Jared Sinclair on Apple Watch Series 3

Jared Sinclair:

I was born in 1981, so I’ve got one foot on either side of the tech revolutions of the ’90s and ’00s. As far as I can recall, this is the first time since I first got a cellphone (let alone a smartphone) that I am deliberately leaving the house without any device in my pocket. It’s a refreshing feeling. I took a four-mile walk for exercise, drove an hour to my parents’ and back to pick up the kid, and picked up my wife from the airport. Apple Watch with cellular supports a critical slice of the features a smartphone provides, which means I get to enjoy best of both the old and new worlds: I am free from the temptation to waste quiet moments on social media and soul-crushing national news, but not at the expense of missing out on texts and phone calls from friends and family, or getting directions home, or triaging the occasional urgent email. This newfound flexibility is, simply put, mind-blowing.

I don’t mind or resent always having my phone with me. But I know several people who do. I really do feel like the addition of cellular networking — and the seamless way Apple has made it work — is going to be a game-changer for many people.

★ Tuesday, 26 September 2017