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# The Apple Watch's Draw to Non-Tech People
- URL: https://birchtree.me/blog/the-apple-watchs-draw-to-non-tech-people/
- Published: 2016-02-16T20:40:23.000Z
- Updated: 2016-02-16T20:40:23.000Z
- Author: Matt Birchler
- Tags: #Import 2023-06-01 22:41, #Import 2025-03-29 19:29

![](http://d.pr/i/18yxd+) 

I just read this [awesome piece](https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/why-jack-forsters-cant-take-off-the-apple-watch?ref=birchtree.me) from a "watch guy" who has fallen in love with his Apple Watch. I thought it was refreshing to listen to someone gush about the Apple Watch in 2016\. I feel like a lot of the storyline in the tech press has revolved around what is wrong with the Apple Watch and what Apple needs to do to "recover" from their misstep. I am not immune to the leanings of my peers, so I include myself in that crowd a well.

But here's the thing: I love my Apple Watch. I'd sooner give up my iPhone than my Watch[1](#fn-1366-1), as it has really become a part of me and is essential to how I manage my day. This is why I wrote a piece last week called [Those Red, Green, and Blue Rings are Brilliant](https://birchtree.me/blog/red-green-and-blue/) which delved into one part of the Watch experience I think they absolutely nailed: fitness.

But then another crazy thing happened: *my wife started talking about getting her own Apple Watch*. Now this is no big deal in a vacuum, but you should know that my wife has always been skeptical of the smartwatch category and was more than a little hesitant about giving me the godhead to get an Apple Watch last April. She had the same worries a lot of people did. I'd get bored with it and leaving it in a drawer... I'd get tired of charging it all the time and go back to my old watch that had multi-year battery life... I'd end up buying tons of bands and accessories for it and blow more money than the up front $399 the watch itself costs... I'd miss my FitBit and want to get a real fitness tracker again... I do admit to buying a couple more bands, but the other three fears proved to be completely untrue.

I asked her why she's thinking of getting one and the reasons were fascinating. Here's a summary:

1. Fitness tracking that doesn't suck (sorry Jawbone and Fitbit) would be nice to have. The three ring system for tracking your activity appeals to her quite a bit, and sounds more complete than the step-based trackers she's used before.
2. Notifications on her wrist would be convenient when she's at work. She's a teacher and can't have her phone on her at all times. Her watch can be of course, and being able to see what's going on with a glance of the wrist would be a game changer.
3. The thing just looks better than any of the fitness tracking alternatives. Fitbit just released a nicer model called the [Alta](http://www.fitbit.com/alta?ref=birchtree.me), but even that doesn't draw her in like the rose gold, lavender band combo she can get from the Apple Watch.

I'm sure she'll have a lot more to say about it if she does end up getting one, but in the meantime I just think it's fascinating that someone so against the idea of smart watches 12 months ago has done a near 180\. It's just one data point, but I have to think it's something we're going to see more and more over the next couple years. Smart watches are not going to be just a flash in the pan.

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1. You know, assuming it would work just as well with an Android phone. [↩](#fnref-1366-1)