Poll: *** The official Apple Watch Series 7 thread (it now has a proper keyboard and everything!) ***

[Mikey]

What's the Apple watch like for fitness etc. got a bowflex machine that can pair to Apple devices and I'm wanting more info for when I take my bike out etc. Looking at a refurb gen 6 or get a 7 for my Mrs and I take her 6 etc. I can't wear it during the week due to work and it would never replace Tudor/Omega/R for a daily watch. Love tech, but love mechanical watches.

It's purely for prob weekend rides.

 

[ChrisD.]

Strava works on it well. It can also natively track bike rides.

 

[Liquid_Entity]

Hey all, I'm considering buying my wife a Series 7 Cellular watch but I believe you need a contract for it to work. As this is going to be a surprise can anyone clarify if I can get her mobile phone (EE) contract to add a SIM to this phone or how does it work, I am not too sure?

 

[b0rn2sk8]

It’s about £10/month to add the Watch to an existing plan, it uses the same number so it needs to be tied to an existing plan by a supported provider.

It isn’t worth it as you have your phone on you 99.9% of the time anyway (imo of course).

 

[Liquid_Entity]

Yeah I'm just thinking when she's in gym she might not want to carry her phone around and keep that in her locker while she works out and swims.

 

[manic111]

What's the Apple watch like for fitness etc. got a bowflex machine that can pair to Apple devices and I'm wanting more info for when I take my bike out etc. Looking at a refurb gen 6 or get a 7 for my Mrs and I take her 6 etc. I can't wear it during the week due to work and it would never replace Tudor/Omega/R for a daily watch. Love tech, but love mechanical watches.

It's purely for prob weekend rides.

This is how I used mine - I wasn't that big on wearing the smart watch during the week / while at work, but would wear it for running and cycling. I've recently sidestepped to a Garmin Fenix, and in my opinion the Garmin is head and shoulders above the Apple Watch for fitness stuff. Things like pairing with sensors/HRMs, working properly with interval training, a decent altimeter / ClimbPro, and a surprisingly well designed buttons only interface make a big difference. Plus I don't have to worry about the battery even on long cycles.

Absolutely loved my Apple Watch for day to day use, and they're an incredible bit of kit, but it got to the stage where 90% of my use of it was for fitness, and it's not as good for that stuff as the Garmin.

 

[muttclugg]

This is how I used mine - I wasn't that big on wearing the smart watch during the week / while at work, but would wear it for running and cycling. I've recently sidestepped to a Garmin Fenix, and in my opinion the Garmin is head and shoulders above the Apple Watch for fitness stuff. Things like pairing with sensors/HRMs, working properly with interval training, a decent altimeter / ClimbPro, and a surprisingly well designed buttons only interface make a big difference. Plus I don't have to worry about the battery even on long cycles.

Absolutely loved my Apple Watch for day to day use, and they're an incredible bit of kit, but it got to the stage where 90% of my use of it was for fitness, and it's not as good for that stuff as the Garmin.

Interesting post. I was toying with the idea of getting a Apple Watch 7 before Christmas but opt'd for the Garmin Fenix as well as I do a lot of exercise and it seemed the best option and I haven't been disappointed. The fantastic batter life was also a big seller for me. That said, since switching to an iPhone 12 last year and getting a MacBook, I have fallen in love with the quality of the Apple products and the ecosystem that goes with it. I've even thought of moving over to the watch since Christmas and ditching my Fenix but I just can't see how the Apple Watch could beat the Fenix for fitness/training. Happy to be proven wrong though!

 

[Illusion]

I bought a series 7 45mm about 2 months ago, first ever smart watch and I love it for all the fitness tracking and being able to control things like Hive etc

I don’t use it to tell the time very often though

 

[Jimbeam3678]

Interesting post. I was toying with the idea of getting a Apple Watch 7 before Christmas but opt'd for the Garmin Fenix as well as I do a lot of exercise and it seemed the best option and I haven't been disappointed. The fantastic batter life was also a big seller for me. That said, since switching to an iPhone 12 last year and getting a MacBook, I have fallen in love with the quality of the Apple products and the ecosystem that goes with it. I've even thought of moving over to the watch since Christmas and ditching my Fenix but I just can't see how the Apple Watch could beat the Fenix for fitness/training. Happy to be proven wrong though!

