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Comment by alienreborn | Hacker News Reader

Verge[1] (5/10), WSJ[2] has pretty negative reviews esp reg. battery and LTE reception and Apple acknowledged that problem in their statement. This has to be one of the worst reviewed Apple products in a while. However Wired[3] has good things to say about it and NYT[4] found it alright.

1. https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/20/16334066/apple-watch-seri...

2. https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-watch-series-3-review-unt...

3. https://www.wired.com/2017/09/review-apple-watch-series-3/

4. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/technology/personaltech/a...

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It says this has something to do with connecting to unsecured Wifi networks. That seems, amazingly, like something Apple testing might overlook. Who has unsecured networks these days?

It also sounds like a bugfix that could come shortly and make the review seem pretty dated.

EDIT: To clarify whoever is downvoting me, I’m not arguing that Apple shouldn’t have tested this. They really really should have. I just can see how they might not run across too many unsecured networks in their employee real-world tests.

Pretty much every location with publicly-accessible WiFi has an unsecured WiFi network - places like malls, hotels, coffee shops, restaurants, pubs.

Gruber says what I said: https://daringfireball.net/linked/2017/09/20/goode-apple-wat...

I'm sorry, but I kinda wanna call BS on this. The Verge review even admits that the connection issues were happening when the watch connected to a Wi-Fi network that they had connected to before. That's not really a reflection of the LTE connectivity, only a reflection that the watch can't connect and use Wi-Fi networks that require a captive portal where you can't sign in without your phone first. It seems really disingenuous to me for them to openly conflate those 2 things as a problem with the LTE connectivity.

Hi, Joe User here! Just got my new Apple Watch 3! All I can tell you is that when I walk into a Starbucks, the music on my watch quits streaming and I can’t send texts anymore.

Point is, you and I might know the nitty gritty, and so does the reviewer, but Average User just sees that “always connected watch” isn’t when they go to Panera. Is it BS to conflate the two? Eh, maybe. You want to drill to the specifics, whereas the reviewer is taking a more macro “general connectivity” view. I mean, they’re not wrong: if I’m connected to a “broken” wireless network, LTE is hosed as well. One can be forgiven for not expecting that to be the case.

I was going to say...even this article's optimism seems disingenuous.

>Battery life has been fine. “All day” is about right — charging at night, using it all day

That does not sound anywhere close to 'fine' for a watch. I get annoyed at my Pebble Time's battery life from time to time, and it still lasts at least 5 days/nights on a charge.

Uhm, that's how the AW, AW S1 and AW S2 run so that's perfectly fine.

He's not comparing it to a Pebble.

Which is fine, comparing it to competitors and past iterations. But as a watch, that is simply not an acceptable battery life.

Something like, 'battery life continues to be poor but manageable' would be far more honest.

Good thing too. Because Pebble owners know what time it is when they wake up in the middle of the night. Apple customers have to pick up their phone or ask alexa, I mean homepod.

Mine goes on a dock and it goes into 'nightstand' mode. Screen is off, but all I have to do is tap my bedside table and the time comes on. YMMV, but I like it so much better than having the time always on, because I like a totally dark room.

Or just look over at the alarm clock.

Is your watch not your alarm clock? Because that's a super convenient feature, whether you wear it to bed or put it on a nightstand.

Plus, one less set of glaring LEDs in the room.

No, the watch is charging in another room. Its just some red led's too, not glaring at all.

I need all the alarm clocks I can get.

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