Apple Watch Series 4; the remarkable little (review)

O Apple Watch Series 4 represents the greatest evolution in the design of the SmartWatch Apple since its introduction in 2014 and with refinements to the with carried out in recent years, the Series 4 becomes one of the most desired accessories by iPhone owners.

Even so, old questions remain: among those who are still not convinced of the usefulness or necessity of a Apple Watch, will this be the version to persuade them? And for those who have already surrendered, is it worth the upgrade?

Follow our review do Series 4 and draw your own conclusions.

Layout and Finishing

O Apple Watch that we analyze is the version with 40mm case, GPS + Cellular and golden aluminum finish. O Series 4 is the most attractive watch ever produced by Apple and definitely one of the smartwatches most elegant on the market.

The biggest novelty in terms of aesthetics is the OLED screen curved over the edges of the display creating the feeling that it extends across the entire watch face and merges seamlessly into the metal. The screen viewing area is 30% larger than the previous generation of Apple Watch, which makes the smaller model more practical than previous generations.

The good news is that although the sizes of the Series 4 are larger, old bands continue to fit new Apple Watches. The 38mm straps fit the 40mm model and the 42mm straps fit the 44mm model.

Although Apple calls the newest color of the Apple Watch Series 4 just "golden"“, the tone is more similar to Rose Gold (Rose Gold) used by the brand on iPhones and MacBooks than the more yellow gold available on first generation of Apple Watch. The matte aluminum model, available in black, silver and gold, is stylish and functional, but if you're willing to spend, the gorgeous stainless steel versions are worth checking out.

In the last two years Apple has released a special edition of the Watch in ceramic, but this time chose not to release a version in this material. The models produced in partnership with the Nike and the Hermès brand, however, have been updated and are available as Series 4.

A digital Crown, the wheel used to navigate the watch's menus, has undergone a reengineering process, but the change is invisible to the user with two exceptions: on models with 4G, the face is not completely painted red; there is just a discreet ring around the knob and now the crown has tactile feedback, small vibrations used as feedback to the user as it is turned (similar to what Apple already does in iPhones with 3D Touch).

A change from the layout of the Apple Watch Series 3 was the repositioning of the speakers. They were transferred to the left side of the device to facilitate the capture of audio through the microphone, which is on the right side. While they are powerful and work very well for phone calls, Apple greatly limits what can be played through the speakers; Apple Music and Podcasts, for example, with headphones only.

Apple also gave the underside of the watch a facelift, replacing the old metal finish with ceramic. The models with GPS already used this material, but from the Series 4 all Apple Watches will feature the coating. Appearance aside, without a doubt the most impressive novelty was the inclusion of an electrical heart sensor capable of performing electrocardiograms, in addition to the traditional optical sensor used to measure beats per minute.

Watch 5

The new operating system version of the Apple Watch, watchOS 5 brings some interesting news and is much faster, but makes few structural changes to the way the system works. watchOS has gradually gained more independence from the Watch app on the iPhone (and the iPhone in general), but there is still a lot to evolve in this regard.

Perhaps the biggest change of watchOS 5 in terms of interaction with the watch is the ability to trigger the Crab just lifting your wrist and reciting the command, no need to say “Hey Siri” before, not even holding any buttons. Speaking of buttons, a note: a gesture-based interface, like the iPhone X, would also be very welcome in watchOS. Few will miss pressing the button on the Digital Crown to return to the dial.

Apple does not yet allow the creation of watch faces by third-party developers, so you will have to use only those provided by Apple itself. This isn't a problem for me, who prefer more minimalistic interfaces and am happy with the options that exist, but I recognize that it would be an interesting addition.

For those who like to visualize as much information as possible on a single screen, the company started to offer a new type of display called Infographic, which allows up to 8 complications (the buttons/widgets that you can add on the screen).

Just as iOS 12, watchOS 5 now groups notifications from the same app in the tight notification center of the Apple Watch, which is welcome. Another cool addition is the ability to display web pages on the watch itself. It's not the best internet browsing experience you'll ever have, but it does the trick.

Apps

O Apple Watch it is possibly the accessory made by Apple that most depends on the user's devotion to the company's ecosystem of apps and services. As third-party support for watchOS is much lower than for iOS, the richest and most productive experiences occur in the manufacturer's own apps, such as Apple Music, Apple Maps, iMessage, etc.

Only eleven of the more than fifty apps installed on my iPhone had versions for watchOS. Of these I installed the ones I found most useful, but in certain cases the result was a little frustrating.

The music recognition service Shazam, which was recently acquired by Apple, for example, had more difficulty identifying songs when triggered by the Apple Watch and in some cases it did not return anything. When asking for a ride through the Uber app, the destination was not informed to the driver, I had to enter it on the iPhone. The Alelo card application is very useful for checking balances, but it has the habit of asking the user to “authorize” the use by the user. Watch through the iPhone.

Developers' relative lack of enthusiasm for operating systems wearable is not unique to Apple and the company is certainly the best positioned to reverse this scenario. The arrival of apps like Spotify and Telegram are relevant reinforcements for the platform's catalog.

That said, there are quite positive experiences. A very interesting one is the Microsoft Authenticator. The app's configuration is a bit confusing, but the process of authorizing access to Outlook from the clock is very practical. The same goes for the app. Step two, which allows you to view XNUMX-step verification tokens right in Watch Apple.

