Why I Didn't Buy an Apple Watch

I like Apple. I really do. I think the Macbook is the best laptop out there. I love my iPhone 6. I die a little on the inside when I have to use PowerPoint instead of Keynote. 

But I didn't buy their watch. 

Before I go further, the purpose of this post isn't to put down people who did buy one. I'm not trying to draw a line in the sand, nor am I trying to elevate myself for being a more "savvy consumer" by what I didn't purchase. I don't want people who did buy one to get defensive from reading this post, just like I wouldn't get defensive around people who didn't buy a bobblehead lawn gnome for their office. Some people would consider a lawn gnome to be a waste of money. For me, the Apple Watch would've been the same. 

Said bobbleheead gnome that graces one of the shelves in my home office. I won't judge your watch if you don't judge my gnome. 

I Never Buy First Generation Apple Products

It's a personal rule that I have. I never buy the first generation of an Apple product. The upgrading frequency is too often for my budget. My "early adopter" prize would be yesterday's news at a faster rate than I'd be willing to replace it.

Plus, they rarely have all of the kinks worked out on the first try. That's not an Apple thing, but any company. In Apple's case, I think they make some of the best tech products out there. Even if they came out with a first-to-market teleportation device, I'd still wait for version two. Mainly to avoid something like this.

I Already Have a Pebble

You may say to yourself "the Apple Watch has waaaaay more features than a Pebble."

And you would be right. 

The Pebble has mixed reviews from other people. However, for my needs, the Pebble does everything I want it to do. It sends me text messages. It tracks my activities. It syncs with RunKeeper. It syncs with my phone and gives me all the push notifications I already get on my phone, whether or not there's a Pebble app for that. I barely have any push notifications turned on (just texts, calls, YouVersion daily verse and calendar reminders), so it works out well. 

Sure, the Pebble only works if it's tethered to your phone - but the same is said for pretty much any other smartwatch out there. Which leads me to my next point.

It's Not a Standalone Device

I'll get more excited about smartwatches when they don't require your phone to be nearby; when they can work all on their own. I'd love to track my RunKeeper runs on my watch without having to tether to anything else. I'd love to send and receive text or voice messages without having my phone nearby. I'd love to use it as a GPS without having to keep my phone on me too. 

Wearables are a cool space to watch (pun intended). I'm excited to see where the future of that product category goes. But that much cash for me is way too much to spend for now. I'd rather ship a case from VJB for that much money at this point. 

What about you? Did you buy one? Why or why not?

If you did, how do you like it so far?

Side note: if you are a fan of Pulp Fiction, you'll appreciate this Apple Watch commercial parody.