Apple Watch Series 7 GPS - 45mm - Green Aluminium Case With Clover Sport Band - Regular

Author: The Other Side

Rating: 5

Review: I had this Apple Watch Series 7 for around a week now and I can already see and feel what the fuss is about. I use this along my iPhone 13Pro, MBP M1, and my iPad 7th Gen. Coming from a long term use of a Galaxy Watch 3 and a Fossil Gen 6, I can say that the Apple 7 is way ahead of the competition, especially that its price falls almost within the same range for the base model. Design: Elegant, sleek, and easily customisable design. The watch has a smart, rather than a conventional, outlook. However, you can easily restore some of the classic watch look if you opt for certain straps. I usually am for smart tech and tech-like designs, so I prefer mine to look smart and therefore I use braded and default straps. I plan to get a formal-looking strap for night outs though. This design also means that the glass is not protected. There isn't a metal ring like the one used in Samsung Galaxy smart watches which gives a tiny feeling of safety when accidentally hitting walls or doors. Although I tried two means of protection, a glass cover and a plastic cover, I ditched both of them as they compromise screen quality, touch sensitivity, and the ability to reach the dial and power buttons. Battery Life: I currently have a hybrid work routine, and mostly work from home. I have a very reliable charging station just next to my desk. This allows me to charge the watch 2-3 times a day with each time charging for around 20-40%. Some people complained that they don't find time to charge theirs and I totally understand it. The watch lasts for around 15-18 hours depending on usage. People who work outside or have a very busy outdoor schedule will find it difficult to charge the watch. Thankfully Apple provides a fast charging option that is around 30% faster than the previous generation of watches. However, in order to ensure that your watch is always working, you need to make a charging routine where you put it to charge at certain times when you are not active. If you don't mind the sleep tracking features then it is already sorted for you since you will charge it overnight. Note: You can make use of a portable wireless power bank. I currently use a Belkin wireless charger and recently a more capable power bank station called Airbox. The latter can charge the iPhone, the watch, and the airpods simultaneously. This might be useful for people who are mostly outside/travelling and need to charge their watches on the go. Functionalities: Just what you expect from an Apple product, this smart watch is very capable in terms of performance. It provides the best functionalities that a smartwatch can offer and integrates perfectly with the Apple ecosystem. If you are spending more than £200 on a smart watch (and you have an iPhone) then the series 7 is the only one that can be worth the investment. The amount of apps you can run on this watch is just beyond belief! I can literally run my flight tracking app and see nearby planes and their information. I can respond to calls and messages, and the dictation is already addictive. Although the number of faces is limited, they can be easily customised in terms of the buttons to include and the colour selection you want to go with. Responsiveness is flawless. Apps open and close immediately and moving from one app to another is smooth with no latency. Browsing apps in grid view is very interactive and ads to the lovely experience of using this watch. Sports and fitness features: I am still discovering these features gradually but let me start by confirming how addictive the three rings are (Calories, Workouts, and standing Time). I usually don't give in to Apps notifications, but I find the rings very hard to avoid and I already had the best week in terms of fitness since a long time. The health features include basic sleep tracking that doesn't show deep sleep information yet, but rather shows the sleep patterns and time and the heart rate throughout the night (min and max). There is a heart beat monitor and an ECG monitor. The watch integrates perfectly with the phone and extra health information can be accessed via the health app on the iPhone. What else? I can browse up to 100 recent photos, play and control Spotify from the watch, watch videos sent over Messenger, check all notifications and even respond to some of them, create focus, sleep and active modes to suit my schedule, control settings to save further battery by turning off some extra features, rely on the watch for alarms which makes it easier to wake up and less of a nuisance for my partner, control the camera, and many more. What size to go with? What you see on cameras makes things look big and doesn't give an actual impression about the size. If you are uncertain and unable to know which size to go with, then I suggest to visit the nearest store if you can. Try both and decide. I was very torn myself but decided to go with the 45mm version, which proved to be the right decision for me. Aluminium or Stainless steel? Really up to you and how much you want to invest in a smart watch. I went with Aluminium as I don't see the stainless steel version justified in terms of price. People who want to have something more solid (normally) would go with the stainless steel. However, if you are the same as me and prefer to upgrade every 1-2 years then the stainless steel is quite an investment in my opinion. Protectors and Cases? I am still trying to find the ideal option to protect mine. The glass is normally good enough to handle hits, but the last thing I want is a scratch. I will update you if I find any good option. I never used a protector with my Galaxy Watch 3 and it was fine, but because the glass is exposed on the Apple watch, a protector would give an extra sense of safety. Another opinion I found logical is that we never try to protect our usual classic watches, regardless of their price, so why are we very fussed about the smart ones? makes sense in a way and another way to look at it. A Fitness Addict? If you are looking to know a lot about your fitness and get detailed information then the Apple watch might not be the best option to go with. This is what I know at least. If you seek basic to medium fitness functionalities and features then this will definitely appeal to you. I have AW6, do I need to upgrade? I wouldn't suggest so! Only upgrade if you are using an old model. I would say anything before the apple watch 6 is worth upgrading depending on your budget and personal preferences. If you read this review and found it helpful you might find my iPhone 13 Pro review helpful as well. Just click on my profile picture and you will see it on my profile below this review.

Author: Old Timer

Rating: 4

Review: If you’re reading this then the chances are you are already familiar with what the Apple Watch does. It’s an iPhone companion - definitely it won’t work with any other phone - that extends some iPhone functionality to the wrist; you can read and send texts, answer or initiate voice calls, interrogate Siri, set alarms - various nifty stuff. Oh, and you can see the time on it. Even in total darkness. Crucially, and the main reason I now own one, it is able to detect when the wearer has a hard fall and call an emergency contact if required. Being in my seventies and living alone since being widowed I thought that feature worth having. In a solo space , no one can hear you fall. You may be wondering which size to order, and instinct may tell you bigger is better. I am not a small man and my left wrist measures 200mm circumference, which is about average. My photo shows how my 41mm Series 7 looks on my wrist, quite sensibly sized I think and I do not regret my choice. These things are always about personal taste, aren’t they? For info, I use my new gizmo with an iPhone 12 Pro Max. It pairs with the phone very easily - ensure you have the Watch app installed on the phone - and setting it up is plain sailing. Broadly speaking, the software is straightforward with just a few puzzles to provide mental exercise. If this high tech pensioner can do it then so can you. I Especially Like..... * The watch unlocks my phone when I'm wearing a face mask. So when trudging grumpily around the supermarket I don't have to keep tapping in my passcode to view my shopping list or whatever. This is a surprisingly big boon. * Apple Pay works on the watch. Wafting a hand over the payment terminal to pay for my shopping just looks and feels so slick, and there's no £100 limit as with contactless cards. There's no point getting older if you don't get cooler. I Don't Like..... * The supplied 'sport' band is a fiddly nightmare, it's a real challenge to get it securely fastened on the wrist. * Having to charge the device every day is annoying. Hope I don't take a tumble while it's on the charging puck. * The selection of watch faces is small and quite remarkably uninspired. I have not bothered to change mine from the default because the other choices are so unattractive. You cannot create your own watch face designs or obtain software to do so.