5 ms·

Apple Watch Series 7

34 points by FabHK 5y ago

jonathantf2 5y ago
Still rocking my Pebble Time, best smartwatch I've ever owned. Battery lasts forever and all it does is tell the time and show me notifications, and it does it very very well.
froggertoaster 5y ago
Side question: why on earth does Apple bother sending Apple Watches to someone like John Gruber? What exactly does his opinion offer anyone?
FireBeyond 5y ago
> The knock on Series 7 is that there’s nothing new but a bigger display. But it’s a much bigger display. It’s the one new thing that everyone will notice, and it’s very noticeable. Isn't it a 1 millimeter bigger display? 1/25th of an inch?
- jackvalentine 5y ago
  No it's 1mm bigger case and the screen takes up more of it by proportion compared to previous models.
coldtea 5y ago
Bland blogger, long since they've jumped the shark, writes bland review on the marginal improvements in the 7th edition of a useless gizmo.
- brundolf 5y ago
  I thought it was very interesting and nicely-written, considering it's a review of an incremental upgrade for a mature product
- zepto 5y ago
  The ‘useless gizmo’ is wildly successful. But yes, the new edition is essentially an incremental update. What were you expecting from the blogger?
  - coldtea 5y ago
    >The ‘useless gizmo’ is wildly successful Sure. But then again the Kardasians are too! >What were you expecting from the blogger? Not much, but I used to read him quite a bit back 20 years ago. His blog has long been a bland wasteland.
    - TestSIM1 5y ago
      > Not much, but I used to read him quite a bit back 20 years ago. John Gruber started writing in August 2002. And back then it was mostly about Movable Type Script, OS X Finder issues, some jackasses who wrote how Apple is surely doomed. I mean if you care about Apple products then AW Series 7 review looks like a good read. Otherwise I just don't see what you found interesting about his blog 20 years ago.
      - coldtea 5y ago
        >John Gruber started writing in August 2002. Yes, so it wasn't 20 years ago, it was 19 or 18. So? As good as 20. In any case, I've read him during the 10.1, 10.2 and such eras and up to around 2012 (a few years after the iPad) or so less frequently. >Otherwise I just don't see what you found interesting about his blog 20 years ago. Coverage of Apple in more exciting times (when it was basically a computer company), more humour, better reviews, more relevant links, less baseball and Kubrick BS, less politics for dummies, less "facebook is bad" for dummies, less open shill and more genuine enthusiast coverage, and so on.
        TestSIM1 5y ago
        > Coverage of Apple in more exciting times (when it was basically a computer company) I also miss times when Apple was all about Mac. Not much you can do about that. But back then lots of people complained that Apple is turning into iPod company. It's just Gruber didn't write much about iPod (initially at least). And considering M1 chips I can't say this isn't exciting times for the Mac. Imagine if Apple used Snapdragon chips (or whatever) and the latest Macs were similar in terms of performance to Surface Pro X... (and SP X couldn't even emulate x64 apps at launch). > more humour, better reviews, more relevant links, less baseball and Kubrick BS, less politics for dummies, less "facebook is bad" for dummies, less open shill and more genuine enthusiast coverage, and so on. OK, will not argue about baseball, politics or Facebook. But I do remember lots of blog entries about how MS Windows is bad (viruses and inept marketing) and Mac is about being a better (and more secure) computer e.g. I wouldn't call that less open shill. Gruber was always (well, most of the time) on Apple's side. Recently I re-read his PowerBook G4 review (Full Metal Jacket) and comparing to his other reviews regarding modern Intel and M1 Macs can't say I see a huge difference. I assume we are just happen to disagree here.
