The Apple Watch Series 7 is a little eye-catcher with its new design. And can convince in the test almost all along the line. Nevertheless, there is no unreserved purchase recommendation. The reason is likely to please Apple rather than worry.
It’s been eight years since Apple first let us glimpse the Apple Watch. Since then, the watch has almost single-handedly brought the smartwatch into the mainstream, but has hardly changed itself. With the new one The company is only daring a very careful redesign for the second time. We tested whether this is convincing in everyday life.
The new look is not particularly eye-catching. The differences lie in the details: Apple has let the display grow, made its edges considerably narrower, and the effect is reinforced by the even more rounded corners of the case. That the case has actually grown by a millimeter on both models – from 40 to 41 mm and from 44 to 45 mm – I forget after a few hours of wearing it. Only when I put my old Series 5 on for a comparison does it hit me out of nowhere: The edges of my old watch suddenly seem almost huge. Despite the case that is almost the same size, I have the feeling that I have switched from a small to a large model. But only in a direct comparison.
New and in color
The fact that the watch is still an immediate eye-catcher is due to the new colors. After Apple relied on classic watch tones such as gold and black for years, the red and blue were the first to present really colorful case colors last year. And seems to have found a taste for it. Not only is there a new, very chic shade of green, with the exception of the red model, all other colors have also been changed more significantly than was the case with its predecessors.
The blue now shines even brighter, instead of clear silver or gold, the aluminum model has a new tone of starlight, a silver with a slight gold sheen. My test device at midnight, on the other hand, is the blackest Apple Watch that has ever existed. The new color is significantly darker than the previous space gray. Only when I look closely can I see in the right lighting that what is supposed to be black is actually a very, very dark shade of blue. A very nice effect.
That makes the choice of the appropriate tape surprisingly difficult. Despite the new case, all older bracelets from the predecessor still fit the corresponding case size. When choosing the color of the midnight-colored test model, I suddenly have to consider the very dark case on the one hand and the blue cast on the other hand when I choose a different strap. Of course, this also applies to the other colors. If you have a lot of ribbons from the predecessors, you should consider the choice of color when buying.
A real bright spot
The display itself also makes me look more. There are two main reasons for this: With the new design, Apple has removed almost 20 percent more screen space from the case, and the screen is now considerably brighter than the previous model. Both in normal operation and when the watch changes to always-on mode. The latter in particular is extremely useful: You can now read the clock even better without lifting your arm and the display “wake up”. Especially with classic watch faces, the can still be read well even when it is almost completely turned away from the eyes.
The increased image area of the watch itself also has advantages, but they are not as large as with the first display enlargement on the Apple Watch Series 4. This is how the new watchface allows “Modular Duo” For the first time, to accommodate two full complications in the infograph, but you lose space for four smaller complications. The fact that text content such as SMS now show a few lines more font is also nice, but it is not a revolution. And looking at photos is – unlike Apple’s advertised – still not that much fun on the larger display. After all, with its larger screen, the iPhone is rarely far away.
One of the most useful innovations is unfortunately only of limited use in Germany: Apple has given the Series 7 a full keyboard as the first Apple Watch. Once activated, it can be used as an option in all text input fields, in addition to scribbling in or the dictation function. Instead of laboriously typing everything, Siri tries to make suitable suggestions based on the context and the input, which also worked well in the test. Unfortunately, there’s a big catch: the keyboard is only available for a few languages, including English and Simplified Chinese, because of the suggestions. Everyone else can turn on the keyboard with the language settings, because it wants to correct all entries in the set language, but that still makes very little sense. The good news: Because this is a pure software feature, Apple can submit the German keyboard at any time. Unfortunately, it is currently still open when that will happen.
