4 ms·
I wholly agree with the analysis here, mostly because I've been blown away by how much my Apple Watch has benefited my health. Apple's implementation of a consu
by apeace 5y ago
I wholly agree with the analysis here, mostly because I've been blown away by how much my Apple Watch has benefited my health. Apple's implementation of a consumer health experience is really good so far.
I have a scale that tells me my weight and body fat percentage, and it is able to sync directly into Apple Health. And yet, the scale isn't able to read any of my health data, including my weight! They have done a great job with Apple Health, making your data accessible and yet easy to set permissions so it's in your control.
The author mentions blood glucose monitoring, and I'm sure Apple will attempt to do that at some point. But there are so many more things they could potentially do.
How about a chest strap for workouts? I'm fascinated by how my watch measures my V̇O₂ max for me, but it seems like it would be far more accurate with more inputs.
What if Apple Watch, or some other device, could detect heart attacks? It can already detect some heartbeat irregularities.
I'm sure Apple could make an even better scale than the one I already have. My understanding is the body composition readings aren't too accurate on those things.
Imagine an Apple weight loss program: guaranteed to lose 10lbs in 2 months if you follow the instructions your watch gives you!
Here would be the real killer for me: what if Apple made glasses which could detect all the food you eat and log the calories and nutrients? I've done a fair amount of manual meal logging into apps that integrate with Apple Health, and it can be really helpful for monitoring your diet. But typing every meal into your phone isn't scalable -- I inevitably give up after a couple weeks.
One more thing: how can hospitals and doctors get access to this data? I've done some searching for a primary care physician that has the ability to integrate with Apple Health, and I haven't found any. Can Apple create a paid service that empowers service providers with more data?
I think Apple is the company that can 1) build the best, most high-tech consumer health products, and 2) sell the value of those products to the public.
Cars and AR are cool, too, but, as the author points out, consumers aren't really seeing the value in those. If Apple can make its health products even more life-changing than they already are, then someday we will live in a world where it's weird to not be monitoring your health, like it would be weird to not have a smartphone these days.
- reaperducer 5y agoWhat if Apple Watch, or some other device, could detect heart attacks? It can already detect some heartbeat irregularities. This would require years, maybe even decades of study. Apple can't just flip a switch and do this. Medical diagnostics is heavily regulated for a reason. It's entirely possible that Apple is working on this, or something like it. But you won't see it for a very very long time. how can hospitals and doctors get access to this data? I've done some searching for a primary care physician that has the ability to integrate with Apple Health, and I haven't found any. This exists. Until recently I lived in a city where this was possible, but my GP wasn't on the list. You can see a list in the Health app. But there are hundreds of thousands of practices just in the United States, many on incompatible systems. It will take a very long time for it to be available nationwide.
- diebeforei485 5y agoIt's unfortunate that warning people about potential issues is regulated like giving people an official diagnosis.
- apeace 5y ago> This would require years, maybe even decades of study. Apple can't just flip a switch and do this. Point taken, but I think that's why I phrased it as a "what if?" Because if they could, it would be one of the most sought-after health products on the market. > This exists. Until recently I lived in a city where this was possible, but my GP wasn't on the list. You can see a list in the Health app. Yes, the list seems to be mostly hospitals and labs. The next time I get lab work I'll certainly try to synchronize it. What I really want is for my GP to have a high-level view of some of my habits. Why is my GP asking me, "are you exercising regularly?" What is regularly? I want him to tell me "I see you're doing lots of strength training but not very much cardio, you may want to work that in to your routine." The data is there, and my doctor could probably pull better insights from it than I could give him verbally. So if Apple could solve this for many incompatible systems, I think it would be very popular both for doctor's offices and their patients.
- penjelly 5y agoFrom what ive heard from doctor youtubers and doctors ive spoken to myself, they get far more false positives due to heart rate fluctuations and users panicking then they do get benefits from the watches right now. I do agree that in the future this will be very useful data. But as it stands right now i believe doctors default to not trusting anything that isnt a professional tool for monitoring heart rate
- mikestew 5y agoHow about a chest strap for workouts? Not to detract from your overall point, but just about any Bluetooth heart rate strap will work with the Apple Watch. Wahoo has one that folks report works. Personally, I have a Polar H10 that does both Bluetooth for Apple Watch, and ANT+ for my Garmin watch.