The Apple Watch can offer inconsistent power consumption while tracking workouts, particularly during outdoor activities like cycling, according to a handful of complaints received by AppleInsider and seen on Twitter.
Apple officially states that the Watch should be able to last up to 6.5 hours under non-stop workout conditions. In many real-world cases the device is close to that mark, but in some instances users said their wearable has fallen well short.
One AppleInsider reader noted that he was able to get just two hours of battery life while cycling. Most Twitter comments appear to praise battery life during exercise, but one example from Twitter mentions power dropping 13 percentage points in 34 minutes of activity.
Another cyclist said his Watch fell to 29 percent after a little over three hours and 15 minutes of riding.
One of biggest drains on the Watch during a workout is the heart rate sensor, which flashes rapid visible or infrared light pulses to monitor blood flow. Apple in fact offers a "Power Saving Mode" in the Workout section of the Apple Watch iPhone app that will force less intense tracking. Users who are experiencing poor battery life during workouts should try this setting to extend uptime.
Outdoor exercises are likely imposing extra drain since they ideally use a paired iPhone's GPS to calculate distance. The Watch has built-in motion sensors, but these are less accurate for distance measurements.
Apple estimates that under regular conditions, the Watch should last 18 hours on a charge, including a 30-minute workout with on-device music playback, and 45 minutes of app use.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpenzone
You are going to be sorely disappointed. Let me save you some hassle and recommend the Garmin Forerunner® 920 XT. A good friend of mine has been buying/using fitness watches since their infancy and has been using this for the last 4-5 months. Super long battery life in comparison to Apple Watch. Garmin Connect links with Strava, as well, if I'm not mistaken. If you are serious about the fitness side and want ample battery life this is a better product. If you want to draw emoticons with an over-emotionalized product and track where your dominoes pizza is then maybe the Apple watch.
Heh, Garmin makes buggy junk. Have you used an Apple Watch while exercising to make such vehement statements? No? Then why do you assume and post?
Oh and other my friends, sisters, brothers said...
You're kidding right? 1/2 their presentation was about fitness. The other half was drawing hearts and sushi on a postage size screen which seemed pretty stupid.
Of course the presentation wasn't like that at all.
Have you used the Garmin I recommended? No? Don't be a hypocrite it's worse the being assumptive.
Heh. I assume you are referring to me and yes I have and I returned it.. It should have been obvious to you that I know something about it. There is a reason Garmin's stock dropped after the Apple Watch was announced. Most people will be just fine with the Apple Watch.
Yes, that was so terribly obvious from your posts. I'm 100% positive you've never used that Garmin. Look, I love Apple to death but it's not the best product for fitness right now. There really is no arguing that and anyone who does is being intellectually dishonest with themselves.
Unfortunately, Apple is advertising the product as bluetooth audio from the watch, heart-rate monitoring from the watch, and everything else from the watch. Apple doesn't want to advertise using other products because they don't want people to do that. They expect the watch to do it all, but unfortunately it has a tiny battery. You made good points, but Apple will never tell anyone to do that. Apple wants that type of athlete to expect the watch to replace all those other devices.
wrong. apple suggests using a chest strap in a few places:
"If you’re not able to get a consistent reading because of any of these factors, you can connect your Apple Watch wirelessly to external heart rate monitors such as Bluetooth chest straps."
There are valid complaints about the Apple Watch, you just refuse to believe them. Here is a list of them from a valid, in-depth review from another site.
Watch OS is tricky to learn and the Apple Watch app can be flaky.
Several actions, including pulling up Glances, opening apps, or scrolling through emoji, are consistently slow.
Drawing, tapping, and heartbeat-sending features are gimmicky.
Pricing is reasonable by luxury watch standards but high by consumer electronics standards.
Limited functionality when unpaired from your phone.
Third-party apps can't do all the things Apple's apps can do.
Another charger to carry around.
