The Apple Watch Series 7 Is Great
Shortly after Apple’s virtual event last month concluded, some people wondered out loud if the Apple Watch Series 7 was a placeholder. The rumor hill was confident that Apple was going to extend the design language found with the iPhone and iPad by announcing an Apple Watch with flat edges. Instead, Apple unveiled an Apple Watch Series 7 display with curved edges. The apparent lack of other noteworthy features was then used by some as evidence of Apple rushing the Series 7 to unveil something in front of the holidays.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
For the past few days, I’ve been using an Apple Watch Series 7 (45mm - Aluminum Green). The best descriptive words regarding the Series 7 that come to mind are fun, fulfilling, and endearing. The Series 7’s targeted updates help to advance computing on the wrist while addressing some known friction points that had accompanied daily usage. There is nothing like the Apple Watch in the market, and Apple continues to run forward with a device ushering in a paradigm shift in computing.
The following are my initial impressions from using an Apple Watch Series 7.
Larger Screen. Apple Watch Series 7 marketing is anchored around the larger screen - and for good reason. Much to my surprise, reducing the display borders by 40% gives the Series 7 a completely different kind of Apple Watch experience. Instead of using the Series 7’s larger screen (20% larger than the Series 6) to include more text and information, Apple leveraged the additional screen real estate to make buttons and text larger. This was a smart decision. Instead of having Series 7 owners spend more time looking at their wrists, the larger screen makes it easier to quickly gather information and not get lost in the watch.
One way of describing the Apple Watch’s screen size changes over the years is that the Series 4 went after the low-hanging fruit. There was value found in simply fitting more stuff on a bigger screen. The Series 7 screen (50%+ larger than the Series 3) feels like the refinement step, focusing more on the finer things like larger font and click areas that end up having a larger impact on daily usage.
Larger Footprint. Apple Watch Series 7 has a slightly larger form factor than the Series 6 (45mm and 41mm vs 44mm and 40mm). The larger size on the wrist was not noticeable. The Series 7 Aluminum doesn’t feel heavier than the Series 6 either despite weighing 7% more. Weight becomes a bigger issue when moving to the Stainless Steel from Aluminum. As someone who has worn the Aluminum regularly for years, the Stainless Steel is too heavy for my taste. There will come a point at which the larger Apple Watch option starts to become unwieldy, but I don’t think we are at that point yet.
Apple Watch Series 6 (left) vs. Apple Watch Series 7 (right)
Setup. It took about 20 minutes to set up the Series 7 with an iPhone 13 Pro using Restore from Backup. Similar to how the iPhone setup process has become streamlined over the years, the days of needing to wait until the weekend to set up your new Apple Watch for fear of running into issues are over.
Brighter Screen. Similar to how the Series 7’s larger screen jumped out at me, the 70% brighter always-on screen was also noticeable. To the user’s eye, it pretty much seems like the Apple Watch screen has the same brightness regardless of one’s wrist position. With the Series 6, I found myself needing to tap the screen when in the “always-on” state and not in a direct line of sight because it wasn’t bright enough.
Color. Apple unveiled five new aluminum colors - Green, Blue, Product Red, Starlight, and Midnight. The green is very attractive, reminding me more of a greenish black. In certain light conditions, the Watch comes across as having a black case.
Battery Life. Apple has been following an “all day” battery life strategy for Apple Watch. Instead of removing Watch features to extend battery life to two to three days, Apple has strived to have Apple Watch battery life last as close to a full day as possible without the wearer needing a quick boost in the middle of the day. For the most part, Apple has been successful with that objective. Obviously, Apple Watch battery life is dependent on usage. Someone that goes heavy on workouts, podcast listening, and GPS will struggle getting through the whole day on a single charge. However, on average, the Apple Watch should last from a morning charge to getting ready for bed approximately 18 hours later.
In recent years, sleep tracking has complicated Apple’s battery goal for Apple Watch. It’s no longer enough for Apple Watch to last a full day. It also needs to last the subsequent night. Quick charge is Apple’s solution. In the amount of time someone takes to get ready for bed, an Apple Watch can get enough charge (~20%) to do six to eight hours of sleep tracking and then be ready for a longer (~45 minutes) charge in the morning.