- doublepg23 5y ago
  I like his "The Talk Show" podcast. He has a very nice voice.
  - coldtea 5y ago
    >He has a very nice voice. I guess that's the main attraction to his podcast.
wdb 5y ago
Who needs a Apple Watch when you can have a gorgeous Lange 1 or JLR Master / Polaris and admire the engineering (Do have one for app dev though)
- twalla 5y ago
  As someone who appreciates mechanical watches I think this is a bit of an apples to oranges comparison. With the ubiquity of inexpensive, reliable means of telling the time, it's basically comparing a piece of (functional) jewelry to ... well... a literal computer on your wrist.
  - vinay427 5y ago
    In addition, the functional aspect is not always well-founded. As you may know, even many basic quartz watches (or certainly radio-controlled options) tend to drift less than some very expensive mechanical movements.
    - bubblethink 5y ago
      Weren't the radios going to be deprecated in the US ? They also don't work globally. I would like a GPS watch though, like seiko astron. Last I checked, it was still bulky and pricey.
    - wdb 5y ago
      Yeah, you have the Grand Seiko with the spring drive movement
  - 0des 5y ago
    > apples to oranges admit it, you knew what you were doing here, well played
  - wdb 5y ago
    Yes, I don't consider the Apple Watch jewellery. Personally, I find it a boring device. I can admire a beautiful watch movement, the ticking sound, the feel when using the crown. The skill for the decorations
DesiLurker 5y ago
My main issue with smartwatches still is battery life. I just loathe the idea of having to charge it daily, even mechanical watches from decades ago have 48/72 hours reserve whith auto refill. I dont care how pretty it is and how many bells and whistles get crammed into that tiny screen, at the end of the day it needs to revolve around my life without me having to make concessions for it. the other problem with these things that many (IMO) are not realizing is the battery is going to die in a few years and then they will be shiny showpieces sitting in closets until you give up and ewaste it all. no thanks.
- browningstreet 5y ago
  I put my iWatch on the charger when I go to bed. If I wake in the middle of the night I put it on my wrist. If I don’t, I do so when I wake up. I usually have 50% at the end of the day. I don’t feel burdened by that.
  - bradknowles 5y ago
    I use two watches, because I want advanced sleep tracking as well as daytime use. It’s easy enough to swap back and forth whenever you wake up or go to bed.
- doublepg23 5y ago
  I thought I would also have this issue when I switched to iOS and got the Apple Watch and AirPods. Turns out I just plug in everything at bedtime along with my phone so it's not much of a nuisance. I guess the e-waste issue is concerning with all these electronics though.
  - BugsJustFindMe 5y ago
    The phone I agree with mostly, but holy hell AirPod Pros battery life is a terrible joke. I have to charge them basically after every meeting. I'd be super upset if I hadn't gotten them almost for free.

