Apple

I gifted my Apple Watch Ultra to my dad and luckily set up his emergency contacts and crash detection. He recently had a motor vehicle collision, and it was bad enough that his phone went under his seat while he was profusely bleeding from his head. Fortunately, it alerted us and possibly saved my father’s life. That in itself is worth it for me.

Yup. It tracks my workouts, plays my podcasts, lets me set timers and silent alarms, and tells me the time.

Running with only an Apple Watch and AirPods is a game changer

Massive health benefits for me

Exercise everyday, track bike workouts, strength training, walking

Tracking Hrv trends, resting heart rate and sleep

To say nothing of productivity

Other watches are hedonistic luxuries, not the Apple Watch

The only “must have” app I have is not really Apple Watch specific, although it being attached to my body and not on my night stand is helpful - is SUGAR MATE.

It’s a CGM - continuous glucose monitor app that draws the data from your Dexcom and applies it to offer more insight than the Dexcom offers.

If the app senses your blood sugar dropping too low overnight, it will call you and wake you up. My watch will ring and vibrate until I can get up, do an actual blood test (measurements will vary by 15 minute increments and can be off by 10 or more points - so a blood test is more accurate).

It is also free. No subscriptions although I should send the developer money considering how often I use it. I can take photos and leave descriptions of meal, scan UPCs, it has a list of the more popular franchise meal options. I can record other medications. And it does a good substitution for A1C because it is recording all the data. You can also share data with loved ones and doctors.

Beyond that the walkie talkie feature that allows me to contact the wife anytime is fantastic. Her phone is on silent and she refuses to look at it when she’s not working.

(M23YO) Not super useful in everyday life, I can always use my phone instead. I'd say if you're not doing sport, it's just a gadget. If you are though, it's a great piece of gear, totally worth it for training.

For me it's almost exclusively a hedonistic luxury as you put it. It made some very specific things a bit easier (Checking messages/calls, authenticator app, siri, the occasional sports session...) but has almost no real impact on my life as a gadget. I still like it though.

Ties it all together. I like that it works well with my phone, Mac, etc. Honestly it doesn’t stand on its own but holistically, yeah it’s an improvement.

For health data it’s been nice. Had heart surgery in ‘21 to replace an aortic valve / install pacemaker. My heartbeat has been weird to me and recovery hasn’t been perfect. It gives good enough data to keep me either less worried or to inform a discussion with my docs. (I’m also a lab rat and have a yet to be approved valve).

When I wear my watch I pick up my phone less. Less time is spent on tasks and there is less opportunity to get lost on a social media app.

I admit I got my S5 (2019) just to complete the ecosystem. But then pandemic happened (2020) and I got really super fat during the lockdowns to the point that I had difficulty breathing properly. But thanks to the Apple Watch, I enjoyed closing my rings daily. Eventually I lost 8-10kgs. Closing the rings and earning random medals became entertaining to me.

Btw. is it possible to mute all notifications, while i'm on my iphone or macbook and only have them on the watch, when im not on the phone or macbook? I guess not? Kinda annoying to have them everywhere.

There’s gotta be somewhere in the middle between those extremes.

Its made me more motivated to excercise. A lot easier to keep going when u can actually see the progress and how ur doing.

I was averaging 3500 steps a day which is horrible. The past 6 months im at 4100 which is still shit but im getting there.

250 bucks id say it was worth it. Wish i went with a used 6 instead of the SE2 tho.

Apple Watch is not luxury, if I want luxury I'll be rocking my mechanical watches instead (which I do when I go to a more formal event/gathering).

That said, I use my Apple Watch for Apple Pay and as a filter for notifications to see if I need to respond immediately. Just these 2 features have already improved my life. The added bonus is the passive health tracking features that encourages me to move more.

Little bit of both. I like having notifications sent to my watch now so I don't have to whip out my phone to see if it's an important one or not. Fitness also helps in that, at least, I can see if I'm being somewhat active throughout the day. Another portable MP3 player. And it's a watch. Not much of a watch guy so it's kinda nice having a "nice" watch to wear now,

Tracks my health and gamifies it. Great value for the past 5 years

Cant do any workout without it. I mean i can and their data tracking might not be perfect, but it genuinely motivates me to keep pushing on. I also use it to instantly set various timers, alarms and reminders.

At the very least, I’m more conscious of my own unhealthy decisions and habits, and have easy to parse data showing me how they impact my health.

Since the release of apple watch , I never stopped watching it, once I broke it and i instantly had to buy a new one, as i felt weird and naked. i wear it even to sleep to track my sleeping cycle.

