Apple Watch Series 4 reviews

[Vern]

Not sure if here or the Apple OT is the place to be asking but I just got an Apple Watch series 4 two days ago. Didn't have any interest in it prior and didn't really know what it can do, but got it new and for cheap so yea.. now I've got it and need some help figuring it out.

I've watched YouTube and read some listicles and just been playing around with the watch in general and I mostly like it, but I have some issues hoping some of you can help me understand and solve.

I have the 44mm non cell version.

Problems I've encountered so far:
Chat apps (line and wechat:) both can receive messages but are not sending messages consistently. Also they don't receive messages nearly as quickly as my phone. I guess it pushes messages only every few minutes or someyhing? I haven't received any sms or iMessage yet so I don't know if it's just an app problem or really what's up with messaging on this thing.

App in the Air: I fly a lot and this was a recommended app for watch on the App Store so I downloaded it to see what's up. I guess this is more of a phone app problem but it doesnt seem to import all my flights. I have 3 upcoming flights all sent to the same 2 email inboxes, and only 2 of the flights show up. In my watch it has the next upcoming flight as same as my phone app of course, but it's not the correct flight, it's missing my flight in a few days. Also it pulls all my old flights but is missing probably at least 50 of them from the past year or so. Seems very hit or miss, guess just a shitty app but the reviews seem good and Apple recommended it so think it should be better.

Swiping: seems hard to swipe left and right, unless you start all the way from the edge of the watch. Is this how it should be?

Bluetooth: does it really have to be on on my phone even on same wifi network? Google says no but when I open watch app it pops up that I need to put on Bluetooth to connect to watch. Is this possibly a reason the watch isn't syncing with phone as quick as it should be? I hope I don't need Bluetooth always on because that about halves my iPhone battery life and I don't wanna charge during the day if I don't have to.

Apps: are there any good apps you all recommend? Anything in general... seems most apps are health or podcast apps, is there any "killer apps" that are a bit more substantial?

Are there any general tips and tricks that aren't obvious that just make it easier to use ? Like I said I've read and watched a bunch of listicles and they are all pretty stupid with one or two useful tricks, ideally someone without trying to get some ad clicks can just share something useful here.

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks for any help y'all can provide!

I'm looking for Apple Watch wearers for some activity sharing, so I can spur myself into doing more exercising.

PM me.

Click to shrink...

Yea sure let's do it. I'll PM you now.

 

[JoeyJungle]

Anyone notice that the battery life on the Series 4 is noticeably worse than the Series 3? With my S3 I would end each day at like 60% or so, but my S4 has gone down to 35-40%. It's actually a little concerning, is there something I'm not seeing or paying attention to? I was always super impressed that I could essentially get two full days out of my S3, but that seems impossible here. Anyone notice this?

Edit haha just noticed your post captainzombie

Click to shrink...

LOL! No worries. I seem to be charging my S4 like almost everyday vs. the S3. I charged mine yesterday morning and I'm at 45% as of this morning.

I'll reboot mine and see if that helps at all.

Click to shrink...

I had a similar issue, it seemed to be a bug in the exercise app. It made the watch check heartrate way too frequently and drained the battery, I ended up restarting after every workout, and the bug stayed with me when I moved from the Series 2 to the Series 4.

I finally fixed it, I had to do a restore on the Series 4 and not restore from any backup (just set it up as a new watch, no icloud sync or anything). It wasn't much of an issue since there's not really any data I keep on the watch, so I just needed to reinstall the handful of apps that I use. Battery life's been great ever since.

 

[Pargon]

Bluetooth: does it really have to be on on my phone even on same wifi network? Google says no but when I open watch app it pops up that I need to put on Bluetooth to connect to watch. Is this possibly a reason the watch isn't syncing with phone as quick as it should be? I hope I don't need Bluetooth always on because that about halves my iPhone battery life and I don't wanna charge during the day if I don't have to.

Click to shrink...

Yes, that is its preferred data connection. Wi-Fi performance on the watch is poor.
The impact on your phone's battery life should be minimal. What phone are you using, and do you have any other Bluetooth devices paired with it?

 

[Vern]

Yes, that is its preferred data connection. Wi-Fi performance on the watch is poor.
The impact on your phone's battery life should be minimal. What phone are you using, and do you have any other Bluetooth devices paired with it?

Click to shrink...

iPhone X. I don't use any other Bluetooth devices generally and keep Bluetooth off all day everyday until I got the watch. Before I'd probably have 40-50 percent battery on my phone at the end of a typical day, the second day I got the watch I spent an hour and a half at the gym from 4-530 am, had Bluetooth on but didn't use my phone for music or anything else while at gym. Came home and replied some messages and surfed a bit of era. By 730 am I was at 70 percent charge on my phone. Previously it would be at least 90 still with similar use. Yesterday at noon I was sitting at 50 percent.

