There are etiquettes when it comes to sporting a watch. How to wear one, when to wear one, and the list goes on. For the observant people out there, you know that a watch does say a lot about a person. The lack thereof also speaks volumes.

This is no aimed headshot at people who don’t wear watches, but a reiteration of the value watches have held since their advent.

These days, however, things are changing. Times are changing. Societal norms overpower cultural values while mankind takes giant leaps forward. These days, a watch might not speak volumes about the person wearing it, because a lot of people are now sporting smartwatches. From celebrities to an office goer to an athlete, you’ll see everyone wearing a smartwatch.

What is a smartwatch? A smartwatch is a wearable computer that resembles a wristwatch. Modern smartwatches have smartphone apps to manage them and to calibrate all the high-tech features and telemetry a smartwatch comes with.

Post-2010 smartwatches have functions similar to smartphones, which allow you to receive and decline calls, reply to messages, check your social media notifications, and run operating systems with Wifi and Bluetooth connectivity.

 

What are the benefits of owning a smartwatch?

 

Calling and messaging features

You can use your smartwatch to make a phone call or use it to answer an incoming phone call. Some smartwatches support cellular networks and come with speakers and microphones which allow you to make phone calls without your smartphone.

LTE smartwatches are also becoming more popular. Manufacturers like Garmin, LG, Samsung, and Apple have LTE supported smartwatches. The battery life on these LTE-able devices is pretty poor, as the cellular network drains the life out of the battery pretty quickly. Voice-enabled smartwatches also allow you to use the power of your voice to send messages in a matter of seconds.



Music 

For fitness enthusiasts or the “I don’t want to take my phone out” person, a smartwatch can come in handy. Users can control their smartphone’s music player and use their smartwatch as a remote. Smartwatches can also be paired to your Bluetooth headset or speakers which is a nifty feature to have.

 

Health and fitness

One of the biggest benefits of owning a smartwatch is the array of health and fitness features that come with it. Smartwatches these days have integrated functionality we once used to buy fitness trackers for. Tracking your activities, sleep quality, heart rate, fitness levels, the whole package. Here are some features that are worth the mention when it comes to health and fitness functionality on a smartwatch:

 

ECG: An electrocardiogram is a feature that is beginning to be available on smartwatches such as the Apple Series 4. This feature delivers precise heart rate measurements and provides data for detecting incoming heart-related issues.

 

Sleep hours and quality: this feature makes use of an integrated heart rate monitor, gyroscope, and accelerometer. 

 

Blood pressure: a new feature for smartwatches

 

Emergency SOS: this feature, available on the Apple Watch, allows for you to call authorities when you need urgent assistance

 

Sports features: new smartwatches let you track activity when you swim, cycle, run, or walk. Garmin is the forerunner when it comes to multisport smartwatches that offer highly precise measurements on sports activities.

 

A plethora of smart features

Smartwatches are called smartwatches for a reason. They offer a variety of features that you are more likely used to seeing on your smartphone. Reminders can be set using voice commands and incoming calls are shown on the screen. Smartwatches are also great when it comes to navigation.

 

Instead of the usual pointy arrows and roadmaps, they vibrate in certain ways to tell you when to turn left or right. For a tourist, this feature could be a game-changer. The screen on your smartwatch is essentially the screen on your smartphone, but a tiny version of it. Just like a smartphone, you can take a peek at all your notifications.

From emails to calendar reminders, you can choose which apps you want to see notifications from, and which you don’t. Through Fitbit pay, Samsung Pay, Garmin Pay, Android Pay, or Apple Pay, you can use contactless payments for your transactions.

 

This way you can make purchases even if you forget both your phone AND wallet at home. In the pandemic-ridden world of today, contactless payments are exactly what you need.

 

Entertainment on your wrist

If you want to watch a Youtube video or a clip on Instagram, but feel like you might forget later, you’re only a click or two away from watching it on your smartphone. The screen on your watch may never replace the size and quality of the screen on your smartphone, but it does end up the victor when you look at sheer convenience.

 

A juice that lasts longer than your smartphone

How many times have you found yourself wishing you had a portable charger? Or that your smartphone had a better battery life? Some smartwatches come with batteries that no smartphone can keep up with. This becomes convenient if you find yourself having to commute frequently, or on a road trip.

 

Constant connection

Sometimes you might be somewhere or doing something that does not allow you to take your smartphone out of your pocket. Maybe you’re in a meeting, jogging, swimming, or climbing up a steep hill.

 

Whatever it may be, you can rest assured that everything you’re missing is only a peek away (pun intended).The Apple Watch Series 4 has a waterproof rating of up to 50 meters which means you can check your notifications in the pool too.

 

Finding missing devices

Before, finding your phone or keys would cause havoc. You would be ready to dismantle your bed or turn the living room upside down. Gladly, smartwatches come with a “Find my Phone” feature that can link to your phone or any smart device, which you can ring through your smartwatch.

 

Customization

The thing with traditional watches is that you can buy more than one, and form your collection of watches.

Different watches for different events, different moods, to go perfectly with how you want to look and feel. Smartwatches, though? This is nothing to fret about. Smartwatches like the Apple Watch come with interchangeable straps. 

The TAG Heuer smartwatch allows you to change the face of the smartwatch to mimic traditional TAG Heuer models. A new TAG every day, if you fancy that. Who wouldn’t? 

In my humble opinion, smartwatches are the sole reason why traditional watch sales have been declining recently. Smartwatches have survived the criticism over the past few years and still not only exist but are getting more and more popular.

 

A smartwatch can be a good asset for you to invest in because of the host of benefits it brings with it. In this modern digital era, this seems like the next step forward.