Everyone from teenagers to businessmen and businesswomen use smartwatches. Even many senior citizens have these watches. They tell the time just like the classic watches from years ago. However, that is just the beginning. Smartwatches are designed to do so much more than that. Many of them are touchscreen and easy-to-use. They have apps, record heart rate, track sleep, track steps, and so much more.
There are many different companies that make smartwatches. There are also various models and types of smartwatches. If you don’t have a smartwatch yet, but you are thinking about getting one, you might be wondering what all a smartwatch can do for you. This guide is going to help you dive into all the capabilities of a smartwatch.
Basic History of the Smartwatch
Before learning about the things that a smartwatch can do, it might be helpful to have a bit of background on these watches. While there have been a variety of digital watches around for many decades - some that have calculators and others that have step counters - true smartphone-based smartwatches didn’t come about until 2010.
Sony, Samsung, and Apple are some of the biggest companies that make smartwatches. However, there are also some start-up companies that make smartwatches, as well. Pebble is one of these companies. In 2013, they made their first smartwatch. After making their Kickstarter fundraiser account, they sold over 1,000,000 smartwatches.
There are also other companies that make smartwatches, such as Garmin. With all the features of smartwatches, it is no wonder why just about everyone wants one. Before you go out and buy a smartwatch, it is a good idea to know what features you should be looking for. Keep reading here to find out what smartwatches can do for you. Once you know the features that you would want in your smartwatch, you can find a company that offers these features in their smartwatches.
Notifications
One of the things that many people like about smartwatches is that they can offer notifications for emails, messages, and phone calls. You might be used to getting notifications on your smartphone. However, if you don’t have your smartphone with you at all times, you might be late responding to work emails because you didn’t see them in time. There are some smartwatches that let you set up notifications on the watch when you get emails. You can also get notifications for phone calls or messages that are coming in. This can allow you to see who is calling or messaging, so you know whether you need to respond right away or not. Another notification that might help the elderly is the fall notification. The new Apple Watch has one of these sensors. If someone falls when they have the watch on, it senses movement. If there aren’t movements, notifications are sent out. If there isn’t a response to these notifications in a set amount of time, the authorities will be alerted and come to where you are.
Apps
There are also many smartwatches that have apps or access to app data. For instance, with the Fitbit Versa 2, you can track fasting through at app. You can also track the weather. Some Fitbit users can access Pandora and other music apps through their watch, as well. If you use many apps through your smartphone, you may want to get one of the smartwatches that allow you to access those apps.
Managing Media
Another great thing about smartwatches is that you can manage media. Maybe you have a favorite playlist on your phone. With some watches, specifically the Apple smartwatch, you can play music through your smartwatch. You can change the track on your playlist and even adjust the volume from your smartwatch. There are some other smartwatches that allow you to do this, as well.
Responding to Messages
Have you gotten messages on your cellphone before, but didn’t know about them until hours later, because you didn’t have your phone near you? This happens to a lot of people. However, if you get a smartwatch, like the Fitbit Versa 2, you can respond to text messages directly from your watch. If you have message notifications on for your smartwatch, when messages are sent to you, they will come through on your watch. You can read the message. If you want to respond right away, you can click on the message from your watch. Then, you can speak a message into your watch. The message can then be sent to that person.
Tracking Fitness
Many people get smartwatches because of their fitness tracking capabilities. Whether you are a real athlete or you just want to get a bit more in shape, smartwatches can help you to do that. There are so many smartwatches that allow you to track your steps, calories burnt, and heart rate. With some of these smartwatches, you can even track runs and various other types of exercises. Depending on the smartwatch that you get, you may even be able to set it up, so exercises are tracked automatically after you have been doing them for a certain length of time.
GPS Tracking
You can get a smartwatch that will track your location, too. This can be helpful for various reasons. For one thing, if you have the fall alerts, the watch can tell the authorities where you are. The GPS tracking can also show exactly where you went for walks or runs. It can show where you have been. This can be great especially if you like to track hikes that you go on.
Great Battery Life
With as advanced as technology has become, smartwatches are at the top of the ladder. There are some smartwatches that can go a week or longer without needing to be charged. This will depend on the brand and type of smartwatch you get. However, the average battery life for most smartwatches is around 3 days.
Different Brands of Smartwatches
There are many different brands of smartwatches. Each brand will have its own features. However, many of these brands share the same features, as well. Some of the brands are used for general wear and other brands are designed more for business-people. Depending on what you are looking for and how you want to use the watch, one brand may be better for you than another brand. With this being said, some of the most popular smartwatch brands that you may want to check into include the following:
- OS Smartwatches - These are created and sold by various vendors. They run off from the Google Wear OS operating system.
- Apple Smartwatches - These smartwatches are created and sold by Apple. They are often purchased through third-party applications and websites, as well.
- Tizen Smartwatches - These are run on a proprietary operating system. They are created by Samsung.
- Fitbit Smartwatches - These are created by Fitbit and sold on various platforms. They are primarily used for their step counter, calorie counter, water tracker, exercise tracker, and sleep tracker.
These are just some of the smartwatch brands. However, now that you have a better idea of what smartwatch brands are out there, you may want to know a bit more about the types of smartwatches that you can get.
Different Types of Smartwatches
Before you can pick out a specific brand of smartwatch, it is a good idea to know what type of watch you would like to have. There are many great options. Some of the specialized smartwatches that you may want to get include the following:
- Diving Smartwatches - If you are a diver, there are smartwatches that are specifically designed for diving. The Sunnto DX and Garmin Descent Mk1 are both great options. These smartwatches offer temperature, time-remaining, depth, and other indicators for divers.
- Hiking Smartwatches - If you are a hiker, there are smartwatches specifically made for hiking. They feature basic vitals, GPS tracking, weather forecasting, navigation, steps, and much more. These are designed to be durable. They can hold up against water, dust, bumps, and more. Some of the best hiking smartwatches include the TomTom Adventurer, Sunnto 9 Baro, and Garmin Fenix 5 Plus.
- Flying Smartwatches - If you are a pilot or flyer, there are smartwatches designed for this, as well. One of the best options is the Garmin D2 Delta PX. It offers a logbook, GPS moving map, NEXRAD weather, and pulse ox.
- General Fitness Smartwatches - If you are just looking for a general fitness smartwatch, there are many great options for this, as well. Garmin, Fitbit, Samsung, and many other companies make these smartwatches.
These are some of the types of smartwatches that you may want to look into getting. Depending on your reasons for wanting a smartwatch, you can start narrowing in on which smartwatch you would like to get.
Conclusion
You may have been thinking about getting a smartwatch. With a quick internet search, it can be quite overwhelming with all the different types of smartwatches available. They all do so much and there are so many different brands. However, now that you have an idea of what smartwatches do, the brands available, and the types of smartwatches available, you can make a better, easier decision on which one to get.