Not quite two weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to not only get a nice tax return, but also buy myself a new 40mm Apple Watch SE second generation from the fine folks at my local Apple Store.
The biggest reasoning for me getting a new Apple Watch was because my previous one, the 40mm Apple Watch Series 5, was simply getting too old and outdated. Not only could it no longer get the newest versions of watchOS, but the battery life was not lasting long on it either.
That is to be expected for a smartwatch that was originally released in fall 2019.
As for why I chose to get the Apple Watch SE 2 instead of the Apple Watch Series 10 was actually quite easy for me to decide.
For starters, I’m not a big fitness and health person, therefore, those functions of it are not as big of a deal for me. The second reason is that the price for the Series 10 is too much for me. With the Apple Watch SE 2 being at just $250 and is specifically an Apple Watch intended for baseline basic users like me is exactly what I need.
I did buy the 40mm version because I do not need a larger screen and I can still use my Apple Watch bands I was using with my Series 5.
As for the overall functionality of the Apple Watch SE 2, I will say that I am pleased with it. While the design has not changed much on it compared to the Series 5, I do like having the improved battery life, as well as getting access again to the newest versions of watchOS.
I discovered in the past week that my Apple Watch now gets support for Live Activities, which comes in handy when I am working and the CARROT Weather Live Activity starts working.
My other uses of the Apple Watch include receiving and sending text messages, tracking packages from the Parcel app, and using Apple Pay when making purchases in stores. Like I said, I am a very basic user of the Apple Watch.
I’ve also recently discovered this week that I can not only access my currently playing music on Apple Music or Apple Music Classical (which I already knew before), but also gives me easy access to Apple Books for any of the audiobooks I have purchased previously.
The only thing I can think of where the Apple Watch still gets wrong is when sending text messages. There are a lot of times where the transcription Siri comes up with according to what I said is some of the most inaccurate wording I have ever seen. In fact, there are many times where it doesn’t even come close to what I am saying.
And that right there is why I’m giving the Apple Watch SE 2 a 3/5-star rating.
It’s a good baseline Apple Watch, but either through sort of software update or other improvement, Apple has got to fix the voice transcription of the Apple Watch and Siri. For an Apple product of this kind, I expect more and I think many Apple customers that are buying these products to make their lives better and easier expect it too.
Rating: 3/5 stars