34 points by FabHK 5y ago

Still rocking my Pebble Time, best smartwatch I've ever owned. Battery lasts forever and all it does is tell the time and show me notifications, and it does it very very well.

froggertoaster 5y ago

Side question: why on earth does Apple bother sending Apple Watches to someone like John Gruber? What exactly does his opinion offer anyone?

FireBeyond 5y ago

> The knock on Series 7 is that there’s nothing new but a bigger display. But it’s a much bigger display. It’s the one new thing that everyone will notice, and it’s very noticeable. Isn't it a 1 millimeter bigger display? 1/25th of an inch?

jackvalentine 5y ago
No it's 1mm bigger case and the screen takes up more of it by proportion compared to previous models.

coldtea 5y ago

Bland blogger, long since they've jumped the shark, writes bland review on the marginal improvements in the 7th edition of a useless gizmo.

brundolf 5y ago
I thought it was very interesting and nicely-written, considering it's a review of an incremental upgrade for a mature product
zepto 5y ago
The ‘useless gizmo’ is wildly successful. But yes, the new edition is essentially an incremental update. What were you expecting from the blogger?
- coldtea 5y ago
  >The ‘useless gizmo’ is wildly successful Sure. But then again the Kardasians are too! >What were you expecting from the blogger? Not much, but I used to read him quite a bit back 20 years ago. His blog has long been a bland wasteland.
  - TestSIM1 5y ago
    > Not much, but I used to read him quite a bit back 20 years ago. John Gruber started writing in August 2002. And back then it was mostly about Movable Type Script, OS X Finder issues, some jackasses who wrote how Apple is surely doomed. I mean if you care about Apple products then AW Series 7 review looks like a good read. Otherwise I just don't see what you found interesting about his blog 20 years ago.
    - coldtea 5y ago
      >John Gruber started writing in August 2002. Yes, so it wasn't 20 years ago, it was 19 or 18. So? As good as 20. In any case, I've read him during the 10.1, 10.2 and such eras and up to around 2012 (a few years after the iPad) or so less frequently. >Otherwise I just don't see what you found interesting about his blog 20 years ago. Coverage of Apple in more exciting times (when it was basically a computer company), more humour, better reviews, more relevant links, less baseball and Kubrick BS, less politics for dummies, less "facebook is bad" for dummies, less open shill and more genuine enthusiast coverage, and so on.
      - TestSIM1 5y ago
        > Coverage of Apple in more exciting times (when it was basically a computer company) I also miss times when Apple was all about Mac. Not much you can do about that. But back then lots of people complained that Apple is turning into iPod company. It's just Gruber didn't write much about iPod (initially at least). And considering M1 chips I can't say this isn't exciting times for the Mac. Imagine if Apple used Snapdragon chips (or whatever) and the latest Macs were similar in terms of performance to Surface Pro X... (and SP X couldn't even emulate x64 apps at launch). > more humour, better reviews, more relevant links, less baseball and Kubrick BS, less politics for dummies, less "facebook is bad" for dummies, less open shill and more genuine enthusiast coverage, and so on. OK, will not argue about baseball, politics or Facebook. But I do remember lots of blog entries about how MS Windows is bad (viruses and inept marketing) and Mac is about being a better (and more secure) computer e.g. I wouldn't call that less open shill. Gruber was always (well, most of the time) on Apple's side. Recently I re-read his PowerBook G4 review (Full Metal Jacket) and comparing to his other reviews regarding modern Intel and M1 Macs can't say I see a huge difference. I assume we are just happen to disagree here.
doublepg23 5y ago
I like his "The Talk Show" podcast. He has a very nice voice.
- coldtea 5y ago
  >He has a very nice voice. I guess that's the main attraction to his podcast.

wdb 5y ago

Who needs a Apple Watch when you can have a gorgeous Lange 1 or JLR Master / Polaris and admire the engineering (Do have one for app dev though)

twalla 5y ago
As someone who appreciates mechanical watches I think this is a bit of an apples to oranges comparison. With the ubiquity of inexpensive, reliable means of telling the time, it's basically comparing a piece of (functional) jewelry to ... well... a literal computer on your wrist.
- vinay427 5y ago
  In addition, the functional aspect is not always well-founded. As you may know, even many basic quartz watches (or certainly radio-controlled options) tend to drift less than some very expensive mechanical movements.
  - bubblethink 5y ago
    Weren't the radios going to be deprecated in the US ? They also don't work globally. I would like a GPS watch though, like seiko astron. Last I checked, it was still bulky and pricey.
  - wdb 5y ago
    Yeah, you have the Grand Seiko with the spring drive movement
- 0des 5y ago
  > apples to oranges admit it, you knew what you were doing here, well played
- wdb 5y ago
  Yes, I don't consider the Apple Watch jewellery. Personally, I find it a boring device. I can admire a beautiful watch movement, the ticking sound, the feel when using the crown. The skill for the decorations

DesiLurker 5y ago

My main issue with smartwatches still is battery life. I just loathe the idea of having to charge it daily, even mechanical watches from decades ago have 48/72 hours reserve whith auto refill. I dont care how pretty it is and how many bells and whistles get crammed into that tiny screen, at the end of the day it needs to revolve around my life without me having to make concessions for it. the other problem with these things that many (IMO) are not realizing is the battery is going to die in a few years and then they will be shiny showpieces sitting in closets until you give up and ewaste it all. no thanks.

browningstreet 5y ago
I put my iWatch on the charger when I go to bed. If I wake in the middle of the night I put it on my wrist. If I don’t, I do so when I wake up. I usually have 50% at the end of the day. I don’t feel burdened by that.
- bradknowles 5y ago
  I use two watches, because I want advanced sleep tracking as well as daytime use. It’s easy enough to swap back and forth whenever you wake up or go to bed.
doublepg23 5y ago
I thought I would also have this issue when I switched to iOS and got the Apple Watch and AirPods. Turns out I just plug in everything at bedtime along with my phone so it's not much of a nuisance. I guess the e-waste issue is concerning with all these electronics though.
- BugsJustFindMe 5y ago
  The phone I agree with mostly, but holy hell AirPod Pros battery life is a terrible joke. I have to charge them basically after every meeting. I'd be super upset if I hadn't gotten them almost for free.