If you’re only using your Apple Watch as just a watch, you’re doing it wrong. There are so many great features you have to take advantage of if you have an Apple Watch; here are some of the best ones!
- Weekly Activity Competitions
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If you have a friend or family member that also has an Apple Watch, you can have weekly activity competitions with them on your Apple Watch. The set up is very simple: you just have to go to the activity app on your iPhone, go to the sharing section and add people. After you start sharing your activity, your Apple Watch will give you push notifications on your friends’ activity status. The notifications will also give you motivational messages for you to be more active.
Once you start sharing your activity with people, you then have the option to start weekly activity challenges. These activity competitions are a great source of fitness motivation. Rather than just trying to close your activity rings on your own, the weekly activity competitions make it more of a fun game with friends.
- Apple Pay
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There is nothing more convenient than being able to pay for things straight from your Apple Watch. To set it up, you just have to go on the Watch app on your iPhone, go to the Wallet & Apple Pay section, and add your preferred card payment. Once you have your Apple Pay set up, just double tap the rectangular side button on your watch to use it at stores.
- Watch Faces
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You can make the most out of your watch by customizing the watch faces. If you mainly use your watch for the activity features, the activity digital face is a good option for you; it shows you all your activity rings and is overall the best for showcasing your fitness progress.
The infograph modular is also a great option. It gives you the most features for your watch face such as the time, date, battery percentage, weather, activity status, timer, Spotify, etc.
- Siri Raise to Speak
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The Siri raise to speak feature on the Apple Watch is a game changer. To turn on the feature, go to the settings app on your Apple Watch, go to general, then Siri, and then turn on Raise to Speak. Once activated, you just have to raise the watch near your mouth to talk to Siri.
- Sleep Tracker
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There are several sleep tracking apps for the Apple Watch. I personally use Sleep++. It is an automatic sleep tracker, which keeps track of how much time you’ve spent sleeping. It lets you know how much time of your sleep was restful, restless, and how much time you were awake during your sleep. It also tells you what window of time was your best sleep. There is also a feature that could give you a sleep reminder in order for you to have a consistent sleep schedule. The app gives you a sleep summary every morning so you could analyze the quality of your sleep.
- Watch Bands
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Being able to change out your watch bands is definitely one of the best parts of having an Apple Watch. Since watch bands from the apple store are so expensive, I personally buy them from Amazon instead. Most of the time, the Apple Watch bands on Amazon are indistinguishable from the ones at the Apple store, just at a fraction of the price.
- Cellular Capabilities
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The Apple Watch is supposed to be an extension to your iPhone but can be used independently when you have the cellular feature. The watches with the cellular feature typically cost around $100 more and have to be added to your cellular plan, which is about $15 each month. The cellular feature lets you make phone calls and text messages without needing to have your iPhone nearby, which is great for when you decide to leave your phone at home or when your phone just runs out of battery.
- Water Resistance
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None of the Apple Watches are fully waterproof, but they all do have a certain amount of water-resistance. Having an Apple Watch with water-resistance is great if you want to keep track of your activity during swim sessions or forget to take it off during a shower.
Here is some water-resistance information from Apple:
Apple Watch Series 1 and Apple Watch (1st generation) are splash and water resistant, but submerging Apple Watch Series 1 and Apple Watch (1st generation) isn’t recommended.
Apple Watch Series 2, Apple Watch Series 3, and Apple Watch Series 4 may be used for shallow water activities like swimming in a pool or ocean. However, Apple Watch Series 2, Apple Watch Series 3, and Apple Watch Series 4 shouldn’t be used for scuba diving, water skiing, or other activities involving high-velocity water or submersion below shallow depth.
Showering with Apple Watch Series 2, Apple Watch Series 3, and Apple Watch Series 4 is ok, but we recommend not exposing Apple Watch to soaps, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and perfumes as they can negatively affect water seals and acoustic membranes. Apple Watch should be cleaned with fresh water and dried with a lint free-cloth if it comes in contact with anything other than fresh water.
Hopefully, this information helps you make the most out of your Apple Watch!
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