Screen washes out in direct, bright sunlight
Read some unbiased reviews before you go off on people, especially when you don't own the watch, and admitted to never seeing anyone wear one. It is a 1.0 product with many weaknesses. With that in mind, is it worth $350 to $17,000? Nope. Is it a needed accessory? Nope. One person here admitted to buying two of them, then returning them because the price could not be justified for the use of the product.
nonsense post. Slurpy's comment was to the supposed story of a guy who runs into people with watches who are only complaining about them. your laundry list has nothing to do w/ that.
further, your list contains a lot of BS:
OS isnt very tricky.
tapping/sending hearts to loved ones may be tacky "to you"
$350 is not "high" by CE standards. its less than your phone and the original ipod!
limited functionality w/o phone is still pretty functional -- wireless music, activity, payments (what we bought it for)
i dont care about third-party apps being unable to do what apple's do, because they all suck right now anyway
i dont "carry around" the charger, it sets next to my bed, w/ another in my travel bag
and then the rest of the BS from your post:
yes, i own the product youre talking about. have not seen another soul w/ one in my city yet.
is it worth $350? yep.
is it needed? no more than any other first-world CE goods.
im well aware of that. her being a serious athlete doesnt change that its marketed to normal dopes like us, not pro athletes....in the same way that Wheaties are marketed to the masses despite having pro athletes on the cover. or basketball shoes. etc..
apple is well aware that "professional" athletes are going to use pro specialist gear, not generalist gear marketed to the masses.
.
no need to sound aggressive. It's happened to me, therefore it IS a fact - how is that bogus? muppet
not aggressive at all -- just calling you on a fail. so far, in this thread, you are the ONLY one to claim that the Workout app routinely chops out on your work outs. only one. nobody else has heard of that. therefore, for you to pass that off as a normal shortcoming of the watch, a known problem w/ Workouts, is purely bogus.
I am sick of this Apple Watch hype. Guys and Gals, it is just a gimmick like other Apple gimmicks. The watch should have been a stand alone product but it is not
what nonsense. it's not a gimmick, it's a CE tool that offers value. if you can claim the value, great, then its worth it to you. if you cant redeem that value, whatever -- that doesnt make it a gimmick.
it's not stand-alone because the technology to enable that isnt there yet -- namely, satisfactory battery life to run GPS and cellular radios. it's very obvious that one day it will run those those. but that day isnt today, thus it doesnt. deal.
Maybe a valid argument but pretty standard for devices/software these days... even Apple's products. They're still benefiting off the halo of their products from 4 or 5 years ago that were much more solid. I'm not Apple basher either, I run a graphic design agency so we are all mac based: desktops, laptops, phones, etc.
on older things being more stable -- today's devices and OSes do a lot more than they did even five years ago. im helping a friend on an old Snow Leopard and guess what? there was no such thing as iCloud on 10.6. there is no syncing between Contacts, Notes, Mail, Drive, etc.... none of it. it's almost cute now.
Are you just trolling around for my other comments? Oh it absolutely was. They are way over-emotionalizing this product.
so we can assume by your ducks and dodges that No, you dont own the watch and probably have never even used one. right? are we right? c'mon, just pretend you have, how are we gonna know?
At no point have I claimed to have used it or done more than watch the presentation. I responded to another user's posted with concerns of battery life and recommended a product I know to be solid for multiple long workouts. Where it's gone from there has just been the Apple fan club (which I'm a part of) unnecessarily sugar coat some short comings of the product.
not aggressive at all -- just calling you on a fail. so far, in this thread, you are the ONLY one to claim that the Workout app routinely chops out on your work outs. only one. nobody else has heard of that. therefore, for you to pass that off as a normal shortcoming of the watch, a known problem w/ Workouts, is purely bogus.
muppet?
This is hilarious. I'm always being called a fanboy, iSheep etc - it's happened on Verge / Engadget. This is pretty much the only negative thing I've said about any Apple product; and you're assuming I'm a liar! You think because I'm the only person (in this thread!) to have a particular issue means it is untrue? Even though it sits amongst a myriad compliments from myself?!
