady's) jewelry; the AW is a tech tool.


I thought you were using "androgynous" as a derogatory term, but yes, that's what it is. The case color, face style, and strap choice are what change its, uh, "gender identity" (since we're going down that road here).

You can have the modernist Link Bracelet, you can have a pink leather strap with beads and flowers, you can have a photo of your kids or just use a plain chronograph face. The physical object - the case and display - are a blank slate and don't get in the way of personal customization.

And I don't know if the OP meant to use "dependent" instead of "dependable", but like *nepatriot* said a couple posts back, mine lets me communicate more dependably than before. Been using one since the summer it launched.


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## nepatriot

BarracksSi said:


> I thought you were using "androgynous" as a derogatory term, but yes, that's what it is. The case color, face style, and strap choice are what change its, uh, "gender identity" (since we're going down that road here).
> 
> You can have the modernist Link Bracelet, you can have a pink leather strap with beads and flowers, you can have a photo of your kids or just use a plain chronograph face. The physical object - the case and display - are a blank slate and don't get in the way of personal customization.
> 
> And I don't know if the OP meant to use "dependent" instead of "dependable", but like *nepatriot* said a couple posts back, mine lets me communicate more dependably than before. Been using one since the summer it launched.


I think you're right on what the OP meant by "dependable", but I couldn't resist: it has made _me_ more dependable!

I don't see "androgynous" as derogatory, hope no one else does. There are objects we wear that are targeted toward gender; but today I think people wear anything that strikes their fancy. I see my 20 year old son and all the kids these days wearing whatever they want.

The AW comes in 2 sizes and 4 colors. And in a few years they have become the #1 selling watch. Similar design model to their phones. Apple is a tech company; traditional watches today, outside of other purpose-built watches like GShock or Garmin, are more jewelry than anything. Hundreds of brands, thousands of choices.


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## BarracksSi

prokhmer said:


> To be honest with you I am tempted to buy AW but I kept resisting. I don't want to spend more time fiddling around with another gadget. Another problem with smart watch is that after 2 years it becomes obsolete and I need to shovel another $500 plus for the upgrade. I don't know. I will probably stop reading about smart watch. Back to fiddling with my mechanical watch, try to get the accuracy within +/-2 seconds per day.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


- "...after 2 years it becomes obsolete..." 
There's "obsolete," and then there's "unsupported" (and, eventually, "inoperable").

The first-gen AW runs watchOS 4, which had gotten updates until the middle of last year, three years after the AW's launch. It still works with iOS 12, so it's not yet "obsolete"; and because we can't know if watchOS 4 will get any more security updates, we can't yet call it "unsupported". And as long as you can get replacement batteries, it's not yet "inoperable".

I think you could stretch the useful life of the first-gen model to five years. That's not a "forever watch", but it's better than the two-year figure you cited.

- "I don't want to spend more time fiddling around with another gadget."
This depends on how you use gadgets.

But I now spend less time fiddling with my phone because I can leave it on a table somewhere or in my wife's purse. And because the AW's size and interface doesn't lend itself to hours of fiddling, I don't spend much time fiddling with it, either.

Again, it's not a full smartphone replacement, it's just an extension. It works best if you only ask it to do small tasks. One of the creators of the AW, Kevin Lynch, said in an early interview that it's allowed him to spend better quality time with his kids - and he's one of the most-connected people at Apple.

For me, if my phone is my personal assistant, my AW is like my call screener or my bouncer. It only tells me about a new email if it's from my family. With a little nudge, it can tell me if my football team scores, and it doesn't have to take all my attention. I don't have to be one of those guys anymore who follows their spouse around the store, burying my face in my phone instead of actually helping her shop.

I still wear regular watches to the office; no smart gadgets are allowed there. But not even a smoothly-ticking Swiss mechanical can tell me the current weather.


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## Palmettoman

BarracksSi said:


> - *my AW is like my call screener or my bouncer*.


Great way to put it.

I also enjoy my mechanicals but my AW has dominated my wrist since I got it last year. It provides convenience. I can answer calls, check my schedule, see texts, etc. without having to get my phone out. It's tastefully sized (unlike the Fenix 5 I previously had) and can be worn anywhere with anything (almost).

Yeah, I miss looking down at my nice mechs, but miss the AW more when I'm not wearing it.


