Favorite Features of the Apple Watch

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As much as I love technology and worked in the tech field for a decade you may be surprised that I’m not always the first person to jump on the new gadget bandwagon. I’ve found over the years that first editions of most tech devices are overly expensive and come with glitches or kinks to be worked out over time. That’s why when the apple watch debuted a few years ago I wasn’t the first to go out and buy one. I wasn’t really sure why I would need a watch on top of my cell phone. Although I love watches (like this beautiful wood version from JORD), they haven’t been an item I wear everyday.

Let’s fast forward to today. After months of research about the Apple watch, I decided I wanted to get one. Lucky me received it for Christmas this year and I couldn’t be happier. In fact, it was my favorite gift received this year! I’m still getting to know all of the functionality but for today’s post I thought I would share what I already love after using it for just a few weeks.

Effortless Set Up

One of my hesitations for upgrading my cell phone is that it’s such a pain to set up a new gadget. The Apple watch is different. You charge it up, turn it on and it walks you through exactly what to do and how to pair it with your phone. I have zero clue if it can be used with non-Apple products, but if you are an iPhone user it’s completely effortless. Apple has this amazing ability to make things easy. Apple also trains you on new features as they roll out which is another reason to love their products. The easier something is to set up the more motivated I am to immediately put it into good use.

Getting Directions on Your Watch

I oftentimes am not the one driving but the designated navigator. I found that it’s so easy to miss your turn when you are the navigator if you get distracted by multi-tasking. With the apple watch it automatically gives you directional updates and vibrates your wrist when you need to make a change in your route. It’s saved me many times already from missing my next turn (thus, decreasing the stress on the actual driver - haha!) Now I know when my watch notifies me to quickly make a move in the next direction.

Closing those Activity Rings

Tracking my steps was the number one reason I wanted to get an Apple watch. I know there are Fitbits and other pedometers, but I’m one of those people who likes less than more when it comes to gadgets. I figured if I was going to invest in a step tracker it might as well sync with my health app on my cell phone. What I discovered about the Apple watch is it challenges you more and more everyday. It reminds me when I’ve been sitting too long and tells me if I’m behind in the day on hitting my activity goals. It also separates exercise from steps by measuring your heart rate. It’s almost become a game to me to make sure I close all of the rings each day.

Answer Calls Without Having to Pull Your Phone Out

There’s nothing worse than being out and about with your phone tucked away in a pocket or purse when you receive an important call you just don’t want to miss. The watch will allow you to put a call on speaker so you don’t even have to touch your phone! Also, if you don’t want to answer a call you can simply dismiss it using your watch instead of your phone. The best part is, your phone doesn’t duplicate things! If you dismiss a call on your watch it doesn’t tell you that you have a missed call on your phone. The two act in tandem to make things easier!

Relax and Breathe Feature

This was an unexpected feature I’ve grown to enjoy. The breathe feature will randomly remind me to take a full minute and focus on breathing. It uses an expanding and contracting visual design to help you take a moment to relax. Being a person diagnosed with anxiety and panic disorder this really helps me slow down throughout the day. I am defintiely one that needs to be reminded to relax and the app is perfect for keeping me on track!

There are a ton of other features that I know I haven’t even explored yet. The ones listed above were immediately active when I started using my watch! I love the silicon pink band and overall aesthetic of the rose gold face of this version. I’ve found it looks great with most of my casual outfits and if I get dressed up I can still wear it under long sleeves. I plan on eventually looking for a dressier band but for now I’ll stick with the classic blush pink hue this one came with!

If you have an Apple watch, what are your favorite features?

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