The one feature that keeps me using the Apple Watch – Lee Peterson

Since losing my activity data in this watchOS beta period I’ve come to realise how I use it has altered since owning the original. I’ve also taken a break from it and come back all because of one thing – my calendar.

Lee lost all his activity data after using the watchOS 6 beta, which is really rough, but his point about the calendar being the “one feature” that keeps him on the Apple Watch got me thinking: what feature (or features) keeps me using my Apple Watch?

1. Calendar. Like Lee, having my work calendar on my wrist, especially with the Siri watch face, has been a game changer for me at work.
2. OmniFocus has a good Watch app and on days where I have a lot to do, getting it on my watch face is monumentally useful for me, and ticking things off from my wrist with haptic feedback and everything is very satisfying.
3. Weather checks are easier on my watch than my phone.
4. Notification filtering, especially around emails is major for me. I get a notification for every email and when one comes in I either (a) archive it if I don’t need it, (b) read it immediately on my phone, or (c) save it for later so I can deal with it later. Ultimately, this means when I sit down to work on my email, only things I actually need to address are in my inbox. It’s the best tool I have for maintaining inbox zero at all times.
5. Workout tracking, of course.
6. Taps on my wrist for driving navigation.
7. Siri on my wrist for when I’m out of the house.
8. Morning alarms that don’t wake up my wife, they just tap me on the wrist.
9. Media playback controls, which are mostly useful when on a walk or run.
10. Apple Pay with a tap.
11. Remote camera control, which I have used 3 times this summer for different family photos we’ve taken.
12. Voice memos, such as when you’re with a doctor and they’re giving instructions you need to remember.
13. This isn’t software, but I also love the ability to customize my watch with the vast array of watch bands out there.

I think that’s it for now, but it would appear that I am far from giving up my Apple Watch anytime soon.