I personally thing Apple are a pretty great company - I've bought a lot of their stuff! I earn all my money using a rMacBook Pro and AdobeCC. I have shares. But they're not perfect! Apple maps in the UK has fundamental issues. iTunes has it's faults. AppleTV is a bit boring.
The apple watch is triumph in many respects. I'm having one small problem which is frustrating and I've read other people having the same issue. I think it may be something to do with the watch thinking it was taken off as it was locked, dunno. But it is not bogus!
At no point have I claimed to have used it or done more than watch the presentation. I responded to another user's posted with concerns of battery life and recommended a product I know to be solid for multiple long workouts.
ah the truth comes out. ok.
Where it's gone from there has just been the Apple fan club (which I'm a part of) unnecessarily sugar coat some short comings of the product.
nope, not sugar-coating (it has some problems that ive posted about), just debunking FUD.
Comments
Went on a 2 hour ride last sat and it worked perfectly and retained battery well. Running, biking, treadmill. Tried them all and works like a charm.
Several of us have posted the same experience yet the whiners who don't own the watch and have not used it while exercising continue to bash it.
The Apple Watch can offer inconsistent power consumption while tracking workouts, particularly during outdoor activities like cycling, according to a handful of complaints received by AppleInsider and seen on Twitter.
Apple officially states that the Watch should be able to last up to 6.5 hours under non-stop workout conditions. In many real-world cases the device is close to that mark, but in some instances users said their wearable has fallen well short.
One AppleInsider reader noted that he was able to get just two hours of battery life while cycling. Most Twitter comments appear to praise battery life during exercise, but one example from Twitter mentions power dropping 13 percentage points in 34 minutes of activity.
Another cyclist said his Watch fell to 29 percent after a little over three hours and 15 minutes of riding.
One of biggest drains on the Watch during a workout is the heart rate sensor, which flashes rapid visible or infrared light pulses to monitor blood flow. Apple in fact offers a "Power Saving Mode" in the Workout section of the Apple Watch iPhone app that will force less intense tracking. Users who are experiencing poor battery life during workouts should try this setting to extend uptime.
Outdoor exercises are likely imposing extra drain since they ideally use a paired iPhone's GPS to calculate distance. The Watch has built-in motion sensors, but these are less accurate for distance measurements.
Apple estimates that under regular conditions, the Watch should last 18 hours on a charge, including a 30-minute workout with on-device music playback, and 45 minutes of app use.
You are going to be sorely disappointed. Let me save you some hassle and recommend the Garmin Forerunner® 920 XT. A good friend of mine has been buying/using fitness watches since their infancy and has been using this for the last 4-5 months. Super long battery life in comparison to Apple Watch. Garmin Connect links with Strava, as well, if I'm not mistaken. If you are serious about the fitness side and want ample battery life this is a better product. If you want to draw emoticons with an over-emotionalized product and track where your dominoes pizza is then maybe the Apple watch.
Heh, Garmin makes buggy junk. Have you used an Apple Watch while exercising to make such vehement statements? No? Then why do you assume and post?
Oh and other my friends, sisters, brothers said...
Are you planning on riding for 6.5 hours?
First of all thats an outlier but I do ride for that long and it's not an issue especially if you turn on power saving.
Have you used the Garmin I recommended? No? Don't be a hypocrite it's worse the being assumptive.
You're kidding right? 1/2 their presentation was about fitness. The other half was drawing hearts and sushi on a postage size screen which seemed pretty stupid.
Of course the presentation wasn't like that at all.
Have you used the Garmin I recommended? No? Don't be a hypocrite it's worse the being assumptive.
Heh. I assume you are referring to me and yes I have and I returned it.. It should have been obvious to you that I know something about it. There is a reason Garmin's stock dropped after the Apple Watch was announced. Most people will be just fine with the Apple Watch.
http://www.businessinsider.com/garmin-downgraded-at-citi-2015-4
Are you just trolling around for my other comments? Oh it absolutely was. They are way over-emotionalizing this product.
