So-Called "smart" Watches...

[jeffc83]

When smartwatches take over the world, that will be the day I decide to go "off the grid", lol.  I do embrace most of the current technology but not like that!   :D  And this is coming from someone that owns five smartwatches but doesn't wear any of them.

Edited March 10, 2016 by jeffc83

[ramrod]

a bit more onm your post about young people not wearing watches, stroppy.

i can say this: since i've been wearing a watch again (it's been about two years) i don't look at my phone to tell the time anymore. it becomes circular thinking: you don't NEED to look at the phone because you are wearing a watch.  but why buy a watch when you have a phone?

i'll take the watch any day, thank you. mechanical.....or tuning fork.

[Peixian]

Personally I think smart watches are dumb...well, they aren't watches and they aren't computers so...maybe they are retarded electronics compensating to "look" smart!? :startle:

agree with you totally

[anilv]

I bought one to try out.

 

It has its niche as I find it convenient to wear when I'm on my motorbike. I can see that calls are coming in and more importantly I can see who is calling! This beats stopping every now and then, pulling off gloves, pulling the phone out...reverse the process..

 

Yes I'm a slave to my phone but my current job demands it..!

 

Anil

[clockboy]

I bought one to try out.

 

It has its niche as I find it convenient to wear when I'm on my motorbike. I can see that calls are coming in and more importantly I can see who is calling! This beats stopping every now and then, pulling off gloves, pulling the phone out...reverse the process..

 

Yes I'm a slave to my phone but my current job demands it..!

 

Anil

Yes there is a market for them. The only issue will be they are not serviceable once broken a new one will be required. But as the popularity grows the prices will fall.

[Mark]

I watched an episode of click yesterday and it seems Tag Heuer is now making a but ugly 'smart watch'.

Personally I feel the same as Will. They are not really watches but small computers with straps. And they display the time just like a mobile phone displays the time.

As far as watch repair is concerned, well there is nothing for a traditional watch repairer to fix should they go wrong. Just like a phone, they are essentially a Circuit board and a battery.

Will they replace traditional mechanical watches? Absolutely not! Are they here to stay? IMO yes they are.

But there will always be watch enthusiasts who appreciate the beauty of a mechanical timepiece ticking away on their wrist.

So just like LCD watches did not kill the watch industry in the 80s, the 'smart watches' will not kill it here in the teenies.

Would I wear one? I confess, I love apple products - if the battery lasted more than a few hours in one I might consider it. But it would not replace my beloved Omega lol

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jeffc83]

I watched an episode of click yesterday and it seems Tag Heuer is now making a but ugly 'smart watch'.

Personally I feel the same as Will. They are not really watches but small computers with straps. And they display the time just like a mobile phone displays the time.

As far as watch repair is concerned, well there is nothing for a traditional watch repairer to fix should they go wrong. Just like a phone, they are essentially a Circuit board and a battery.

Will they replace traditional mechanical watches? Absolutely not! Are they here to stay? IMO yes they are.

But there will always be watch enthusiasts who appreciate the beauty of a mechanical timepiece ticking away on their wrist.

So just like LCD watches did not kill the watch industry in the 80s, the 'smart watches' will not kill it here in the teenies.

Would I wear one? I confess, I love apple products - if the battery lasted more than a few hours in one I might consider it. But it would not replace my beloved Omega lol

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Honesty is key so I will let the Apple comment slide;)  Even when my Huawei watch (android wear) lasted 2 full days, it still didn't represent a watch like it should have plus I truly missed the mechanical tick, no matter how faint of a sound!  When I first saw "dim mode", I thought it was broken/frozen!  (second hand would freeze to and the screen would dim to save battery....no thank you)

[bobm12]

Hey Jeff, there is an app that will add the tick! At least it will tick for 2 days!  :D

 

BTW, did you guys know that most apple stuff like iPhones, and their small electronics use a lot of (tough) glue to bind the insides: eg. Battery, Screen, etc. So, if your screen breaks, (or the battery!) chances are you won't be able to replace it because: a.- aftermarket doesn't usually fit well, b.- apple won't sell you parts (sounds familiar?), c.- trying to remove the screen you might: melt the whole thing when dissolving the glue with a heat gun or incur in more damage trying to "unstick" other components to get to the screen and its connectors!

 

If you send it to Apple you get: a.- a big bill and b.- a replacement item, not your original one (with all the ramifications that implies: lost data, etc) Some people will argue the case and say: "well, that's why you back up your stuff" and "Apple has covered all the angles for restoring your things"...well, I got news for you guys, that is provided you have the latest ever back up and also, normally, back ups when changing machines are never what they should be...there is always a snag (different hardware/software version?) or some sort of hassle or simply the nerve wrecking expectation that it won't crash until it is done....ahhh, whatever!

