According to (Barney, 2023), the Apple Watch is a smartwatch produced by Apple Inc and first launched in 2015. In the beginning, the Apple Watch was designed to reduce the time users spend looking on their phones, however now it has redefined the way we interact with technology and manage our lives.
The Apple Watch can serve as a health and fitness tracker. It can check and track your blood oxygen levels for users who suffer from illnesses such as asthma. The watch can also track your heart rate throughout the day and even during your workouts. This is possible due to the sensors that are located at the back of the watch (Lanier, 2022). (Schuler & Stella, 2022) states that the Apple Watch is one of the most precise heart rate monitors you'll find in any smartwatch. This is done using built-in photodiodes, which are light-sensing photo sensors that can recognize a string of rapidly flashing green LED lights. The watch can monitor the flow of blood through your arteries by flashing those lights on your wrist hundreds of times each second. This enables it to track your heart rate, or how many times your heart beats each minute. Due to this feature, the Apple Watch is a great choice for anyone who wants to monitor their exercise activity and learn more about other critical health issues like sleep problems or irregular heartbeats. (Loic, 2022) A simple task, such as climbing a ladder to change a lightbulb, can become life-threatening if you fall and are unable to get up. Thankfully, the built-in accelerometer and gyroscope of an Apple Watch Series 4 or later can recognize when you have fallen. Your Watch will tap you on the wrist, sound an alarm, and display an alert if it determines that you have fallen. Your Apple Watch will alert local emergency authorities and communicate your location to your emergency contacts if you do not move after 60 seconds. Apple watch also has a feature called Crash Detection, which uses the Watch's sensors to detect when you have been in a severe car accident.
One problem of the Apple Watch is that without an iOS device, the Apple Watch is worthless. Even though it offers a ton of features, the Apple Watch is essentially an Apple device that only functions with an iPhone. If you now use an Android handset and want to get an Apple Watch, you need to upgrade to an iPhone, which can be a costly overall purchase. Since the Apple Watch app is a part of the iPhone, using the smartwatch without it is impossible. Apple does this to bind you to its environment, and once you start settling in, it gets difficult to leave (Imran, 2022). Compared to the Garmin smartwatches, it can also be used with iOS and Android devices thanks to the Garmin Connect software unlike Apple Watch which can only be used with iOS. The Garmin Forerunner 265 offers a 15-day battery life when used as a smartwatch but the Apple Watch series 8 has a battery life of approximately 18 hours. This is the other issue with the Apple Watch which is its battery life. This means that you have to charge your Apple Watch almost daily. Garmin Forerunner 265 have similar features like the Apple Watch series 8 such as recording the heart rate and blood oxygen levels (McGuire, 2023).
In conclusion, the Apple Watch is a valuable tool for users that use Apple as their operating system. The Apple Watch can be a highly beneficial health tool for anyone who wears one, so long as you take advantage of everything it offers. Depending on individual needs, preferences, and priorities, users may find it very useful. However others might prefer alternative devices that better align with their specific and system requirements (iOS or android).
References
Barney, N. (2023, September). What is an Apple Watch? | Definition from TechTarget. TechTarget. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.techtarget.com/searchmobilecomputing/definition/Apple-Watch
Imran, S. (2022, March 22). 6 Reasons Not to Buy an Apple Watch. MakeUseOf. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.makeuseof.com/dont-buy-apple-watch/
Lanier, X. (2022, September 9). 65 Exciting Things You Can Do With the Apple Watch. Gotta Be Mobile. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.gottabemobile.com/things-apple-watch-can-do/
Loic, L. (2022, November 2). 6 Apple Watch Features That Could Save Your Life. MakeUseOf. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.makeuseof.com/apple-watch-features-that-could-save-your-life/
McGuire, J. (2023, March 9). Garmin Forerunner 265 vs Apple Watch 8: Which should you buy? Tom's Guide. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.tomsguide.com/face-off/garmin-forerunner-265-vs-apple-watch-series-8
Schuler, M., & Stella, R. (2022, September 30). These 8 Apple Watch Features Can Help You Better Manage Your Health. Business Insider. Retrieved September 27, 2023, from https://www.insider.com/guides/health/fitness/best-apple-watch-health-features
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