It was time for me to finally get a watch.
Throughout my life, I’ve never worn a watch. I’ve usually had a wall clock that I could easily refer to, or could simply pull out my phone to glance at the time. While a smart watch always sounded like a nice gadget to have, especially for tracking exercise data and being able to have tools right on my wrist at all times, it seemed like overkill when I always had my phone on me.
Then I went to work at a secure facility where, for privacy and security purposes, personal cell phones are prohibited. At times I am in a location where there are no wall clocks, so I found myself frequently asking others what time it was.
I finally had enough and decided to invest in a smart watch: the third-generation Apple Watch SE. I’ve had the wearable device for a week now and I’m still getting used to it, but here are my first impressions of being a new Apple Watch user.
I went for the cheapest Apple Watch SE model, which cost $249. That will get you a 40-millimeter (~1.5 inch) device that has a 324×394 pixel OLED “Always-On Retina” display. Obviously, the watch can do way more than just tell time. It has all kinds of sensors: an optical heart sensor, temperature sensor, compass, altimeter, accelerometer, gyroscope and a light sensor. All of those sensors feed their data to an Apple S10 “systems in a package” chip based on the Apple Silicon ARM architecture. Specifically, the S10 is a scaled down version of the A16 Bionic chip found in many iPhones and the 11th-generation iPad. That chip serves as much of the third-generation Watch SE’s guts and includes the 64 GB of storage it comes with. (Crazy to think the watch alone has as much storage capacity as my old second-generation iPhone SE, and half the storage capacity of my iPhone 16.) The Watch SE’s internal lithium-ion battery can last up to 18 hours on a single charge with normal use, or up to 32 hours when used in low power mode. Apple Watch charges wirelessly using an included charging pad that magnetically connects to the watch’s base. The model I bought only has GPS, but Apple does offer a cellular model that can be used as a more standalone device that doesn’t require a paired iPhone.
Apple offers the third-generation Watch SE with a variety of wristband options. The one I opted for was the “Pride 2026 sport loop” textile band. It easily secures to the watch, and is easy to put on, adjust and take off. The Pride 2026 band also looks nice with its rainbow gradient, which also shows my support for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Being a part of the Apple ecosystem, the Watch SE seamlessly connected to my iPhone 16 without any issues. Pairing is quick and easy, pretty much automated as you just simply aim your iPhone’s camera to a pattern displayed on the watch and it does the rest. The watch runs watchOS, a specialized version of iOS that is in turn a scaled-down mobile version of macOS. Crazy to think I have a watch that runs a Unix-like operating system right on my wrist. Equally crazy is realizing that on my wrist is a computer that is thousands of times more powerful than the computer I’m typing this on (a 1988 Macintosh SE “SuperSE” with a Motorola 68030 processor and 16 MB of memory) yet is roughly the same physical size as this computer’s Motorola 68030 processor.
Most settings for the Apple Watch, such as the design of the watch face, installed apps, and more, are controlled through the Watch app on the paired iPhone.
But what can the Apple Watch do? A lot.
At work, without my iPhone anywhere around, the features are limited but still nice to have. In addition to telling me the time and having related features like alarms and stopwatches, it can remind you of upcoming events and appointments on your iCloud-synchronized calendar. The watch also serves as a pedometer, tracking your every step and telling you approximately how many calories you’ve burned in a day. Using the heart rate monitor, I can measure and track my heart rate throughout the day. It also has a compass and can measure the sound levels of your environment. You can log your emotions in the “Mindfulness” app, and the watch also has a handy basic calculator that is always with you. (The calculator gets a lot of use from someone like myself who struggles with math.)
When I leave work for the day, the watch automatically synchronizes with the paired iPhone 16 when I get in my car. All the exercise, heart rate, mindfulness and other data collected seamlessly carries over to your iPhone. With the iPhone, you can then get even more statistics such as how many steps you’ve walked in a week or month, track your emotions that were logged throughout the day, average sound levels and much more.
The iPhone also unlocks many other functions of the Apple Watch. You can use the watch to control your Apple Music playlist, answer or make phone calls, ask Siri a question, or read text messages and even emails. Right from the watch you can check the weather conditions, look at your calendar or reminders lists, check notes and more. The Shazam app will identify songs playing in the background and allow me to easily add them to my Apple Music library, which is a nice and useful feature. If you opt for the cellular model of an Apple Watch, all of these functions are always available.
There are likely tons of others apps designed specifically for the Apple Watch, but I haven’t explored them much. So far my primary uses of the Apple Watch include the time features (telling time, setting alarms, etc.) and health functions, such as counting my steps throughout the day, seeing how many calories I burn throughout the day, and measuring my heart rate.
Other, more expensive Apple Watch models offer even more functionality with more sensors.
The flagship Watch 11 model, which starts at $399 retail, features the same S10 chip as the third-generation SE. However, it is offered in more colors, has larger display options and features additional biosensors that can detect hypertension, take an electrocardiogram right from your wrist, and measure your blood-oxygen saturation level. While all Apple Watch models are suitable for submersion down to 50 meters (164 feet), the Watch 11 has a depth gauge that works down to 6 meters (19.7 feet). The Watch 11 has better battery life, offering up to 24 hours of use on a single charge and 38 hours on the low-power mode.
The high-end Ultra 3 starts at $799 retail, made of titanium as opposed to aluminum, and has the biggest display at 49 mm (1.93 in). It has many of the same features found on the other two models, but with even under-water performance and battery life. The Ultra 3 is suitable for submersion in water as deep as 100 meters (328 feet) and its depth gauge works down to 40 meters (131 feet), making it a must-have for scuba divers. The Ultra 3 battery is rated to last 42 hours on a single charge or 72 hours in low-power mode. It also features satellite communication, something the other two models lack.
What are my opinions about the Apple Watch?
It’s a great tool to have, and not just for being able to tell the time. There are so many functions that I always have with me right on my wrist, from a calculator to a calendar. It can tell me statistics about my health, from heart rate to the calories I’ve burned in a day. I’ve found myself utilizing the Shazam app often instead of trying to remember lyrics that may or may not return any useful results later.
While I have many positive thoughts about the third-generation Apple Watch SE, I do have some qualms. The battery life isn’t amazing enough that you can wear it while sleeping, which negates the sleep functionality that it offers (such as sleep quality tracking and sleep apnea notifications). And because Apple no longer packs in chargers with their devices, I’ve been having to share a single USB-C charging power adapter between my iPhone and the Apple Watch. However, other than that, things have mostly been good so far.
It will be interesting to see what functionality and apps I discover as I continue to wear and use my Apple Watch. Perhaps in the future I can write a follow-up to see how the experience has gone.
This is part one of two Apple products I recently purchased, not including the iPhone 16 I bought earlier this year, coincidentally on the company’s 50th anniversary. Check back soon for part two about a new Apple computer I got that has been taking the computer industry by storm. (While this article was originally written using Microsoft Word 4.0 on the 1988 Macintosh “SuperSE,” the final editing and graphics were prepared using said computer.)