 

And now to top it off, we have other clones and androids and whatnots copying all these ideas...hopefully not the glue part or the proprietary one but still....Well, not helping, not helping!!! Yak! :D

Stay tuned for more rants on the next chapter of "The Tyranny of Apple and the Mysterious Clones" 

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

[clockboy]

Agree with most but the screens on iPhones can be changed my wife cracked her iPhone & got it changed. Cost however £50

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bobm12]

There you have it CB, here that would be: UD$71, the part costs about US$40 from trusted 3rd party depending on model...What iPhone model does she have, CB?

 

You can check on parts prices at the ifixit page...some parts are not true apple.

[Alaskamick]

It seems to me that there is a tendency here to run around like headless chickens at the thought of smart watches.

 

They are just another innovation in the computer industry. All they might affect is the sale of plastic quartz watches to people who already buy them but want the latest thing.

 

The reactions were the same when they were introduced but they haven't shut down the watch industry.

 

People who prefer mechanical watches will still buy them and certainly high end watch collectors are not going to stop buying.

 

The interest in tick doc watches will always be there. Ask professional watch makers/repairers if people will still pay to have their watches repaired and serviced. They are something that can be passed down to your descendants. How often to you get asked to look at your Dads beloved plastic monstrosity watch and get it going again? Never I should think. They just get thrown away like most things in this disposable age. 

 

I think the interest I'm mechanicals is growing and will be with us for a long long time. If they die out then it won't be due to Smart Watches.

[jeffc83]

Bobm12 - The app just didn't satisfy my needs;P  Readily awaiting the next chapter of your novel!   :D

[stroppy]

I have just been told that my brother is buying one for me as a very belated Christmas present (he "forgot" last year...so he says.  I didn't...I bought him a lovely DAB+ portable radio!).  My nephew spilled the beans as he was asked to choose a "cheap but nice one".  This is what he ordered:

http://www.androidheadlines.com/2015/08/featured-review-oukitel-a28-smartwatch.html

 

 

 

Edited March 25, 2016 by stroppy

[digginstony]

I note Seiko are in the process of introducing their version of the Smart watch. Sales of smart watches are considered "Hot" and "Quartz " lukewarm by retailers. The real threat to the repairer of classic watches is it may put some manufacturers out of business and make the purchase of spare parts that little bit harder.Will the Smart watch replace the quartz, it certainly has the potential to do so, at the lower to mid price range. Will it do so in the immediate future I think not. But as us Oldies die out ?

Think a lot will depend on fashion. Look at the modern quartz. It's big and heavy in its 45mm + stainless steel case. People seem to think nowadays the bigger and heavier the better quality!

Omega and others had it right in the 1980s with their 35mm case and ultra thin with their 1430 series movement. But even Omega and the such, are dictated by fashion.

Hopefully I don't live long enough to witness the Omega smart watch.

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[bobm12]

"Hopefully I don't live long enough to witness the Omega smart watch."

OOOOH No! No smart watch will make my life shorter!  Sorry, digginstony, but I couldn't resist!

In my mind, they will all get the swish dump treatment when servicing: swish dump to the garbage can (bin) that is! And it would be mostly done by electronics shops/services. As it is now, those "watches" need their main brains to work as intended: the cell phone. If you leave your cell phone behind, to which the "smart" watch is attached to by Bluetooth, it would be the equivalent to a lobotomy to the poor thing.

At some point it all will have to stop. We, the people, are being "itemized"! Just like we find wearing advertisement on (t-shirts, etc) normal today...and we pay for it! So, to clarify this point, we wear a phone in our pocket/wherever and now they added a transmitter-to-the-phone to wear in our wrist...and call it "watch" to boot. So, "watch" out for what will be next!!

Cheers,

Bob

[stroppy]

Smart watches will NEVER fully replace mechanical/quartz watches for one important reason- battery life.  Even the most efficient smart watch will only run for about three or four days with minimal screen activation and minimal call usage.  My mate says that keeping his smart watch charged is a right royal pain in the butt and that's why he often reverts to his "normal" watch.

At present Li-ion batteries cannot provide the longevity of a simple button cell in a quartz watch.  Now that's not to say that things will change as they probably will but I think this won't happen in the next five years or so.  If a battery technology was invented that gave a smart watch the same active duration as the current quartz watch then that would be a revolutionary technology that would transform not only smart watches but mobile phones, cars and every other battery-dependent device on the planet.  It would also render today's devices...even the Tesla car...obsolete UNLESS the new technology was packaged in a way as to fit into older devices.

Then you have to consider the "cachet" of mechanical watches.  People will always love this technology.  If this was not the case then ordinary automatics and winding watches would have ceased production years ago...heck, even pocket watches are still being made!  Nope...I think our lovely classic mechanical and quartz watches are here to stay for the time being.

[stroppy]

1 hour ago, bobm12 said:

"Hopefully I don't live long enough to witness the Omega smart watch."

OOOOH No! No smart watch will make my life shorter!  Sorry, digginstony, but I couldn't resist!

