Apple Watch Epitomizes Poor Design
It seems that lately Apple has had considerable trouble proving that it is still a serious innovator in design. The public can only take so many years of minor product refreshes before acknowledging that the loss of Steve Jobs has taken its toll on Apple's vision for innovation. In my opinion, nothing shows Apple's recent struggle with innovative design more than the Apple Watch. Despite the resources that went into its development, the product falls short in what it offers especially considering what it has the potential to offer if it was designed right.
The most notable shortcoming with the Apple Watch is its reliance on an iPhone. Users must pair their watch with their smartphone in order to receive notifications or use Apple Maps. This means that they will already have their phone in their pocket at all times while wearing their watch. To me at least, it seems like the convenience of reading a text on your wrist and dictating a reply out loud with Siri is marginal when you can simply take your phone out of your pocket and do it manually and with privacy. Additionally, using Maps is a much better experience on the larger screen of the iPhone than it is on the tiny screen of the Watch. That being said, I do see the convenience of glancing at your wrist for directions while driving or biking instead of looking down at a GPS.
Using the Watch to tell time is also a redundant process. Users will presumably already have an iPhone in their pocket so they are already carrying a pocket watch at all times. Glancing at the Apple Watch saves a few seconds compared to taking an iPhone out of a pocket, but I personally could not justify paying the large price tag of a Watch for such a minimal convenience.
To me, it seems like the Apple Watch was designed for everyone and, as a result, it’s ideal for no one. The people who I believe would most benefit from an Apple Watch in its current form are women. Women’s clothes are notorious for not having functional pockets, which is a large reason for the popularity of purses. For women who keep their phones in their purse, the Apple Watch offers a very convenient way to stay on top of notifications. However, the current design is fairly large so it looks masculine on smaller wristed women and the design gives off a geeky vibe instead of the high fashion vibe that some women might desire.
Despite these shortcomings, I believe that the Apple Watch has the potential to be a great product if its design is more carefully considered. First off, instead of designing for everyone, there should be two versions of the Watch designed for two core users: the person who cares about style and fashion, and the fitness enthusiast. Today most people wear watches as a fashionable accessory or status symbol and fewer people wear watches than ever before due to the adoption of smartphones (the 21st century pocket watch). In its current iteration, the industrial design is reminiscent of old wrist-calculators. In other words, it looks geeky and not like something one would see in Vogue or GQ. If Apple wants more than just the niche of techy people to adopt the device, they need to think about shifting to a design that is more timeless and fashionable, something that is probably circular. This will also help with the adoption by women, a large untapped consumer for the device.
The other user to design for is the fitness enthusiast. This version of the watch should be less expensive and more durable i.e. plastic and silicone instead of aluminum and gold. This watch should also have a larger internal hard drive to hold users’ workout playlists. Right now many fitness enthusiasts will wear a smart watch like the Fitbit to track physical activity in addition to strapping an iPod to their arm to listen to music. The Apple Watch has the potential to kill the Fitbit and its competition if it focuses on a fitness specific Apple Watch. To really differentiate itself from the competition, Apple would need to design a version of its earbuds that are wireless and connect to the Watch via BlueTooth. This would change the fitness industry by allowing people to, for the first time, workout without cumbersome wires or awkward iPod armbands. And if Apple can integrate this watch with user-friendly fitness tracking software, it would quickly take majority market share of the fitness wearable industry.
In its current form, the Apple Watch serves as an example of poor design and a lack of understanding of the market. Despite its shortcomings, with a more considered design direction, Apple once again has the potential to disrupt an industry and prove it is still a serious innovator of design.