 

[stone616]

I'm probably the only fool in here that has an Apple Watch Series 4 and primarily uses an Android phone.

I have the Note9 which I prefer and the iPhone X as a backup phone. Sometimes I switch my service to the iPhone but 70% of the time I use my Note but I usually wear my Apple Watch with either. When I'm using my Note I just WiFi tether my watch to it and since I use a Google Voice number as my primary texting number I get the text on the watch and can even reply to them on the Watch.

A surprising amount of functionality is available this way. Homekit works the Hangouts text come in. Apple pay of course works. My activities just sync up when I get home in range of my iPhone.

I have the Gear S3 also but I like my Apple Watch way better. The Gear S3's only good features are MST Samsung Pay and the rotating bezel. I probably wear my Apple Watch 80% of the time and my Gear S3 the other 20%.

 

[Yerffej]

Just got one of these the other day. Really liking it except for one thing. There's a seeming glitch from having my earbuds synced to my Max and the watch. I have this odd little stutter in podcasts and music that occurs every 30 seconds or so. Anyone else had an issue like this?

 

[kvetcha]

Just got one of these the other day. Really liking it except for one thing. There's a seeming glitch from having my earbuds synced to my Max and the watch. I have this odd little stutter in podcasts and music that occurs every 30 seconds or so. Anyone else had an issue like this?

Click to shrink...

I haven't had this problem - the closest I've had was when I went running with just the AirPods and the Watch - my route was a loop and every time I'd pass by the condo I was staying in, the AirPods would pick up my phone from like 100 feet away and fritz out for a few seconds until I went back out of range.

Only happened that one time while I was on vacation, though.

 

[Yerffej]

Maybe I should re-pair them and see if it persist. I forgot my other issue. How are they gonna not let me put iMessage on a certain amount of watch faces? I think it's at least 2 or 3 that just aren't allowing it and it baffles me.

 

[Infinity Times Two]

Finally upgraded to a 44mm Series 4 from a 42mm Series 0. Some impressions:

- The increase in screen size is very subtle. Obviously would make a bigger difference if I came from a 38mm, but I don't see that much practical benefits, beyond looking better. Brightness is up tho, and it's nice.
- The much bigger difference was going from stainless steel to aluminum. It's immediately noticable how much lighter it is.
- The haptic feedback on the crown is a small but oddly satisfying thing that makes it more authentic.
- It's definitely faster when it comes to third party apps, but I rarely use them anyway. I continue using my watch for essentially the same stuff: Fitness and closing the rings, dealing with notifications, setting timers when I'm in the kitchen and checking the temperature outside before I head out.

 

[bodyofanamerican]

Assuming this is defaulting to the OT for Apple Watch? Just upgraded from a series 2 42mm to a Series 4 44mm and love it so far. One big question that I can't seem to figure out: Is anyone else using the complication for Overcast on the Infograph face? Am I missing something super obvious, or am I stuck with the black/green complication icon, or can I somehow switch it to the regular orange and white one, matching the app on my home screen?

 

[entremet]

Is the cell version worth the extra 100 bucks? I already have a cell phone lol.

 

[Kimchi_Breath]

Is the cell version worth the extra 100 bucks? I already have a cell phone lol.

Click to shrink...

Carriers charging $10 a month to add the watch to your plan is such bullshit.

 

[entremet]

Carriers charging $10 a month to add the watch to your plan is such bullshit.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, I know. I meant the upfront cost of 100 bucks for the cell version.

 

[Aiii]

Is the cell version worth the extra 100 bucks? I already have a cell phone lol.

Click to shrink...

The second part of your post answers your question. You seem to not need it, save your money.

 

[entremet]

The second part of your post answers your question. You seem to not need it, save your money.

Click to shrink...

I was thinking of leaving my cell at home for bike rides.

 

[neon_dream]

I was thinking of leaving my cell at home for bike rides.

Click to shrink...

I have a galaxy watch with cellular. I find it wonderful. Most days I go to work without my cellphone now. My watch gets my texts and phone calls, so I'm always in touch. On grocery trips or walkarounds, I just take my watch. It even has a googlemaps navigator if I need it.

 

[entremet]

I have a galaxy watch with cellular. I find it wonderful. Most days I go to work without my cellphone now. My watch gets my texts and phone calls, so I'm always in touch. On grocery trips or walkarounds, I just take my watch. It even has a googlemaps navigator if I need it.

Click to shrink...

Yeah. The thing is, I can always turn off the cell service if I find it unnecessary. But I can't upgrade to cell if I get that one. Well I could if I return it.

