The Best Smartwatch Is Better Again

I'm going to get it out of the way right at the top; there's one serious problem with the Apple Watch... It only works with iPhone. You can only set it up with an iPhone and it will only sync with an iPhone. So if you don't have an iPhone, it's the worst smartwatch available.

Except...

Over the last few years I have only become more and more enamoured with Apple Watch and I'm now more convinced than ever it is easily the best smartwatch on the market (with a single possible exception we'll get to shortly). 

In fact, I'm so attached to my Apple Watch, I'd go so far as to suggest it's worth swapping phones to use it.

Not convinced? Read on, dear friends. Read on...

I also can't deny the Apple Watch Series 8 bears a striking resemblance to last year's version. That's because it's literally the same shape and size. Once again, you can choose an aluminium case or upgrade to a more durable stainless-steel option - although the latter doesn't come in (PRODUCT)RED so personally, I don't think it's worth it. The colours have been tweaked ever so slightly for 2022 - well, the red has anyway; it's a brighter, more lively shade this year which absolutely suits me down to the ground. As usual, there's also quite the array of new band colours and materials, including some fetching sports band options from Nike. Of course, the good news is, because the Watch Series 8 is the same shape (in either 45mm or 41mm size options) any existing bands and accessories are still compatible.

As a reminder, Apple Watch was already a very durable device, with a thick, crack-resistant crystal (sapphire glass if you go with the stainless-steel version) an IP6X dust resistance rating and swim-proof, with WR50 water resistance. These features, combined with the easily swappable bands means it's definitely a watch you can wear anywhere, doing pretty much anything. Beach, dinner party, mountain, office, worksite or gym, it always looks great and keeps on ticking. (Obviously it doesn't actually tick. You know what I mean)

While there might be other watches that can match this level of wear and tear and perhaps there are some that could be considered equally as stylish, I think you'd be hard pushed to find both those attributes combined into one nifty package as successfully as it is with Apple Watch.

But it's the out-and-out functionality where Apple Watch simply has no rival. No other watch I've used integrates with apps I already use on my phone every day like Apple Watch does. Whether it's receiving clear, full-colour snapshot preview notifications from my security cameras and doorbell camera or controlling audio apps like Spotify and Pocket Casts right from my wrist, the experience is just smoother, more efficient and more feature-rich with Apple Watch.

And that's before you get into the more specifically designed functions like health and fitness tracking, navigation and communication.

This is where the line between hardware and software becomes completely blurred and that's why I think this is a near-perfect device. The latest software experience, watchOS 9 offers much more than mere cosmetic upgrades like new icons, colours and watch faces. For example, the compass now lets you set waypoints on your journey and you can retrace your steps. In fact, as I look at it now I've just discovered it also keeps track of where I've parked my car - I didn't even have to tell it to.

In the past, some critics have decried a lack of detail when it comes to fitness tracking. Well, that really is in the past now. I'm getting splits and pace information just when I walk the dog! For serious trainers metrics like stride length and ground contact time can also be monitored - even multisport athletes can leave it to the watch to detect when they change from on activity to another. Apple Watch has unquestionably come of age as a legitimate fitness tool.

Health tracking has been significantly boosted too. Sleep monitoring used to be a bit once-over-lightly within the Health app but now there are insights galore. This is aided by the Series 8's new fast-charging abilities; previously many users would have left their watches to charge overnight, so sleep tracking wasn't really an option. Now I've found I can just plonk it down on the charger while I'm preparing for bed and it's pretty much all topped up by the time I'm ready to go to sleep.

That's important because one of the really significant upgrades on the Series 8 is the temperature sensor. The Apple Watch can now track your wrist temperature and you can access these overnight trends via the Health app. Not only can this be an early indication of the onset of illness but it adds much more precision and automation to cycle-tracking for women - to the point it can be used as a family planning tool after a couple of months of calibration. For anyone concerned about this kind of personal information being kept private, rest assured it's only stored on the devices themselves unless you choose to upload it to iCloud where it remains encrypted anyway.

Finally, let's talk crashes. It seemed to be all Apple wanted to discuss at its big launch event earlier in the month. That's because both the new iPhone 14 range and the new Apple Watches have some very advanced crash-detection features built in; listening for sudden loud noises, feeling sudden changes in momentum and sensing sudden alterations to the air-pressure - like when airbags go off. In that situation the Apple Watch Series 8 will automatically call the emergency services unless you instruct it not to. At the aforementioned launch event, we heard many stories about how iPhones and Apple Watches had already literally saved people's lives. It looks like that's something Apple has now upgraded too.

Seriously, what other watch can compete with all that? Well, actually - it looks like Apple has now come up with one itself. The Apple Watch Ultra was also launched at that event and if it can deliver all the things it promises... let's just say we might be heading for a new era in smart wristwear.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the Apple Watch Series 8.