As a general rule Garmin Fenix is a superb fitness watch and Apple Watch is a better smart watch.

Depends what you want out of the watch, I have had both and I have settled on the Apple Watch. Both are great though, Garmin primarily for its brilliant battery life but you pay for that with the screen.

 

[dannyjo22]

Yeah I have a garmin 235 which is far superior to the Apple Watch for sports. The 235 is years old now and I got a series 7 and ended up returning it. I get 2 weeks even after 4 years on my garmin battery. When you have to charge a watch everyday, especially if you use it for anything other than the basics then it’s not fit for purpose, yet.

 

[Reuben klang]

Yeah I have a garmin 235 which is far superior to the Apple Watch for sports. The 235 is years old now and I got a series 7 and ended up returning it. I get 2 weeks even after 4 years on my garmin battery. When you have to charge a watch everyday, especially if you use it for anything other than the basics then it’s not fit for purpose, yet.

Yeh but you charge you phone every day as well.

 

[Spleen Sauce]

Yeh but you charge you phone every day as well.

Yes but you don't need to wear your phone to track your sleep.

 

[Trig]

Mine goes on charge when I'm getting ready for work in the morning and again when I'm getting ready for bed, works well enough for me with the improved charging speed on the 7.

 

[Feek]

Mine goes on charge when I'm getting ready for work in the morning and again when I'm getting ready for bed, works well enough for me with the improved charging speed on the 7.

This is what I used to do, now I don't bother with the evening top up, it just gets a full charge while I'm showering and de-smellifying myself in the morning.

 

[dannyjo22]

Yeh but you charge you phone every day as well.

Absolutely, but charging your phone doesn’t impact how you use it. A watch does. I charge my phone to and from work in the car wirelessly. If a watch could do the same I’d keep one! Plus using it for sports the garmin is so much more durable.

 

[iMacMart]

Upgraded to the 7 from a 4 series this morning week, screen much clearer, 32gb storage, use mine for everything and strava so will see how this tracks when I’m out later!

 

[Si.]

Is there a way to make Nightstand mode keep the screen on longer? or is there another App that does a similar thing but better?

 

[BMox81]

Picked up a 41mm Midnight S7 earlier in the week having had a 44mm S4 for the last couple of years. Enjoyed the S4 but liking the move back down to the slightly smaller watch. The blue tints are there but looks a lot darker in person.

Wife now gets the S4 (up from the S3) and everyone is happy.

 

[Irish_Tom]

Picked up a 41mm Midnight S7 earlier in the week having had a 44mm S4 for the last couple of years. Enjoyed the S4 but liking the move back down to the slightly smaller watch. The blue tints are there but looks a lot darker in person.

Wife now gets the S4 (up from the S3) and everyone is happy.

How are you finding the S7 compared to the 4?

I have the 4 and it’s still going strong but wondered if I was missing much? Might consider an 8 in September…

 

[BMox81]

How are you finding the S7 compared to the 4?

I have the 4 and it’s still going strong but wondered if I was missing much? Might consider an 8 in September…

Yeah it's nice. Always on is a nice bonus and having the bigger screen estate on the smaller watch is good.

But I guess with any sort of purchase with Apple it can definitely be a case of "do I need it? No-probably not, but do I want it?". I went from S0 to S3 and was quite happy keeping the S0 as long as I did.

Just so happens that the wife's S3 was giving her grief, I fancied getting the S7 which meant I could then pass the S4 to her so it worked out quite nicely.

So in short terms, if your S4 is fine and you're not that fussed about the S7 then no harm in waiting around for the S8.