 

[MasterSummerSmith462]

Yep, I am still on Series 0 and I've loved it. But an upgrade is due for me. All of the speed enhancements, the increased activity and health functionality, sound like a dream upgrade. Only thing hesitating me is if the 44mm is TOO big or not.

Click to shrink...

I still think smart watches are too small, I like big displays

 

[Servbot24]

Is the cell version worth the extra 100 bucks? I already have a cell phone lol.

Click to shrink...

Personally it seems crazy to pay $100 + $10/mo for the purpose of avoiding using the other device you spent $1000 on

 

[kvetcha]

I was thinking of leaving my cell at home for bike rides.

Click to shrink...

I do this for running. It's comforting being able to run with a super minimal setup (watch and Airpods) but know that I can still dial for help if I fall and break my leg or something.

 

[entremet]

Personally it seems crazy to pay $100 + $10/mo for the purpose of avoiding using the other device you spent $1000 on

Click to shrink...

Yeah. I think I'll stick with the stock gps.

 

[neon_dream]

I do this for running. It's comforting being able to run with a super minimal setup (watch and Airpods) but know that I can still dial for help if I fall and break my leg or something.

Click to shrink...

Yup. I have some jaybird X4s that connect to my galaxy watch. They play my music and I can also take phone calls on them.

Honestly the cellular watches are absolutely worth it if you do light travel/exercise, IMO.

 

[Aiii]

I was thinking of leaving my cell at home for bike rides.

Click to shrink...

You could do that if you really want to.

Alternatively you could just take your phone, buy a phone mount for a fiver if you must, or a bag that mounts under the seat or frame.

I can understand runners not wanting the phone on them, but bike riders have options.

 

[deafmedal]

Yeah. I think I'll stick with the stock gps.

Click to shrink...

The watch itself will hold some songs, about 2gb worth. It'll auto add them based on what you have been listening to recently or I believe you can manually manage them.
The only reason I'd personally go with a cell version would be for the SS version with improved glass (no option for SS version w/o cell although you don't have to activate).

 

[Infinity Times Two]

WatchOS 5.2 is out and most notable new feature is that ECG is now available in Europe and Hongkong, so I finally got to try it.

It's neat.

 

[Vern]

Not sure if this is the best place to ask so forgive me, but I've got a question I can't seem to figure out with google.

When I get a text message notification (Line, Wechat, only...not SMS I've never used SMS on it) if I click reply while the notification is up I can choose the option to swipe my finger around to type a reply. However, If I try to send a message by going to the complications screen and then clicking the app (again Line or WeChat), the only options are to send a voice message or to send the message using voice to text. No option for swiping my finger to write. Anyone got any ideas how to deal with this? I'd like to always be able to swipe to write a message instead of talking into my wristwatch like a doofus. Also the reason I'm not using my phone is because I'm in a situation that I shouldn't be using it, so speaking aloud is also definitely out of the question.

Also after I updated last time my ECG complication disappeared. I'm assuming because I'm in Thailand and it's not supported, but it's an American version of the watch and app store region is set to USA. I looked at some guides to get the ECG app if you aren't in a supported region, and they said set the watch to the US region... which it is. I don't understand why I can't download the complication on the US region Watch App Store... it makes zero sense. Unless I missed the news and the deleted everybody's ECG app?

I've had the Watch for 4 months now and while I like it overall, I find it to be far less user friendly than any other Apple product. I feel like a buffoon half the time I'm using it because it doesn't seem to do what makes sense to me. I've watched a bunch of YouTube guides and searched a lot on google but basically everything is a listicle instead of a practical user guide.

 

[Infinity Times Two]

Also after I updated last time my ECG complication disappeared. I'm assuming because I'm in Thailand and it's not supported, but it's an American version of the watch and app store region is set to USA. I looked at some guides to get the ECG app if you aren't in a supported region, and they said set the watch to the US region... which it is. I don't understand why I can't download the complication on the US region Watch App Store... it makes zero sense. Unless I missed the news and the deleted everybody's ECG app?

Click to shrink...

IIRC they increased the restrictions surrounding the ECG app in non-supported countries. I imagine if anyone can get into the US App Store and download it, Apple could get in trouble since they need clearance in those non-supported countries.

I could be entirely wrong tho.

 

[Vern]

IIRC they increased the restrictions surrounding the ECG app in non-supported countries. I imagine if anyone can get into the US App Store and download it, Apple could get in trouble since they need clearance in those non-supported countries.

I could be entirely wrong tho.

Click to shrink...

Yea but my watch and store region is USA and always has been. I just live overseas. I don't get why I need to physically be present to use the app, or why it's not even present in the App Store. How do I get it back when I go to Usa, open the health app on the phone and wait for it to pair or something right? So dumb. At least make it available for people with a valid credit card and address from that region.

Like I really can't imagine it makes any practical sense to delete the app from people's watch when they travel and update their device.