Both. It motivates me to be more active on days I don’t feel like it (NOT the coaching messages, they are just nuisances to me - but seeing my rings is a reminder to get off my ass).

Even the sleep tracking has helped me to focus on not sacrificing sleep for nonsense like scrolling Reddit. Also motivates me not to drink alcohol except on rare occasions.

I like the tracking data for hikes, bike rides, etc. The VO2 max (though I know it’s terribly accurate) has motivated me to work out harder and to lose weight (I’ve gone from the “low” cardiac health category to just barely into the “high” category (took me about 16 months of working at it).

Otherwise, is a luxury - I like seeing my calendar, the weather, etc with a glance at my wrist. I like being able to set a timer, reminder, etc. without getting out my phone (like when I’m grilling a steak or driving).

Improved life ftw 🙌. I was constantly anxious about having my phone with me all time. Now at work I keep in my bag and at home in the drawer. I haven’t missed anything important while I reduced my screen on time about 70%. Also I keep my phone constantly on mute even when I need alarm cause it taps me on the wrist and I wake up without bothering the rest of my family. Lastly getting turn by turn navigation is much safer now since I don’t have to check my phones screen for directions.

It’s just made me more conscious about my activity levels and sleep quality. Gentle reminders that I haven’t moved much today. I also realized that my heart rate when riding the jam packed subway was really elevated after it gave me warnings, so I started going to work earlier for a more stress free ride and getting a seat on the train.

Honestly, I rarely use mine. It doesn’t add much to my day. I do use it when I exercise because it makes me feel like I’m getting credit for it 😆

It’s not really luxury. If I can afford hedonistic luxury, it wouldn’t be an Apple Watch.

Yes and yes lol. Helps keep me more active.

Kind of sort of. I have struggled with weight loss for years and it helps me keep track of steps and other goals but it also makes me neurotic about closing rings

I've really enjoyed teh health benefits. Allows me to slow down when training. I do 4-5 days a week Jiu-Jitsu, 5K race, 2 days strength, 3 days cardio.

I'd do more if the watch let me but from what I feel and what it says it helps.

Also it's great being away from my phone but I can still be contacted in an emergency. Also protects me if I fall over.

I've seen the Hu.ma.ne device recently and it looks great, but I realise I can do all the same with my Apple Watch which make me enjoy it more.

It helps me get prepared in the morning to check the weather forecast faster than in my phone. I use it to change songs or increase the volume in my headphones. I answer messages directly in the watch. If my hands are busy I sometimes answer phone calls in it. It also helps me track my physical activity. So yes it's an important addon to my life and I think I'll have a hard time to adapt to a life without it.

It makes me move around more and facilitates quick communication.

As far as hedonism is concerned, I don’t get laid any more than I used to, and the number of orgies I’ve been invited to in my lifetime still stands at zero.

I would say so. It’s incredibly useful when doing all kinds of things, eg running without my phone, setting timers/reminders, using Apple Pay etc

It has created an exercise routine for me that I follow consistently. I ran 6 days a week.

Main reason I bought the series 9 on release was because of the cycle tracking. I’ve tried for more than a year to become pregnant without luck. Well, I didn’t even have my wrist temperature and cycle tracked before booom! pregnant.

I’ve got no wireless, if I did it would be a lot more useful but I got it for the sole reason of sleep tracking, having quantifiable numbers helps me be accountable for healthy sleeping routines

Yes the crash detection, sleep tracking, movement tracking, fitness etc all make it worth it for me.

I use mine every single workout, for sleep tracking and for heart health. None of those features are unique to AW, but I’ve grown quite reliant on them.

On Oct 12 of 2022, my watch sent me Al alert that my heart rate was elevated. Silly me, I watched that for three days before going to Urgent Care, they sent me right to the emergency room.

That started my wellness journey, with my watch being the prime partner in my sleep, exercise and everything else it does. It is a 7. I am waiting for the Continuous Glucose Monitor feature before I upgrade.

My 92 year old Mom has gotten afib alerts and 911 has been called twice for her falls.

The “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” equipment only works in the persons house. The Apple Watch works everywhere.

I have lost sixty pounds since that fateful day in October, My exercise is set to 75 minutes of exercise a day, and I have watched as my resting heart rate is now 52, and my breathes per minute have gone down by one third. For a 69 year old lady this is heady stuff.

Iam grateful, and will log it in my Mindfulness today

Oh I love my watch. I like that it keeps track of my steps, heart rate, exercise, and I can track my menstrual cycle.