Yes, that was so terribly obvious from your posts. I'm 100% positive you've never used that Garmin. Look, I love Apple to death but it's not the best product for fitness right now. There really is no arguing that and anyone who does is being intellectually dishonest with themselves.
wrong. apple suggests using a chest strap in a few places:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204666
"Get the best measurement"
"You can also use another heart rate monitoring device, such as a chest strap."
https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT204523
Um anyone running a marathon or half marathon is a serious athlete. No one wakes up one day and decides to run a marathon after breakfast.
nonsense post. Slurpy's comment was to the supposed story of a guy who runs into people with watches who are only complaining about them. your laundry list has nothing to do w/ that.
further, your list contains a lot of BS:
and then the rest of the BS from your post:
....troll harder, dude. you havent even used one.
im well aware of that. her being a serious athlete doesnt change that its marketed to normal dopes like us, not pro athletes....in the same way that Wheaties are marketed to the masses despite having pro athletes on the cover. or basketball shoes. etc..
apple is well aware that "professional" athletes are going to use pro specialist gear, not generalist gear marketed to the masses.
.
not aggressive at all -- just calling you on a fail. so far, in this thread, you are the ONLY one to claim that the Workout app routinely chops out on your work outs. only one. nobody else has heard of that. therefore, for you to pass that off as a normal shortcoming of the watch, a known problem w/ Workouts, is purely bogus.
muppet?
throw dome some of those links, whippersnapper.
what nonsense. it's not a gimmick, it's a CE tool that offers value. if you can claim the value, great, then its worth it to you. if you cant redeem that value, whatever -- that doesnt make it a gimmick.
it's not stand-alone because the technology to enable that isnt there yet -- namely, satisfactory battery life to run GPS and cellular radios. it's very obvious that one day it will run those those. but that day isnt today, thus it doesnt. deal.
on older things being more stable -- today's devices and OSes do a lot more than they did even five years ago. im helping a friend on an old Snow Leopard and guess what? there was no such thing as iCloud on 10.6. there is no syncing between Contacts, Notes, Mail, Drive, etc.... none of it. it's almost cute now.
so we can assume by your ducks and dodges that No, you dont own the watch and probably have never even used one. right? are we right? c'mon, just pretend you have, how are we gonna know?
At no point have I claimed to have used it or done more than watch the presentation. I responded to another user's posted with concerns of battery life and recommended a product I know to be solid for multiple long workouts. Where it's gone from there has just been the Apple fan club (which I'm a part of) unnecessarily sugar coat some short comings of the product.
not aggressive at all -- just calling you on a fail. so far, in this thread, you are the ONLY one to claim that the Workout app routinely chops out on your work outs. only one. nobody else has heard of that. therefore, for you to pass that off as a normal shortcoming of the watch, a known problem w/ Workouts, is purely bogus.
muppet?
This is hilarious. I'm always being called a fanboy, iSheep etc - it's happened on Verge / Engadget. This is pretty much the only negative thing I've said about any Apple product; and you're assuming I'm a liar! You think because I'm the only person (in this thread!) to have a particular issue means it is untrue? Even though it sits amongst a myriad compliments from myself?!
I personally thing Apple are a pretty great company - I've bought a lot of their stuff! I earn all my money using a rMacBook Pro and AdobeCC. I have shares. But they're not perfect! Apple maps in the UK has fundamental issues. iTunes has it's faults. AppleTV is a bit boring.
The apple watch is triumph in many respects. I'm having one small problem which is frustrating and I've read other people having the same issue. I think it may be something to do with the watch thinking it was taken off as it was locked, dunno. But it is not bogus!
ah the truth comes out. ok.
nope, not sugar-coating (it has some problems that ive posted about), just debunking FUD.