So, here’s the thing….
What’s the killer advantage of doing all that on your wrist rather than by your phone?
It’s great to switch the central heating on and off from a distance, by I can do that on the phone far more clearly.
I buy the advantage of discreet interrupts and activity based data, but I’m just not sure whether it’s just more “noise and distraction?” For example the gamification of exercise. Do I need nudges, or just a clear record of what I have and haven’t done?
It’s very similar to my scepticism about Tablets compared to MacBooks. Great devices for consumers of data, but limited for content creators.
Ultimately there is no killer advantage per se. For some it works, for some it doesn’t.
It’s interesting you mention laptops and tablets as I see them both on a scale with watches and smartphones - they can all largely do the same things, but the way we can use them is different.
Watch - high frequency, short duration
Smartphone
Tablet
Laptop
Desktop* - low frequency, long duration
* desktop may also be a docked laptop or other device with the input and output devices - and a desk and chair - conducive for long duration tasks
I use my phone for a lot of things and the watch is my an extension of my my phone for high frequency short duration tasks, mostly notifications and initiating tasks.
You mentioned it being discrete, as you suggest it’s ideal in meetings, but in every day life when I’m doing other things the watch is less invasive than a phone.
Whilst I want my phone to do all of those thing, I don’t necessarily want to have to have my phone in my hand to do them, in any setting, not just business.
During my waking hours, I doubt many many moments go by without my watch doing something. It carries on overnight, but less frequently and I don’t see them whilst asleep.
Notifications are especially useful as you can decide whether you need to take action now, later or not at all, and maybe use dung a different device to do it, ie get my phone out!
I sleep wearing my smart watch too. I only take it off to charge it, and I do that when I’m in the shower. By the time I’m dressed it has enough charge until the next shower.
Some of the stuff I use my for:
Tell the tine/dare
See the next appointment
Alerts for reminders
Alerts for timers
Alerts for allointmenys
Alerts for directions walking/driving
Alerts for flights
Alerts for weather, eg rain stop/start
Alerts for tracked items eg keys, phones
Alerts for payments
Alerts for important emails
Initiating timer
Intimidating tasks, eg change heating
Initiating messages
Initiating calls
Initiating payments
Initiating and controlling music
Turning lights on and off
Arming security systems
The list could go on and on, but they’re all things which could be done using a different form factor device, or not at all. It complements other form factors well.
Some people value that, some people don’t. Some people prefer a different dorm factor or device for those things. Some people don’t do those things at all.
When I first had the Internet at home, friends and family couldn’t understand why I wanted or needed it, and thought they wouldn’t, but they all had it later.
When I first had a smartphone (pre iPhone), fiends and family couldn’t understand why I wanted a phone with a big screen and without a keypad, but they all do now.
I’m sure that there are similar things which never take off too, because there isn’t a genuinely helpful use case, so we tend to forget those, they fade away.
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