Quick charger with a short breath
While the real advantages of the new display are limited, it has a very clear disadvantage: the battery life drops noticeably. As with its predecessors, Apple promises a full day of use. But while this has always been generously exceeded in the past, it is unfortunately not the case with the Series 7 to the same extent. If the always-on display is switched on, a full second day of use is out of the question, and even without exercise, the watch can no longer be half charged in the evening. Interestingly, that doesn’t seem to be due to the brighter always-on mode: While my more than a year old Series 5 with a dark display almost always manages a second day, the Series 7 itself is usually in the early evening of the second day in this mode Blow out.
The rather short runtime can be overcome by another innovation: As the first Apple Watch, the Series 7 can be charged faster. And it’s really noticeable: If I hang the watch on the cable for a quarter of an hour, the battery indicator always goes up by 30 to 40 percent at the end – i.e. at least half a day of use. This is impressive.
Modern cabling
However, this does not work with every power supply unit: The quick charge function only works with the new charging cable that is included with the watch. And even then, unfortunately, only with the new watch: My older watch continues to charge at the normal speed on the new cable, only 15 to 20 percent can be reached in a quarter of an hour.
Unfortunately, the cable harbors another problem: Instead of the USB-2 connector that was previously used on the watch, it now uses the modern USB-C standard. However, Apple does not include a corresponding power supply unit. So if you don’t have one, you have to buy it. Or try something else: With me, the cable could also be used on the USB-C socket of a notebook and still charge at turbo speed. In the future, doing without USB-2 will be an advantage anyway: More and more devices are relying on USB-C, in the next few years the USB-2 power supply units are likely to become a rarity. But you should still be aware of the change.
New on the outside, familiar on the inside
Little has happened inside the watch. The new S7 chip is largely the same as that of the predecessor model, the innovations primarily serve to fuel the larger display. That’s okay: Even the Series 5 never felt slow, processor-intensive apps such as games or image processing will hardly play a role, unlike on the iPhone. A jump in speed would not bring the watch any real advantage with the exception of possible battery improvements. Unlike the latest iPhones, the Apple Watch still does not support the modern 5G cellular standard. That is forgivable, because the fast internet connection on the watch hardly brings any advantage.
It is rather a shame that nothing has changed with the sensors compared to the Apple Watch Series 6. Of course, the new model offers all the health functions introduced so far, such as the measurement of blood oxygen saturation introduced last year, and older functions such as warnings in the event of irregular heartbeat or fall detection are also on board. New improvements such as the automatic recognition of cycling work extremely reliably and are very welcome, but like the tracking of Pilates and Tai-Chi, they are also available on the older models via software updates. They are not suitable as a reason to buy.
Only athletes who demand more from their watch get it: Thanks to the new design and the materials used, the more robust than ever, promises Apple. The glass is more break-proof, the case better protected from scratches. In fact, the watch looks like new even after two weeks of wearing it in the woods, on the playground, and during sports. In addition, the Series 7 is the first watch to be protected from dust according to iP6X.
Conclusion: Apple in competition with itself
The new is without a doubt the best Apple Watch yet. The larger display is extremely bright, the new design looks chic and the quick charge function makes it easier to just fill up the watch briefly. That even outweighs the disadvantage that it really has to be connected to the electricity every day. As far as the combination of sports tracking, usability and smartwatch functions is concerned, Apple’s watch has so far been without any real competitors.
And that is actually their biggest problem – if you want to call it that: The old Apple Watches are too good to give an unreserved purchase recommendation. The differences between the Series 7 and its predecessors are there, but actually not so great that they justify a switch. For anyone with an Apple Watch 5 or younger, there is very little incentive to resort to the new model. Even the Apple Watch 4 should still be sufficient for most, but with the now larger always-on display, the revised heart rate monitor with blood saturation measurement and the improved altimeter, enough innovations have come together over the years to justify the upgrade.
But if you buy your first smartwatch or own an older Apple Watch, you don’t have to think twice: The Apple Watch Series 7 is clearly the best smartwatch on the market. There are alternatives for athletes, such as the Polar Grit X Pro or the Garmin Fenix 6. Both are inferior to Apple when it comes to smartwatch functions. The best smartwatch for Android users is the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4.
Source From: Stern
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
