Apple Watch Series 6 Long-Term Review: Do I Regret Upgrading!? By AppleInsider

Hey everyone time flies when you're stuck indoors. Doesn't it can, you believe that it was nearly six months ago that we got our hands our eyes on the updated Apple Watch Series 6. Seriously? It came out in September, and here we are going into march, so it's been about five and a half is months, just a little over that five and a half month mark, and it's crazy, it's crazy. It was that long ago. So, as we kind of approached that six month mark, I wanted to revisit the Apple Watch Series six and talk about my decision to upgrade at the time and now several months later, has it been worth it? Has it been worth it to upgrade to this latest generation version from the series 5. ? So let's go ahead and talk about it.

Welcome everyone- it's Andrew here from apple insider, and it is no surprise for anyone. Who's followed the channel that I, of course upgraded to the series 6 Apple Watch when it came out and, to be honest, I probably would have upgraded, regardless of what features apple had tacked on purely because I'm always jumping on the latest tech and purely because it's my job to be able to talk about these things, so it I need it for content, but I am able to be objective in looking back at these purchases and whether they made sense for me. So a couple of things I struggled with on which model to get whether it really was worth upgrading from the series five to the series six and how those features and changes have impacted me months later in daily use, so to recap: kind of the biggest things with the last generation model uh. It has a better always on discrete display. It is brighter in direct sunlight.

Furthermore, it faster charges the battery, so it's got better faster recharging, even though the same 18-hour wear time as the prior generation. We have the new pulse oximeter. So it's a new app in there, as well as the ability to measure your blood oxygen level, uh vo2 max, so I think that might have come to last generation models as well. So that's really not all that new. Here with the Apple Watch Series 6.

, we got the always-on altimeter measured all the time we have the new s6 sip system and package, the processor, basically that is 20 faster than the prior generation, and we have a bunch of new colors, there's the new red one, there's the blue and stuff like that, uh so months later, what impacts have had had these changes had on me with the new watch? Not a lot honestly, honestly. These are. This is probably the smallest difference that I felt year over year wearing the watch. Usually you kind of get used to those new features like with the series 5. I was really noticing the always on display, but going to the s6.

I didn't notice much of these changes daily or rarely at all, I mean the blood oxygen measurements, if I'm sure for specific people, it's a big deal. But for me, there's not a lot of use to it that I'm at least doing I'm, I'm not using it. I'm betting. The average person is also not doing a lot with the blood oxygen measurements either for some people, it's going to make a lot of sense and as apple gets, more niche and niche heart rate or other specific readings with the future apple watches. They'll make sense to certain people, but you're not going to need all those measurement tools.

So for me the blood oxygen thing it was nice to have, and I've used it time to time, but not all that, often not enough that I needed to have it built into here versus having just a regular pulse oximeter. If I did want a measurement. So for me that wasn't a big deal. I think that was the biggest kind of totable feature on this upgraded model. Other changes that I actually did like I did like the brighter display that did make a difference about two and a half times brighter when you're outside, and I'm outside a lot of shooting photos hiking on the lake stuff like that, and it made a big difference having a brighter display on my wrist.

So I did notice that one when we could be outside, and I was doing stuff outside and uh, especially working in the yard and everything it made a big deal. So I did like that uh, the other change. I liked faster battery charging about an hour and a half to charge. This whole thing. This was huge for me because I do use sleep tracking, which is a watch.

Os 7 feature not something specific to the new Apple Watch, but because I was wearing my watch overnight, I needed to make sure it was charged up and having that faster charging battery made a big deal, because I would throw it on the charger and charge up quicker. So, basically, for me, I was able to toss on the charger while in the shower and a few minutes in the morning. That would pretty much cover me and I never had to worry about charging this guy, and it wouldn't run out of me during the day. So that's kind of my schedule, I guess with the watch, but it wouldn't be possible without that faster charging battery performance wise. It doesn't feel that much difference.

I could not tell you before or after that. This thing was faster, not faster for the most stuff that I do. Everything was pretty much the same. I could see. Maybe in some ways can be absolute load faster, but also the removal of 3d touch on here or force touching whatever you want to call it.

That was a big deal because it made a lot of things more annoying and that's not like this watch thing. That's again through software that happened to all previous watches, as well as maps. I can't just force touch now and then hit end when I'm navigating I have to hit back, which goes my navigation. I have to go back again to your main start page and then scroll down and hit n, and it's just more annoying than it ever was in the past, so doing things like switching between my list of menus, like the list of apps and the wheel of apps and stuff, like that, all requiring kind of menu presses now is really obnoxious. So I really do miss 3d touch, which is the watchOS 7th thing, and I really wish that would come back, even though I know it won't another random observance.

I love the new colors, so I love the new aluminum. The blue and the red are sleek, they look fantastic, but my daily driver is the stainless steel which is now that new graphite color. I don't love the graphite. It's okay, like I don't mind the color itself, but it does make any black lugs that you put stand out before one with space black. They would match a little better, but it's more of a contrast.

Now, just a tiny thing, but for me, I notice it kind of daily is where my watch. So that is something that kind of stuck out to me. I really still like the stainless steel over the aluminum, which is why I went with the graphite over the any of the new brightly colored aluminum models now. Finally, the last thing I do want to praise- and this isn't really on the new Apple Watch, but it's the bands' apple knocked it out of the park this year with the bands I've been using, the leather link pretty much daily, and this has got to be one of my favorite bands of all time. It is extremely comfortable, it's very easy to adjust very granular, it's great to sleep in because it is leather, so it's not like cold.

If you happen to like sleep on your face, a little, and you're hitting your band, it's just really nice and comfortable all around the new loop ones are very nice as well. There's just a lot of Apple has done with the bands that I really liked this year. So you can pick those up on any of the prior generations, not a watch, a series six thing at all, but it is a cool little thing that I just noticed a lot with this one. That's probably one of the things I noticed more is just the bands rather than the upgrades to the watch itself. Now, don't you guys think that I'm trying to be a naysayer here? I'm flipping love my Apple Watch and I wear it daily.

You know a thousand some uh days in my move. Streak like I love the Apple Watch and that's why I'm always okay with picking up a new one each year. I really do love the stainless steel, I'm glad I picked up stainless again and I, like the cellular. I still have my cellular contract, and I'm happy with that. But the watch series 6 just wasn't a huge jump over for me and even after all, these months of using it, I don't really notice many of the actual specific things to the hardware.

I more nervous things like the software, like sleep tracking and sleep tracking, the change, the removal of force touch or 3d touch, uh. The new bands, like all these things that aren't really specific to the actual watch hardware itself. So I am a little disappointed in how kind of the upgrade was, but the watch series 6 is still absolutely fantastic. You'll never be disappointed with this thing, if you're picking one up, or you're contemplating about getting one, this is still the best Apple Watch. Ever it's been incredible.

Everything about it has been top-notch, just not a huge upgrade if you're coming from the series five, I don't regret it just maybe a little disappointed in day-to-day improvements, but I wonder what you guys think: do you guys have an Apple Watch? Your six. Do you upgrade from the series five? And do you regret it? You know five to six months later. Let me know down below in the comments or better. Yet let me know on Twitter, at android underscore OSU and if you're looking to pick up an Apple Watch, whether it's the series, six or any of the prior generations check out the apple insider price guide down below it is the absolute best place to pick up an Apple Watch or any of your apple gear. It's updated daily with the best deals around you.

Source : AppleInsider