In my mind, they will all get the swish dump treatment when servicing: swish dump to the garbage can (bin) that is! And it would be mostly done by electronics shops/services. As it is now, those "watches" need their main brains to work as intended: the cell phone. If you leave your cell phone behind, to which the "smart" watch is attached to by Bluetooth, it would be the equivalent to a lobotomy to the poor thing.

At some point it all will have to stop. We, the people, are being "itemized"! Just like we find wearing advertisement on (t-shirts, etc) normal today...and we pay for it! So, to clarify this point, we wear a phone in our pocket/wherever and now they added a transmitter-to-the-phone to wear in our wrist...and call it "watch" to boot. So, "watch" out for what will be next!!

Cheers,

Bob

I will give a full review of my "Oukitel" watch when brother dearest gets delivery of it (Nephew tells me it's been ordered off Ebay so it will be a while before it gets into my hot little hands!).

I kind of like the case design and the "face" of the watch when it is just keeping the time is also kind of nice.  Have a look:

 

[stroppy]

I don't know about the brand, though.  "Oukitel"?  Someone looking over my shoulder might think it was "Dummitel".  That would match me to a tee.  I am very much a dummy at times!

Apparently Oukitel are famous in China for making ultra-tough working-man's phones.

[digginstony]

Look forward to your assessment of the Smart watch. I don't think the short battery life is that much of a drawback providing you can remember to plug it in a night to charge before you go to sleep. Hopefully these things don't catch fire!

Youngsters today having a smart watch as a first, wouldn't necessarily even be aware of the advantages of battery life of the quartz movement. Or what a mechanical watch is. Think it will all come down to marketing but who knows

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[bobm12]

Joking apart, that's a nice looking watch Stroppy! At least in the picture it looks very classy!

[stroppy]

5 hours ago, bobm12 said:

Joking apart, that's a nice looking watch Stroppy! At least in the picture it looks very classy!

Yeah it does look nice.  I won't hold my breath until I have it in my hot little hands (in case brother has "forgotten" again).

[digginstony]

Just to let you know Bob. I'm still here alive and well and I'm not aware Omega have any plans to introduce a Smart Watch[emoji2]

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[bobm12]

Quote

Just to let you know Bob. I'm still here alive and well and I'm not aware Omega have any plans to introduce a Smart Watch

Excellent news, digginstony! It would be a great disservice to loose you because of a smart watch, ...even an Omega!

[stroppy]

Okay, so brother dearest had the Oukitel watch sent straight to my postal address (saves him the embarrassment of admitting he forgot to buy me a present in the first place).

Here's my assessment so far:

-Battery life.  Maximum three days with minimal usage, as I suspected.  It's easy to charge as it has a click-on adapter that sends charge to gold plated pins in the back of the watch.

-Accuracy.  Not a problem here as it picks up the cell network time signal from the phone once it pairs with the phone via bluetooth.

-General build quality.  Very nicely finished.  I swapped the leather band for a 22mm stainless steel bracelet.

-Special points.  The screen lights up when you raise you arm to look at the watch face, unlike earlier smartwatches where you had to push a button to tell the time.  The pulse meter is accurate, as is the pedometer because I checked it with my old fashioned pedometer and I checked the pulse accuracy with my blood pressure kit.

-Screen.  Very bright and nice detail...no apparent pixelation.

-Sound quality.  Surprisingly good for such a tiny device.

-Call features.  You can make calls and answer calls on this thing and act like Dick Tracy.  Very cool!

Overall I am impressed.  I know that it only cost my brother around $AU65 so it isn't the most expensive smartwatch out there but it seems quite fit for purpose and I got it for free so I shouldn't complain.

Does it get a recommendation tick?  Yep...if you want to own one of these things without forking out lots of dough for the likes of a Moto watch go for it.

[svorkoetter]

On Friday, March 25, 2016 at 11:06 AM, stroppy said:

Smart watches will NEVER fully replace mechanical/quartz watches for one important reason- battery life...

At present Li-ion batteries cannot provide the longevity of a simple button cell in a quartz watch...  If a battery technology was invented that gave a smart watch the same active duration as the current quartz watch then that would be a revolutionary technology that would transform not only smart watches but mobile phones, cars and every other battery-dependent device on the planet.  It would also render today's devices...even the Tesla car...obsolete UNLESS the new technology was packaged in a way as to fit into older devices.

While I really hope you're right about smart "watches" never fully displacing real watches, there are actually two ways to improve the battery life: better battery technology, or more energy efficient electronics.

My first computer back in the late 70s used about 10W of power (2MHz 8-bit processor, 4KB RAM). My second most recent computer used 120W (3GHz 32-bit processor, 4GB RAM). My latest computer is back to 10W (2GHz 64-bit processor, 16GB RAM), is about the same performance as my second latest, and is almost completely silent because it puts most of its energy into computing, not heating the room, and thus doesn't need to run the fan much.

It's probably safe to predict that in 5 or 10 years, a smartwatch with today's capabilities could probably run for a year off of a button cell.

Edited April 1, 2016 by svorkoetter