The Apple Watch flaw that Apple can't fix

The Apple Watch flaw that Apple can't fix

I don't own an Apple Watch (yet) and despite being surrounded in Apple gadgets am undecided, because a key aspect of this technologically elegant wrist-wear is a trap I would rather avoid.

Ironically, I stopped wearing a watch a couple of years ago, when I found myself removing my anniversary special Raymond Weil because the band would scratch against the case of a Macbook Pro when pounding the keys. It was relegated to the 'special occasions' drawer and I must say I prefer wearing it that way.

Apple could be a valid reason to revert to watch-wearing again, but this week I noticed the very reason that would stop me, which takes me back to laptops replacing diaries.

Remember the discomfort when laptops first appeared in meetings? When attendees tapping away during conversations were simply taking their notes & to-dos, or so they would claim, when the rest of us thought they were just doing emails. Enter the 'laptops down' command for the most important discussions which drove some back to pen & paper until saved by the wonder of the iPad. It related to the human question of 'are you listening or doing email'? To be human meant closing the laptop and being fully present, but taking notes in scribble-form on paper or iPad made you appear truly engaged.

So the flaw with the Apple Watch?

It's the 'will this take much longer?' moment.

The issue is, that as with the personal Internet Of Things which surround our person, an Apple Watch will dutifully alert you to all things alertful:

You have a new Linked In connection
BBC News: Australia Wins World Cup (oh erm)
Honey can you pick up some milk?
On a few occasions this week I first noticed it: conversation in full flight, not a meeting as such but a good conversation and there it is, the glance at the wrist. "Oh sorry to hold you up", "No no it was just my watch alerting me"

In recent history of watch-wearing which predates all of us, a glance at the wrist meant "Oh is that the time". Now we have to content with watches which demand attention, not because of an alarm (who ever used watch alarms anyway?) but because of the slightest trivia.

It effectively brings the conversation to a halt, much as a 'Squirrel' moment in "Up".

So that alone I have to rethink. It's a show-stopper for me because we have enough disruptors in our lives and the wrist should not be one of them. We are programmed to read the wrist-glance body language. Can Apple solve this one? I wonder what Allan Pease would say.