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## WIS_Chronomaster

To me i like a watch with a good power reserve , and ever since i have had my AW Repaired i am getting very good battery power out of it.


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## mharris660

I'm here to argue that a smart watch and a smart phone make you dumber. But that's just me as I sit here in a library researching the archives while everyone else uses Wiki.


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## Palmettoman

mharris660 said:


> I'm here to argue that a smart watch and a smart watch makes you dumber. But that's just me as I sit here in a library researching the archives while everyone else uses Wiki.


This should be good. Please elaborate...


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## Snaggletooth

mharris660 said:


> I'm here to argue that *a smart watch and a smart watch* makes you dumber. But that's just me as I sit here in a library researching the archives while everyone else uses Wiki.


A smart watch + a smart watch = two smart watches.

Two smart watches makes [sic] you dumber?


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## ronalddheld

Has this thread reached the end of it's usefulness?


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## BarracksSi

ronalddheld said:


> Has this thread reached the end of it's usefulness?


No - I'd like to hear more personal testimonies to shut up the troll.


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## kanye_mouse

i love my mechanicals but honestly getting the apple watch has legit changed the way i workout and my life. (1) steady-state cardio that OP suggests is only going to get you so far in fitness goals, and (2) being able to track heart rate, calories burned while working out truly gives you valuable insights and will change the way you workout. 

Now, I'd never wear an Apple Watch anywhere besides the gym (hate the notifications, love my mechanys), but in the gym it's a great tool (dare i say, tool watch?). I believe the smart watch fits nicely in my watch collection. 

i also realize that people just post smart watch threads in here to troll. i can't believe i'm feeding the trolls.


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## BarracksSi

kanye_mouse said:


> i also realize that people just post smart watch threads in here to troll. i can't believe i'm feeding the trolls.


It's okay when you feed them what they don't like.

IMO.


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## prokhmer

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## Excellent959

Mechanical watches are for people, who fear emp bombs coming our way in the near future .

darn... sorry, just realized that i was binge watching „homeland“ this weekend 🤭😋😂.


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## edhchoe

mechanical watch cannot pay for my beer at my favorite brewery.


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## GrussGott

edhchoe said:


> mechanical watch cannot pay for my beer at my favorite brewery.


Depends on the watch and the beer.


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## GrussGott

kanye_mouse said:


> i also realize that people just post smart watch threads in here to troll. i can't believe i'm feeding the trolls.


Hey, trolls gotta eat too!

I haven't used a smart watch for exercise yet because I have a polar chest strap and use the polar app for free for a total cost of $30 with much higher heart rate accuracy, no drop outs during weight training, and full pool lap swim use.

With that said I'm looking a Garmin, and trying to decide between the Marq, the Fenix 6 (soon), the 945, and the instinct ... kinda leaning towards the instinct.


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## omegafan2015

prokhmer said:


> Another problem with smart watch is that after 2 years it becomes obsolete and I need to shovel another $500 plus for the upgrade.


Not really true, who's saying you need to upgrade it? You don't need to. It's been 4 years since I bought AW first generation and I still have it without any problem or feel it's obsoleted.


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## lvt

Mechanical watches also make you dependable.


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## BSG75

omegafan2015 said:


> Not really true, who's saying you need to upgrade it? You don't need to. It's been 4 years since I bought AW first generation and I still have it without any problem or feel it's obsoleted.


IIRC, Watch OS6 will still work on the Series 1 Apple Watch. The new Series 4 and onward will have 64-bit processors, which should keep them running with software updates for quite some time. So, I definitely agree with you that an Apple Watch can last for quite some time. I believe that a person can go for at least 5 years before an upgrade becomes a necessity.


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## Dangerous Dave

There is some dubiety as to whether ‘smart watches’ are watches or wrist mounted computers. It’s true that they tell time but so does your phone and that isn’t a watch. I have an Apple Watch within my collection but more and more consider that it’s falls short of the whole essence of being a watch. My watch collection is unable to display my emails or texts so maybe the wrist mounted device that does, isn’t. I admit that this is heading into a kind of philosophical territory but I think we need to respect that all things have to have boundaries, anything else is madness.


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## kokoro

I wear a mechanical or quartz on my left wrist. This is my proper watch ie telling the time.
I wear a AW 5 or polar ignite on my other wrist this is for fitness training and sleep tracking only.


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