Another highlight is the Addiction Package to track the status of package deliveries (thanks, Black Friday) and the countless apps focused on sports and exercise, such as RunKeeper, swim.com e Strava.

But it is really in the integration with the Apple world that the Watch really shines. The ability to control the Apple Music on Apple TV and iPhone via Watch, turn the volume up or down on the AirPods, viewing exercise, breathing and heart rate data in the Health app, syncing reminders, calendars, photos, and first-class integration with iMessage demonstrate the watch's full potential for those who fully surrender to the ecosystem.

Leaving your cell phone at home and going for a run or a walk, taking only your headphones and your watch, is one of the most liberating experiences provided by the combination of Apple Watch and AirPods and in my opinion, one of the best reasons to invest in a Watch. the launch of the app Podcasts in watchOS 5 was also an important gain in this regard.

Fitness

The monitoring of physical activities and exercises is the flagship of the Apple Watch; just look at the promotional materials for the product, always showing people playing sports and sweating their shirt.

The application Activity is the central fitness do Watch. This is where the user tracks their goals (the famous colored circles) of movement/calories, exercises and standing.

The watch keeps the owner informed of the progress, sending reminders and messages of motivation so that the circles are closed by the end of the day. Personally, I find this type of tracking much more relevant than the old 10.000 steps a day goal employed by others. w with fitness resources.

For sports practitioners, the app Exercises already includes a series of pre-configured workouts such as walking, running, elliptical, rowing, swimming (the Series 4 is waterproof up to 50 meters) and two new features: yoga and hiking. Just select the activity you want and start moving.

The “athlete” can set goals such as distance, calories and time and track them on the watch while training, as well as heart rate.

If you forget to start training manually, the Series 4 can identify when one of these exercises has started or ended and issues a notification asking if the activity should be recorded.

If you run, the Watch features new types of progress monitoring for this workout, such as pace alerts, steps per minute, and performance comparison against the previous mile.

The quest for a healthier and less sedentary life is one of the biggest forces in the device market today. wearable and Apple Watch Series 4 successfully positions itself as an option both for those who are just starting to move and want to get off the couch a little and for the most intense and experienced practitioners.

Health

The physical and mental health of the user is one of the biggest focuses of the Apple Watch Series 4 and new features introduced in this model take that mission to an even higher level.

An interesting addition is the fall detection. This function recognizes that the user has fallen hard and automatically triggers emergency services and selected contacts if the person does not move for more than a minute. The feature has very high potential in the care of elderly patients and is enabled by default for individuals over 65 years of age.

O heart rate monitor built into the device, in addition to recording the beats, it is capable of detecting very high or very low frequencies. If it notices a change in heart rate, the Watch notifies the wearer so they can seek medical help.

As I mentioned at the beginning of review, Series 4 It has an electrical heart sensor to perform electrocardiograms, but unfortunately the feature is not yet available in Brazil. Apple released it via a software update (watchOS 5.1.2) in the US only. The American agency responsible for the inspection of medical devices (FDA) has already approved the use of the device for this purpose, but Apple did not provide details on the progress of approval in other countries. It's worth noting that the FDA does not consider the Apple Watch a replacement for traditional diagnostic methods.

An area in which the Apple Watch still owes is the sleep monitoring. There is still no standard app to measure sleep quality in Series 4 and while there is no shortage of options on the App Store, the best apps of this type are paid. In 2017 Apple acquired a startup call Beddit, whose main product is a sensor placed under the sheet to analyze sleep, breathing, environment, snoring, etc. therefore it is possible that the company will have news soon in this regard.

Battery

Apple promises 18h battery life, which is very close to the result we had in the days we spent with the Series 4. The 4G connection of Watch was not used in these tests and as the cellular signal is a notorious battery consumer, there is a caveat.

On days where the use of Apple Watch Series 4 was smaller, the watch came to stay close to 36 hours away from the socket, but in periods of more intense use (exercise, GPS, Bluetooth audio), it was necessary to charge it on the same date, at night. Screen brightness was kept low or medium.

Apple Watch Series 4 Conclusion

Even with the inclusion and refinement of so many features, it is still not possible to say that the Apple Watch – or any SmartWatch – is an essential item and I confess that I am still not willing to change my bracelet fitness (bought for less than 500 reais) for a smart watch worth R$ 4 thousand.

As the main negative points of Series 4 I would highlight the salty price, the unsatisfactory application ecosystem and the incompatibility with Android smartphones, which alienates most Brazilian consumers – and probably will not change.

That said, there are several good reasons to buy it if you're already an Apple customer or intending to move to this orchard. O Series 4 enhances the “Apple experience” in many ways, is a good companion for those willing to lead (or continue to lead) a more active and healthy life, and packs it all in one package. sophisticated and captivating.

Healthcare features, particularly advances in cardiac monitoring and fall detection, make the SmartWatch Apple's first choice for those who need this type of information constantly.

In fact, this is perhaps the biggest difference between the Apple Watch: The balance between common experiences like listening to music, getting notifications, checking the calendar and features fitness that are advanced yet easy to understand and access. This small screen contains useful experiences for all audiences.