TECH BYTE: Apple Watch

The Apple Watch is a brand-new Apple
product, the first from-the-ground-up product line since
the
iPad and since Tim Cook took the helm.

This watch is, in a way, a new type of wrist-worn super-iPod. It's also a symbiotic iPhone companion. And, it's a fitness device.
Launch date was 24th April 2015.
The Apple Watch is a beautifully constructed, compact smartwatch. It's feature-packed, with solid fitness software, hundreds of apps, and the ability to send
and receive calls via an iPhone.

The Battery barely lasts a day and recharge time is slow; most models and configurations cost more than they
should; requires an iPhone 5 or later to work; interface can be confusing; sometimes slow to communicate with a
paired iPhone.

What it does.
Much like most other smartwatches, the Apple Watch isn't a standalone device -- it's a phone accessory. Android
Wear, Samsung Gear, Pebble and others work the same way. But here, you must own an iPhone 5 or later to use
the Watch.

A few Apple Watch functions work away from the phone, but the watch primarily works alongside the
phone as an extension, a second screen and basically another part of your iOS experience.
It's a symbiote Communication, fitness, information, time: these are the
core Apple Watch functions, but the Watch is incredibly ambitious, packed with many, many features and apps.

In scope, it reminds me of Samsung's ambitious Gear smartwatches, but more fully realized.

Apple Watch receives messages from friends, send texts and lets you dictate messages, make speakerphone calls,
ping people with animated emoji, give love taps long- distance or send your heartbeat as a sort of long-distance
hug. It tracks your steps, logs runs and monitors your heart rate.

And yes, you can use Apple Watch to listen to music via wireless Bluetooth headphones. You can play songs
like an iPod, get notifications and run apps like a mini iPhone and make payments with Apple Pay.

And it has a totally new force-sensitive display that's never been seen
before.

And yes, it tells the time.
But, once again, this watch needs your iPhone to do most of these things. And it either needs to be in Bluetooth
range (30 or so feet), or it can connect over Wi-Fi in a home or office to extend that range further.