Hello, I bought an Apple Watch mainly because I wanted to write a book about the experience and explore a new technology. (You can get the book at http://watchingwithoutlooking.wordpress.com)
However, there are several things I really like about it, and I think that for people with certain disabilities, it could really improve their lives and safety. My favorite thing is silent notifications. I usually have the watch muted, which means that I know when notifications come in, but no one else has to. A couple of weeks ago, my husband was flying home from a conference, and I was out to dinner with friends at a noisy restaurant. I loved knowing that if he texted me about his flight progress, I'd get the message, but I wouldn't need to have anything loud in order to get the message. When a notification came in, I could put my wrist near my ear to hear what it said, which did make noise, but certainly less than a phone chiming. Another thing I really like is being able to control phone playback from the watch. When we drive somewhere, we often listen to music or a podcast on my phone through the car speakers. Always before, VoiceOver had to come through the speakers too, and it was loud. Now I can skip a track or pause or restart music without having to have VoiceOver come through the speakers. The Activity app is useful too. I know I'm moving around more during the day because of the reminders, which is great. And I'm sure the watch will become more useful over time. As for the useful and possibly safety issues, I read a post by a deafblind person who had a watch, as did her partner. They've worked out a code of taps that means, "I want to go home." If they're at a party and she wants to leave, she can signal to her partner without knowing where he is. I think many couples or groups of friends will appreciate this ability to signal one another without knowing their location. I also listened to a podcast by someone whose wife falls easily. Now if she falls, she'll be able to use her watch to call for help, even if she's fallen on top of her phone and can't get to it. In short, I think the watch is technology that can be used creatively in a wide variety of situations. I'm glad to have one. Best, Anna > On Jun 29, 2015, at 10:59 AM, Joe Quinn <[email protected]> wrote: > > this question is for those who, obviously, have an apple watch. Why'd you buy > it? In my view, you can do the same things with it, and even more, with your > iphone. The only real benifit I can see with it, is that you get your > notifications even when your phone's not within reach or charging. In that > case you could use a braille display if you had one, or turn up your volume > to make sure you don't miss anything. And let's not even talk about the > price. $349 US for something that, again, is really not much more than, a > speaker to your phone. I'd love to hear what others think and your > justification for buying one. It's not a "need" device. > > -- > The following information is important for all members of the viphone list. > All new members to the this list are moderated by default. If you have any > questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a > member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators > directly rather than posting on the list itself. The archives for this list > can be searched at http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/. > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "VIPhone" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/viphone. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- The following information is important for all members of the viphone list. All new members to the this list are moderated by default. If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself. The archives for this list can be searched at http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VIPhone" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/viphone. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
