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Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

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Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#41

Post by psychomugs »

amatecha wrote: post #31
emsy wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had several pebbles (2 b/w and the colored one) and now have an apple watch. You don’t know what you’re talking about, the tech in the apple watch is years ahead. There’s much to criticize about the apple watch but it does the important things just so much better than the competition. I also never understood the focus on battery life. I put my watch on the charger whenever I go to sleep. If I forget it either still…

I mean, sure the Apple Watch is "years ahead". It not only came out two years later, but is developed by one of the most wealthy consumer tech/software companies in the world. Pebble was acquired by FitBit right around the time the second iteration of the Apple Watch was out, so there's really not much point in comparing the two in terms of technology. Despite Apple Watch's merits over the Pebble, I still miss my Peb…

I feel the same way with regards to the physical buttons, so easy to control by feel. I'd pay decent money for a phone case with external buttons for pausing/playing and other quick access functions.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#42

Post by ska »

jayd16 wrote: post #35

What a joke. Google, Facebook and Microsoft have face wearables in the market already. In Google's case, they've had enough time to do a full, release and kill cycle. And the Quest runs Android. How is that an Apple lead?

> How is that an Apple lead?

Because they have a wearable that people (and not just people in a niche) use and buy in significant numbers?

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#43

Post by MrMember »

drewg123 wrote: post #20
lettergram wrote: post #4

Pebble IMO was and still is the best wearable watch. I don’t think anything worked better largely due to the long battery life and generally the e-ink design. Had they added different wrist bands with smart tech in it, it would have gone even further. I don’t really think apple has a decade lead, what they do have is minimal innovation they’re competing with. AND more importantly, a brand and ecosystem. That being sa…

You should look at Garmin. They have models with battery life measured in weeks, not hours like the Apple watch. My 3+ year old 645 still gets 6 days of battery life.

I bought an Instinct about a month ago and love it. I like the G-Shock aesthetic which I know isn't for everyone but it's everything I want in a watch. The battery life is amazing as you said. I charge it once a week and even regularly using GPS for fitness tracking it's usually at around 40% (it can be extended further by using a GPS mode that polls less frequently). The interface is responsive and straightforward (and button based instead of touch which I personally prefer). Like a G-Shock it's waterproof and appears to be near indestructible. I can't see myself wanting to replace it any time soon.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#44

Post by m-p-3 »

lettergram wrote: post #4

Pebble IMO was and still is the best wearable watch. I don’t think anything worked better largely due to the long battery life and generally the e-ink design. Had they added different wrist bands with smart tech in it, it would have gone even further. I don’t really think apple has a decade lead, what they do have is minimal innovation they’re competing with. AND more importantly, a brand and ecosystem. That being sa…

A refreshed version with a thin display bezel and NFC to pay with NFC and I'd be sold.

The timeline UI makes such much sense.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#45

Post by efields »

least wrote: post #17

I'm pretty skeptical that Apple has a decade-long lead on any of the other big players in the market. Any innovations that one company can make can be more quickly adopted than new innovations occur and there's nothing as far as software goes that Apple is uniquely positioned to create. The other factors mentioned such as silicon tech being years ahead of the competition is one that is hardly a factor for the smart w…

Your last p contradicts the first. Part of what makes apple products so good is the software, the depth and complexity of things like Assistive Touch doesn’t happen in a few sprints.

Their software isn’t perfect, but it’s so thorough that it allows them to do levels of polish that competitors have a hard time catching up to.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#46

Post by cmsj »

krrrh wrote: post #38

I think people underestimate how big of a factor weight is going to be when it comes to face wearables. Apple’s lead in terms of performance/watt is so massive at this point, they’re going to have a few years where no other AR solution can even compete.

You make an extremely good point. One could guess that a first version of AR glasses would be not unlike the functionality of the watch - a few Complications, some Notifications, simple apps for stuff like navigation/music.

They have all of that, powered by a tiny system-in-package and a little battery.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#47

Post by jayd16 »

ska wrote: post #42
jayd16 wrote: post #35

What a joke. Google, Facebook and Microsoft have face wearables in the market already. In Google's case, they've had enough time to do a full, release and kill cycle. And the Quest runs Android. How is that an Apple lead?

> How is that an Apple lead? Because they have a wearable that people (and not just people in a niche) use and buy in significant numbers?

Does this logic mean Casio is the AR leader? In my eyes it seems like a ludicrous leap.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#48

Post by ska »

jayd16 wrote: post #47
ska wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How is that an Apple lead? Because they have a wearable that people (and not just people in a niche) use and buy in significant numbers?

Does this logic mean Casio is the AR leader? In my eyes it seems like a ludicrous leap.

Did you miss the significant numbers part?

Apples watch is a mainstream consumer electronics hit. The closest other thing close to comparable I can think of is the fitbits - at least their simple ones. Nobody in AR (or face wearables) is playing in that space at all.

I think "decade lead" is unsupportable. But the article is right that all of their competitors or potential competitors are well behind in some combination of capability in hardware, software, manufacturing, ecosystem. Most of them in all categories.

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#49

Post by jayd16 »

ska wrote: post #48
jayd16 wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does this logic mean Casio is the AR leader? In my eyes it seems like a ludicrous leap.

Did you miss the significant numbers part? Apples watch is a mainstream consumer electronics hit. The closest other thing close to comparable I can think of is the fitbits - at least their simple ones. Nobody in AR (or face wearables) is playing in that space at all. I think "decade lead" is unsupportable. But the article is right that all of their competitors or potential competitors are well behind in some combinat…

More numbers in a completely different tech stack is meaningless. How does a watch give you any learnings on an AR headset?

Re: Apple has a decade-long lead in wearables

#50

Post by unparagoned »

least wrote: post #17

I'm pretty skeptical that Apple has a decade-long lead on any of the other big players in the market. Any innovations that one company can make can be more quickly adopted than new innovations occur and there's nothing as far as software goes that Apple is uniquely positioned to create. The other factors mentioned such as silicon tech being years ahead of the competition is one that is hardly a factor for the smart w…

I've got a Samsung watch and the the heart rate monitor has serious reliability issues. Apples is not only suppose the be better but you got blood pressure and o2 monitoring. I'm definitely going to switch over in the future
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