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Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

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Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#231

Post by dsacco »

Eric_WVGG wrote: post #217

Every nerd I know (including the ones who own Apple Watches) mirrors the comments in this thread — poor text entry, slow, half baked. Every non-nerd I know who has one absolutely loves them. Last month, my parents came to visit and... - boarded their flights with the Delta app - paid for taxis with Apple Pay on their wrists - laughed at how much higher their “steps” were here than back at home - when my mother wound…

That's such a generalization that I can't believe I'm bothering to refute it, but:

1. I consider myself pretty nerdy and I love the Apple Watch. You now know me, at least through Hacker News. I made another comment in this thread extolling the Apple Watch, and there are others. It feels like you cherrypicked the negativity, because I actually see a lot of balanced feedback that is both positive and negative about the watch, many of which comes from fellow "nerds".

2. I don't want to put words in your mouth, but it seems like you're using your in-group as a signaling heuristic rather than for an empirical analysis here. What constitutes a "nerd" if you haven't found any nerds who like it and if you didn't notice the comments from fellow nerds who really enjoy it?

3. I haven't personally found any of the issues you're talking about, but I do believe you've had them if you say you have. I'd chalk that up to an "underspecified complaint", because I don't know what the context was that resulted in poor behavior from the device. In my daily usage I don't find those issues emerge. However, I'd also gently suggest your expectations might be miscalibrated here and that you could be nitpicking. The device is absolutely not perfect, but I'm surprised if you disagree that it's not empowering, even for your in-group. It may be that you don't want to take advantage of those features, but if that's the case it's really not fair to generalize to a blanket claim that Apple doesn't develop for nerds.

Again, speaking as a nerd, I feel Apple develops products that target me very well. I use Linux on a workstation as a daily driver, but I enjoy my MacBook Pro more than I enjoy any other machine. I had an Android phone for about a year and switched back to the latest iPhone because it's both more secure and has better integration. And being that I develop software, I can appreciate that Apple has developed very solid software and hardware even if it can't meet all expectations.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#232

Post by jclardy »

Eric_WVGG wrote: post #217

Every nerd I know (including the ones who own Apple Watches) mirrors the comments in this thread — poor text entry, slow, half baked. Every non-nerd I know who has one absolutely loves them. Last month, my parents came to visit and... - boarded their flights with the Delta app - paid for taxis with Apple Pay on their wrists - laughed at how much higher their “steps” were here than back at home - when my mother wound…

I own an Apple watch, and I would agree with those sentiments..two years ago. Ever since watchOS 2 none of those things are really true anymore.

Text entry modes now include voice, quick replies, and simple glyph drawing. The speed of the gen 2 apple watch is pretty awesome, and with the advent of the "dock" you can have all your third party apps open instantly (up to 10, which for me covers everything I use on the watch.) Lots of iOS apps actually include a watch app, you would be surprised.

As a developer, it still annoys me because there are so many limitations. Complications on the watchface can essentially only be text or fixed images included in your app bundle. So nothing truly dynamic. Watchfaces still aren't open, likely just so they can control branding (Hermes for example.)

Personally I look at it like this, the apple watch is a fitness tracker, a notification machine, and a secondary display for the iPhone, in that order. If you don't want the first two, then you don't want an Apple Watch.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#233

Post by dsacco »

nichochar wrote: post #158
dsacco wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a few points for you in response: 1. I'm what you'd call a "watch guy." In the time I have had the Apple Watch Series 2, I have barely used my mechanicals (including a Lange & Sohne and a Nomos Glashutte). The Apple Watch comes with me on all but the most formal/elegant occasions, and I now hate changing straps on my mechanical watches in comparison. The Apple Watch may not be as beautiful, but it is far more…

A "watch guy" is someone who likes real watches. You're just a "gadget guy"

That seems like a No True Scotsman :)

If non-fashion, non-mass market brands targeted at the mid and high tiers of in-house haute horlogerie don't constitute "real watches" for you, what does? Your comment reads like I mentioned the widely recognizable "status" brands like Rolex and Tag Heuer. Nomos (entry-mid) and Lange (high-ultra high) are two of the most well-respected watch houses in the world right now, and probably the most well-respected from Germany (as opposed to Switzerland).

You're right that I'm a "gadget guy", though. I just appreciate both, and my original point is the Apple Watch's raw utility is capable of displacing my passion for mechanical timepieces and their craftsmanship.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#234

Post by freehunter »

dsacco wrote: post #231
Eric_WVGG wrote: post #217

Every nerd I know (including the ones who own Apple Watches) mirrors the comments in this thread — poor text entry, slow, half baked. Every non-nerd I know who has one absolutely loves them. Last month, my parents came to visit and... - boarded their flights with the Delta app - paid for taxis with Apple Pay on their wrists - laughed at how much higher their “steps” were here than back at home - when my mother wound…

That's such a generalization that I can't believe I'm bothering to refute it, but: 1. I consider myself pretty nerdy and I love the Apple Watch. You now know me, at least through Hacker News. I made another comment in this thread extolling the Apple Watch, and there are others. It feels like you cherrypicked the negativity, because I actually see a lot of balanced feedback that is both positive and negative about the…

I often leave comments exactly like the one you replied to, so while I'm not the person you replied to, I might as well be.

