So… how do I feel a month after spending a small fortune on the new Ultra?

Happy. And there’s actually one thing that didn’t cross my mind again: the cost.

The Watch

First the physical part: the watch looks great, the size is about perfect for my smallish wrist, and it’s very comfortable to wear. I do appreciate the fact that it’s a lot more rugged, and probably won’t break like one of my previous models.

Battery life is awesome, coming from such an older model, the series 2. I would get annoyed with yet another thing to charge every day, and the battery wouldn’t even last a whole day. I can’t sleep without a watch, and the fact that the battery was so small was a pain point for me. Not anymore.

The always on display is another thing I wanted all along. I never got used to the fact that I’d glance down, and couldn’t tell the time. Coming from a life spent wearing watches, that was a big no-no. Having tattoos doesn’t help, as the older watch would fail to light up with a flick of the wrist. This one seems to be working a lot better. Not sure if the size has anything to do with it, maybe the sensors are spread over a bigger area, and that makes a difference.

The size. I’m not even a fan of huge watches. My watches are, mostly, small by today’s standards. But this one doesn’t feel as big as I expected. I find it perfectly sized.

Ruggedness. I haven’t tested it yet, but I did break that other Apple Watch back in the day. And I love that my watches can go to the beach, underwater, handle a toddler’s bath, or dishwashing duty. All the things that a moderately active person does, without having to think if I should remove it before taking a shower, or building a sand castle. This one, by all accounts, seems to be able to do that. It’s not rock climbing, after all.

I’m aware some people would never shower, or sleep for that matter, with a watch. But I have always been a 24/7 watch person, and decades of this behaviour will not change. All my watches, from the cheapest to the most expensive, can handle it, this one should to.

Mine came with the Yellow/Beige, and I was surprised with how good it was, but I wanted the Midnight Ocean Band all along, and Someone decided to fund it on my BuyMeACoffee page. I am thankful, and super happy with it.

Cell service. My older model had no cell service. I’m testing the eSIM on this one, free for 6 months, and deciding if it’s worth the extra €5 a month after that. It’s handy, but I’m not without my phone for long periods of time. Undecided for now.

GPS is supposedly much better on the Ultra, and I have noticed how precise the tracking is when I’m walking around town. The city doesn’t have a lot of buildings that are tall enough to fully take advantage of this, but I can tell the difference.

The Apps

Most of the things I need to do are still done on the iPhone. Input is much faster and convenient, even though the dictation works remarkably well on the tiny thing. The keyboard is nice enough, but I use the watch on my dominant arm, so the error rate when writing with my other hand is higher than I’d like.

But I have a list, a short one for now, of things that I’ll do on the watch.

Using WaterMinder. It’s nice on the watch.

Workouts. I wouldn’t be able to measure everything without the watch. And I LOVE data from the workouts.

Shopping. Using Grocery on the watch is a treat. Trips to the supermarket are even more fun now.

Volume control for whatever device is playing podcasts or music. Handy in the car, even better on a motorcycle.

CARROT Weather, my app of choice for weather, is perfect on the watch. I almost stopped using the iPhone version.

Drafts is another great one, adding new stuff on the go is the one time I dictate things. This is what makes me believe I should be doing this with other apps as well.

Paying for stuff. I’m not even taking my phone out at the supermarket, or at gas stations. The restaurant where we have lunch daily, the kiosk where we have coffee, and so many other places where paying with the watch is even easier than using the phone. At first it feels a little strange, though. Attendants are used to people paying with their phones, but still look oddly at me when I’m doing it with the watch.

Shortcuts is something that I find myself using these days, and I never did on the phone. I’m using one to post to status.lol often.

Some other apps are just easier to check on the watch, no need to pick up the phone.

Pedometer++

Parcel is cool when I’m waiting for a delivery.

Things, mostly to cross off what I’ve done.

Fantastical, I check it often enough.

Pillow, sleep tracking, with issues. Probably because of my tattoos.

And a few apps are not essential on the watch, but handy.

Tot, but not a lot. I have a reserved spot for something I’ll need soon, like a PIN code, or VAT number.

Morpho

Simple, allows me to know how many hours before I can eat again.

1Password is one I still have to find a way to use properly.

Phone. I’m not a heavy phone user, meaning making calls, and I’ll just pick-up on the watch when I’m alone. Having the speaker on, in public, is something that I just can’t do.

The app I’m waiting for, as many others, is the promised Oceanic+. The one that will turn the Ultra into a diving computer. Supposed to be out in Autumn, still nowhere to be seen.

Annoyances

Getting the app grid setup is a pain. It should be easier. A lot easier.

Not being able to hide/delete a ton of Apple’s apps is just silly.

The fact that tattoos are still an issue is ridiculous.