While we’re talking about Apps, I figure I should probably mention the apps that help us when we’re on the move. For this, I would turn to the apps that come on our smartwatches. More specifically (and because I’m more experienced with one type of watch than the others) I’m talking about the apps that you can get onto your Apple Watch. I like the fact that I have apps that I can use on my watch independent of my phone. Most of the apps that I use are more extensions of apps that are on my phone, but with a bit of prework, It’s straightforward to use.
1) Listening to books – I have been waiting for a while for the Audible app to come out for Apple watch. I like going on walks in the morning (weather and energy permitting) and having a good book to listen to along the way is always nice to have. Previously I would have had to carry my phone along with me, and while it’s not a burden to do so, there is something to having to pick up your keys, pair your Bluetooth headset to your watch, and walk out the door. For those wanting to try this, I would highly advise downloading the book you would like to listen to before you go walking (or running). That way you don’t have to worry about whether or not you’re streaming your book and using up data while you’re on the move. Downloading the books to your watch is easy, but done within the Audible app on your phone (Hence the pre-work I mentioned earlier).
2) Navigation on your wrist! – If you use the native Apple Navigation app than you should be able to use the navigation app that is on your watch. If you have your phone with you, it will automatically forward the turn by turn instructions to your watch. If you don’t, all you need to do is ask Siri on your watch (all Dick Tracy Style) for directions to a specific address, and it will do the same. Some navigation apps I have used in the past have left me a little lost because the directions that they give me come up too late. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had my phone yell at me to “turn right” with no warning when I was in the left-hand lane and halfway through the intersection that it wanted me to turn on. With the Watch extension for the Navigation
3) Using the phone on your watch – Speaking of Dick Tracy, one of the other aspects of using the watch is for its ability to function as a phone. To be clear, the Apple Watch 3 can be used as the phone by itself, any other modules of apple watch need to be paired to the phone, but still, have this functionality. I don’t often use the watch to talk on the phone while walking around, but on occasion, it’s more convenient than trying to go for my phone. I have been told that when you hold the watch close to your face (not while driving of course), it sounds on the other end like it would if you were just talking on the phone. Similarly, I have been told that when my hands are a reasonable distance from my face, for example, if I were sitting at a desk typing, it sounds like I’m on speakerphone, but still completely understandable. I had one experience a couple of years back where my phone was in the car, and I was standing outside of it in a parking garage. I was saying goodbye to my parents (I was leaving their place) and my phone (and subsequently my watch) Started to ring. As opposed to scrambling into the car to get my phone, I just picked up the call from my watch. It was great to pick up the call and not worry about missing it.
4) Exercise app – I talked a couple of weeks ago about the situation where I have to swap out my Exercise app. That being said having physical fitness trackers that have other uses as well have proven to be both beneficial to our health and fun to have. I don’t know about you, but for me, closing my rings (which is apart of the Apple “Activity” App has become a sort of challenge to myself. It gets to the point that if by the end of the day, I haven’t closed all my rings, I force myself (or sometimes my wife forces me) to get on the elliptical until my rings are all closed.
5) Spoilers! – One of the things that I like about Apple Watch is that it lets me know when I get e-mail or texts by tapping my wrist. I don’t usually have my phone’s ringer on because I would typically go with a ring and text tone that is somewhat nerd like and loud to hear it. Having (for example) the intro music for West World (my current ring tone) or R2-D2 screaming (Current text tone) go off in the middle of an office would be very distracting to others around, so I turn it off. That being said, whenever I get an e-mail it’s great because I can see who is sending it and make a quick decision whether or not I have to respond. If it’s a newsletter or an ad of some variety, then I can let it go and deal with it later, but if it’s a genuine e-mail from someone who needs me, then I can deal with it then an there.
The thing about Apple Watch Apps is that they are mostly designed to be extensions of your phone. It’s important to remember that while they work well with your phone, they are not intended to operate entirely without your phone. It’s important to remember that the app extensions that you can put on your watch are just that, app extensions. They are an excellent way for you to increase the usage of the apps that you have, but there are none that I am aware of that work without the phone.
Which apps do you use on your watch?
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