Based on my rudimentary testing, the strategy holds true. Thanks to an updated charging architecture and fast-charging USB-C cable, I was able to charge the Apple Watch Series 7 from 0% to 82% in 45 minutes. That is favorable to Apple’s 80% battery charge in 45 minutes claim. As for Series 7 and Series 6 charging, I achieved 25% to 30% faster charging for the Series 7 using the same 20W USB-C power adapter for both the Series 7 and 6. Apple claims the Series 7 has “up to 33% faster charging” than the Series 6 when using a 20W USB-C power adapter with the Series 7 and a 5W USB power adapter with the Series 6.
In practice, does all of this battery life strategizing work for the average Apple Watch wearer? The short answer is “yes.” Most Apple Watch wearers will likely end up getting through the day and night on a single charge. A roughly 30 minute charge in the morning will then be enough to get through the following day. Of course, there is room for Apple to improve Apple Watch battery life. There will likely always be room for battery life improvement.
Full-Size Keyboard. Two words: scary good. I was impressed with Apple’s slide-to-text technology that relies on machine learning to predict what I’m typing. Heading into the Series 7, my view was that tapping or sliding on an Apple Watch screen to write messages or emails didn’t make much sense. Instead, dictation was the way forward. That idea hasn’t completely gone away for me. It’s still faster to dictate messages on the wrist instead of typing. However, using voice for dictation has its limitations, especially when it comes to privacy. It’s just not practical or useful to use voice to dictate messages when in meetings or public settings. By including a built-in full-size keyboard for the first time (third-party options were previously available), Apple has essentially given the Apple Watch a new user input.
In a related note, as discussed above, the larger touch areas made possible by the 20% larger screen really do make a difference. For example, it’s easier and more enjoyable using the calculator app.
Putting the Series 7 Into Perspective. As someone who has worn an Apple Watch daily for the past six years, the Series 7 is up there with the Series 4 as being the most noteworthy upgrade to date. It’s that good. That may come off as surprising given the lack of new features found with the Series 7. However, quality always trumps quantity when it comes to new features. The primary reason for the Series 7 receiving such a high honor is that a larger screen plays a very big role in my day-to-day Apple Watch experience. The wrist is among some of the most valuable real estate for computing, and a larger Apple Watch screen takes advantage of that premium real estate.
At the same time, Apple’s ongoing dedication to Apple Watch’s rectangular design heritage is appreciated. Apple could certainly go in different directions with Apple Watch case design, but the company’s continued commitment to positioning Apple Watch as a general computing device ends up being met with a screen designed to display text and information. Apple’s focus on maintaining all-day battery life despite larger power requirements, like a brighter and larger screen, is also something that can’t be ignored.
One Final Thing About the Series 3. Apple continues to sell the Apple Watch Series 3 alongside the flagship Series 7. Apple is relying on a different strategy here than with the iPhone and iPad. By not keeping last year’s Apple Watch series around, Apple ended up creating a larger gap in feature set between models. The end result is more people opting for the latest and greatest. When comparing the Series 7 to the Series 3, it’s no surprise that the Series 7 will grab the majority of sales. Interestingly, the Apple Watch SE (basically a rebranded Series 4) wasn’t updated last month either. This will only serve to funnel additional sales to the Series 7.
There are a few reasons for Apple to keep the Series 3 in the lineup. Price is a big one. For some users, budget is the most important purchasing consideration. The Series 3 is just $199 in comparison to $399 for Series 7 GPS. The Series 3 also prevents a price umbrella from forming under the flagship model. With the Series 3 still available for sale, it’s difficult for an Apple Watch competitor to gain traction in the $150 to $200 range. Despite being four years old, the Series 3 can still hold its own relative to the competition. That just goes to show how far Apple is with its wearables strategy.
As someone who has used both the Series 3 and now Series 7, the difference between the two models is like day and night. It’s hard to imagine going from a Series 7 back to a Series 3. The $200 price gap comes across as small. The thing is, the Apple Watch is a new user story. Unlike the iPhone, Apple Watch sales are driven by customers buying their first Apple Watch. A Series 3 still beats a bare wrist.
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For additional discussion on this topic, check out the Above Avalon daily update from October 14th.