HN loves to hate Apple and everything they do, and the Internet as a whole loves to hate Apple. Going back to the infamous "less space than a Nomad, no wifi, lame" comment. Now to be sure, there are tons of us who like Apple products, but there are a lot of loudmouths who need to shout from the rooftops that this Apple product isn't targeted at them and that's why it will fail. Is it the majority? No, far from it. That's why Apple products are almost always huge successes. Most of their customers actually like them.

But every thread about the iPhone you have people who feel the need to explain why they'd never buy one because they need a headphone jack. Every thread about the iPad you have people who need to tell you that an Android tablet is cheaper, but people don't need tablets and the fad is wearing off. Every thread about the Macbook someone has to say how the XPS is a better value for the money and actually has function keys.

So when you hear someone like me or the person you responded to saying "nerds love to hate Apple", it's hyperbole. Nerds love to love Apple just like everyone else in the world and that's why they make a shitload of money every quarter. Internet loudmouths love to hate Apple, and unfortunately Internet loudmouths are the ones who get upvotes. So it gives the impression that nerds hate Apple, which leads other people to think "hey maybe I should hate Apple too" and makes news sites run stories about how nerds hate Apple's latest products.

It's not true, but that's the impression you'd get if you read HN or /r/technology.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#235

Post by azm1 »

seanp2k2 wrote: post #41
ProfessorLayton wrote: post #29

Overall I still regret buying my Generation 1. The hardware was just not ready (Neither was the software, but the updates have improved it quite a bit over the 1.0 disaster). I knew I'd be an early adopter, so some rough edges are to be expected. Even so I experience(d) the following: - Severe lag when triggering Siri - Slow mail updates, to the point where I pull my phone out of my pocket anyway - "This message cont…

I almost sprang for the v1 Watch, but waited for the Garmin Fenix 5. It's a far superior product IMO. Garmin is actually really good at designing interfaces for small screens, and t has buttons instead of touch, which I wanted. The battery lasts almost a week (long enough that I don't think about charging it, I just kinda plug it in when I notice the battery indicator below a quarter, which happens not very often). T…

Fenix is too heavy.There is no way general public would wear something like that.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#236

Post by EpicEng »

kswahl1 wrote: post #107
ishwarn wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's an accountability mechanism. It reminds you to get up and move, reminds you that you need to hit your goals, etc. e: Not so much about forgetting, but a nag.

If you don't want to work out a watch isn't going to change that.

Different things work for different people. My wife and I exercise very regularly, but the way in which we stay motivated and on track are very different.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#237

Post by norea-armozel »

Eric_WVGG wrote: post #217

Every nerd I know (including the ones who own Apple Watches) mirrors the comments in this thread — poor text entry, slow, half baked. Every non-nerd I know who has one absolutely loves them. Last month, my parents came to visit and... - boarded their flights with the Delta app - paid for taxis with Apple Pay on their wrists - laughed at how much higher their “steps” were here than back at home - when my mother wound…

For me, the idea of a wearable computer just seems like a waste. And I think much of that comes from the fact that I've done most of work analytical work with pencil/pen and paper. So for me technology is the thing I use to do work I could never do on a notepad or in my own head. It took me years to finally accept the idea of a password manager so I would stop reusing the same set of passwords all over the web whenever I created an account. Heck, I didn't even have a smart phone until 2014 since I still prefer the flip phone form factor. And I'm only 37 so I do think technically minded people tend to like using their own mind to do the work much like an athlete or a farm worker likes to use their own body to do physically taxing work. It's just a natural fit in that regard. For everyone else, convenience trumps practicality.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#238

Post by macavity23 »

rconti wrote: post #153
vlozko wrote: post #81

From my own experience and reading that of others, it's the device that no one can justify until they get one. Then it becomes the device that the vast majority love and some can't live without.

I dragged my heels on buying one for quite awhile. I didn't really "get" it, and didn't really see the use case. I liked wearing "normal" watches and didn't want a device that, if I liked it, would mean I could no longer wear a normal watch anymore. (or, worse, if I hated it, I wasted my money). I used a friend's for a few minutes and was even LESS enamored with it. It felt freeing, "great, now I don't need to bother…

Acking PagerDuty alerts from your wrist during a show feels like a superpower.

Re: Apple Watch sales up over 50% since last year

#240

Post by kartD »

hellweaver666 wrote: post #179
tigershark wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why only in Tokyo? In London you can use Apple Pay pretty much everywhere, even in the small food stalls on the street or to enter the underground. I have seen pretty much the same in Australia, and I guess that in a lot of places in the world is no different. EDIT: And actually last time that I went in Japan it was still pretty difficult to even use credit cards, so I won't bet on a pervasive use of Apple Pay there.

In the Netherlands we have contactless payments everywhere and many places that don't accept cash, but for some reason the banks are being really slow to work with Apple... no sign of ApplePay on the horizon from what I can see.

During the earnings call, Cook mentioned that Apple pay is coming to Denmark, Finland, Sweden and UAE this year so maybe next year for the Netherlands?
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