Thoughts on Apple Watch Ultra and a little FOMO
I have used the Apple Watch since the beginning. I held off on buying a Nike Fitness Band for about a year because there were rumors for a while that Apple was working on a smartwatch. I remember seeing friends at robotics and being jealous of their Android Smart watches (Yes, not even joking…they were novel and it felt like Google had a definite lead over Apple at the time). I had friends and family tell me that they just didn’t “Get it”, but even through the awkward presentation of the first generation Apple Watch and the weird sideshow that was the Johnny Ive vanity project that was the $10,000 Apple Watch Editions…I saw the potential of the smart watch. I bought the watch as much for fitness tracking as I did for the more productivity features like managing notifications on my wrist, a smart assistant that I could talk to, being able to reply to text/emails messages on the go, etc. I was interested and happy to see Apple pivoting hard into fitness with the Series 2 and 3. With the Series 4 and later there has also been a bigger focus on what I call “Health”, meaning overall health such as A-Fib detection, balance, fall detection, sleep tracking, Blood O2 monitoring, and most recently car crash detection and cycling tracking with the temperature sensor. I think that by expanding by beyond just fitness tracking (Running, biking, swimming, etc), Apple has widen the tent beyond just fitness enthusiasts and younger people. The mainline Apple Watch Series 8 not feels like the every-person watch these days. A device that a great many people can find several features that call out to them. Its been a blast seeing it evolve from a pretty geeky watch to a digital assistant and health couch that so many people have embraced.
Apple Watch Ultra
The Apple Watch Ultra that Apple announced definitely leans back into that fitness focus that Apple has downplayed over the last couple of years after the Series 2 watch. The Ultra is big, bigger than even the 45mm Series 7 that I have right now at 49mm and while it does support previous bands, it is definitely more top-heavy than the Series 8 will be. It appears that its going to be more of a double-stuffed Oreo on your wrist than the previous models, namely to fit in that more durable screen and the larger battery. I do dig the extra button on the side that can be programmed and the night mode that will turn the watch display to a red color to make it easier on your eyes at night (I wish that would come to older watches). The extra Digital Crown guard does give the watch a chunkier appearance, but I do love the new bands like the Alphine and Ocean Band. Its fun to see specialty bands built for a specific purposes. It will certainly be interesting to see how the Apple Watch Ultra looks like with the more traditional bands because it is compatible with them according to Apple’s website, though the lugs may not match the titanium body so if that bothers you just keep that in mind.
A little fomo
As neat as the Apple Watch Ultra looks and how I like to imagine myself having those grand adventures, I have to be honest with myself and confess that most of my daily exercises are indoor in nature right now. Indoor bicycle because I hurt my feet years ago so running has been off-limits except on a treadmill, elliptical doesn’t take me anywhere beyond the audiobook or podcast that I’m listening to, yoga I guess could be outdoors, and I’m still not confident enough in my abilities to work out with weights again after injuring my back back in May and spending this entire summer going to physical therapy to recover for that. I am looking forward to trying on the Apple Watch Ultra in the Apple Store and playing with my friends, but right now I think that its something I’m going to strive to upgrade to in the future, but I feel like i need to repair and upgrade myself before I can justify the Watch Ultra line. I’m hoping to maybe buy a bicycle next year after I’ve paid off some medical bills, but maybe then with some practice and more experience under my belt I can more confidently look at purchasing the second generation of the Apple Watch Ultra. Seeing the pictures and videos online I am drawn to it, but I think this year I’ll be passing on it. The FOMO (Fear of missing out) is real, but I think right now sticking with the regular Apple Watch is the best decision for me right now. Maybe one day I’ll be the outdoors type going on weekly adventures in the mountains, the woods, the ocean, etc, but for now it’s definitely something to strive towards.
