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On The Watch ⌚
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Everything Apple Watch: Tips, News, Deep Dives, Apps & Gear
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Get in, Readers! We’re putting out an Apple Watch newsletter 😎🚗.
Welcome to On the Watch, iPhone Life’s new biweekly Apple Watch newsletter. I’m Sarah Kingsbury, and while my official title around here is Editorial Director, unofficially I’m known as the one who never shuts up about her Apple Watch 🤐.
Going forward, I’m also the one who’ll be sending you a deep dive on a different Apple Watch topic every other week, along with a sprinkling of the latest Apple Watch news, app and gear reviews, how-tos, and other fun and useful tidbits. I’m delighted to be sharing my love of the Apple Watch with all of you!
Since I first strapped the original Apple Watch on my wrist back in 2015, I’ve rarely gone a day without wearing one. I even wore my Ultra 2 to my wedding! (If you don’t track the steps, does the walk down the aisle even count?)
What’s the craziest place or time you’ve worn your Apple Watch? Just hit reply or email me at OnTheWatch@iPhoneLife.com to share.
Happy Reading!
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Sarah Kingsbury,
Editorial Director at iPhone Life
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PS. Since you completed our Apple Watch Mini Course, I thought you’d enjoy this newsletter too. If you’d like to opt out of future editions of On the Watch, you can do it easily here.
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Watch X rumors, watchOS 11 public beta is here, and more
Apple’s September event is fast approaching, which means everyone’s got questions about the expected new watch and Feature Writer and Apple Watch expert Olena Kagui is doing her best to answer them: What will it be called? What size will it be? Can we still use our old watch bands? And when the new watch is finally here, she’s got some advice about whether you should buy the new model or a refurbished Apple Watch.
Check out Olena’s full roundup of July Apple Watch news to find out:
- Will your insurance help pay for an Apple Watch?
- What’s the catch with the new Vitals app?
- How the Apple Watch continues to save people from death or at least from a very bad day.
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Can you believe it’s been 10 years since Apple announced the original Apple Watch?
Back in the day, Apple had ambitions beyond just capturing the budding smartwatch market; they also wanted to give luxury watch makers some competition with the 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition, released in 2015.
How much do you think the original Apple Watch Edition cost? Scroll down to find out if you got the answer right!
- $1,299 🤑
- $4,790 🤑🤑
- $10,000 🤑🤑🤑
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🤨 Things that make me go hmmm: breathe reminders
In the history of breathing, being ordered to breathe by a mini wrist computer has never made anyone feel more relaxed. Learn how to disable one of my least favorite Apple Watch features.
🎭 Don’t be the person who doesn’t dim their watch in theaters
Use Theater Mode to keep your wrist from lighting up while you’re enjoying a movie.
🗺️ Game changer: sharing your location from your wrist
If you’re trying to meet up with a friend at a large crowded event, you don’t even have to pull out your phone to let them know where you are, just use your Apple Watch!
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Should you get the watchOS 11 public beta?
Apple is so good at selling me the hype. After WWDC, I was like, “Yes, please, Tim Cook, sign me up to try watchOS 11 a mere two months early!” But is it actually wise to install unfinished software on your Apple Watch? Here is my deep dive into whether it’s a good idea to install the public beta.
The answer is: maybe?
Within literal minutes of Apple releasing its public betas on July 15, I installed them on my iPhone, Apple Watch, and iPad. And I’m very happy that I did. The watchOS beta has been really stable so far, and I love getting to try out all the cool features of watchOS 11 and the other new operating systems before anyone else. Clearly, for me, the answer is, YES!
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So, should YOU get the watchOS beta?
It actually depends on iOS 18
You may have noticed that my MacBook didn’t make the list of devices I’m running beta software on. That’s because my ability to do my job depends on my Mac working reliably, and the only thing that’s reliable about beta software is that there will be bugs.
Getting the watchOS beta requires you to first install the iOS 18 beta on your iPhone. The iOS 18 update is one of the most significant updates in years, thanks to the integration of Apple Intelligence across the whole operating system and Siri in particular. And frequently, with big updates, comes the risk of big bugs.
Risks vs rewards
In reality, I think the risks of installing iOS 18, while real, aren’t all that significant for most users. Olena has been testing the iOS 18 developer beta since June, and Apple has fixed all of the biggest issues she encountered early on. That tracks with my own years of experience using beta software. The early developer betas can be quite glitchy; but by the time Apple releases them to the public, the betas are very stable. So far, the only problems I’ve had with the public iOS 18 beta is having to charge my battery more often and my phone running a little slower at times. And I’m having way too much fun testing iOS 18 and watchOS 11 to mind plugging in a bit more often.
In the end, you’ll need to decide for yourself whether early access to new watch features is worth a potentially glitchy phone. Just keep in mind that it’s very difficult to remove the watchOS beta once you’ve installed it.
The bottom line
- If you are a mildly adventurous early adopter, go ahead and install the watchOS public beta without too much worry.
- If you break out into a sweat at the idea of your Apple Watch and iPhone not functioning perfectly because of software you can’t uninstall, wait until the shipping version of watchOS 11 is released in the fall.
Will you install the beta?
Why or why not? If you do, let us know what you think. Email me at OnTheWatch@iPhoneLife.com and share your thoughts.
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🕺 Other fun and useful tidbits
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💰 How much exactly did that gold-encased Apple Watch cost? 💰
If you guessed $10,000, give yourself a pat on the back!
🏆🏆🏆
And that was just the starting price; the original Apple Watch Edition with its 18K gold casing could set you back as much as $17,000! However, it may not have sold as well as Apple hoped, given that they quietly replaced it with a ceramic edition a year later, with a significantly lower starting price of $1249.
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If you enjoyed this newsletter, you’ll love all the cool Apple Watch content available on iPhone Life Insider!
This premium subscription includes:
- The complete Apple Watch Master Class and other free online courses taught by expert instructors
- In-depth guides on everything from Apple Watch to iPhone photography to other Apple devices
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- The monthly iPhone Life Security Newsletter covering everything you need to know to keep your digital life secure
- Access to the ad-free version of the iPhone Life Podcast and exclusive bonus content
- Expert help with all your most pressing Apple Watch questions in our private Ask an Expert Facebook Group
Join the Insider community today and save 30 percent!
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