Apple Watch Series 4 | Is it really a step forward?

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Apple released its new Watch Series 4 in September 2018 with new features and improved design. The new watch lineup has new sizes and a total of 4 variants.

• 40mm GPS only model
• 44mm GPS only model
• 40mm Cellular model
• 44mm Cellular model

The cellular version of the Watch starts at $499 for the smaller 40mm version and $529 for the bigger 44mm version while the GPS version starts at $399 for 40mm version and $429 for 44mm one.

Let’s take a look at the complete review of the Apple watch Series 4

What’s Good?

• Bigger Screen- The new generation watch has a 30% bigger display than the previous generation models with smaller bezels and more rounded corners.
• Slim and Light Weight- Compared to the previous gen model, the new watch is comparatively lighter and slimmer.
• Better Speaker- The speaker on the new watch is 50% louder and is now repositioned to the left side of the watch.
• ECG- With the ECG sensor embedded right in the digital crown, it can detect ECG and send that data to the health app in your device.

What's not so Good?

• Battery Life- Even tho there are a couple of improvements in the other departments, the battery life of the Watch is still around 1 day which is low compared to the other watches in the market.
• Price- The new Watch series 4 lineup starts at a whopping $399 and goes up to $529 for the most premium version
• Limited Watch Faces- There are only a limited number of customizable watch faces on the new Watch and Apple still doesn’t allow third-party watch faces
• No Always on Screen- While even the budget smartwatches have this feature, the new Apple Watches doesn’t.

Improved Design

Apple released its latest Series 4 watch with the all-new iPhone lineup for 2018. While the watch looked impressive on the screen during the event, in-hands it looks far more impressive. Apple actually shrunk down the bezels and made the display more circular, thus fitting the new larger display in same old size. This is a huge improvement over the previous generation smartwatches with chunky bezels.

With the new design, Apple managed to make the Series 4 watch only 10.7 mm thick over the previous gen model which was 11.4 mm. Also, the newer model is much lighter in weight at 36.7 grams only as compared to the Series 3 watch which was 52.8 grams in weight. This means that the new watch is much lighter and comfortable thus reducing the strain on your wrist. Also, the watch is available in 3 colors-Space Black, Silver, and Gold.

The new Apple Watch Series 4 comes in two different sized models, 40mm and 44mm compared to the previous 38mm and 42mm models. What’s impressive is the fact that old watch wristbands are compatible with the newer models too.

The frame of the watch is made out of aluminum while the back of the watch is made out of ceramic material combined with sapphire glass. On the right side, there is a digital crown to navigate through the watch functions along with a button which is more recessed with the body now. The crown makes a little noise while rotating and provides haptic feedback too which feels really impressive. On the left is the speaker and at the bottom, there is a heart rate monitoring sensor. Over, the new Watch Series 4 is a huge step forward in terms of design. It also waterproof up to 50m underwater.

Stunning Display

The new display on the Apple Watch Series 4 is 30% bigger than the previous generation models. Apple manages to extend display closer to the edges rounding the corners. This new change design makes the previous gen models look cramped and outdated. Apple still using OLED displays which means deep black and vibrant colors.

Talking about the size, it sports a 1.78 inches AMOLED capacitive screen having a resolution of 448 x 368 pixels and pixel density of 326 pixels per inch. It is a 3D touch display which is protected by Ion-X strengthened glass.

Using the display under direct sunlight is pretty comfortable as it can reach a maximum brightness of 1000 nits. The viewing angles are great, although, the new watch still don’t have the Always-on-Display feature. There is a couple of new watch faces specially designed for the new screen and they look incredible. Although, Apple still doesn’t have a market to download the watch face. This means you will be limited to the given 25 watch faces which surely are customizable, but you will feel very limited soon.

Great Performance

Both the new Apple Watch Series 4 powered by the latest S4 chip which is a Dual-core processor. With this new chip, the performance feels pretty smooth overall. There is no issue while swiping through the UI and every animation feels smooth and responsive. The new Watch comes with 16 GB of onboard storage which mean you can store plenty of songs and stuff on the watch itself, however, there is no MicroSD card slot for memory expansion

New Software and Features

The new Apple Watch Series 4 runs on the latest WatchOS 5 right out of the box. This new version of the WatchOS comes with a couple of great features like automatic exercise tracking, workout updates etc.

Apple also improved the heart rate sensor which is now more accurate than ever. It also comes with a new Fall detection feature which can automatically detect when a person falls from a scooter, bike etc and automatically calls 911 for an emergency. It uses accelerometer and gyroscope together with smart algorithms to detect an actual fall from regular sitting down. Although you have to turn this feature on, however, if you set your age above 65, this feature will be turned On automatically.

One of the most impressive features of the is the ECG sensor which is embedded right into the digital crown. It will detect more detailed heart data when you place your finger on the digital crown and forward the data to the fitness app in your device in PDF form. The feature will be activated via a software update in the USA while the rest of the world will have to wait longer for FDA clearance.

The new watch also comes with a Walkie Talkie feature which allows you to send short voice messages to your friend and have one on one private conversation. While this feature is not really important, it is fun to use with friends.

Also, you don’t have say “Hey Siri” anymore, just raise the watch close to your face and say the command. Siri will automatically detect the command and perform the action. There are other minor improvements too like improved notifications, UV index and Air quality in weather notification etc.

Same old Battery Life

Well, the battery of the latest Apple Watch Series 4 is kind of a mixed bag. The official battery size isn’t revealed by the Apple yet but they said that the battery will last 18 hours. Using the GPS versions model with minimum brightness, connected to the phone lasted around more than a day while the cellular version lasted one single day.

With these results, both the watch requires charging at the end of the day which is pretty unimpressive as the latest smartwatches from Samsung and other brands have a battery life of at least two days on a single charge. Hence, in terms of battery, the new Watch Series 4 is similar to the previous gen model.

Verdict

The Apple Watch Series 4 is surely a considerable improvement over the previous generation Watch Series 3. It has a new improved display which looks more pleasing now because of the small bezels, the latest processor is also faster than before providing much smoother performance. There are a couple of health features like ECG, Fall Detection which is really unique and the latest WatchOS 5 has some pretty useful features too like automatic fitness tracking. Apple has finally recognized the need for fitness features and took a step forward with its latest Watch.

So the question is “Should you upgrade?” Well, if you own a 3rd gen Apple Watch, you better not as the new WatchOS 5 will be making its way to the previous models too adding up the new features. However, if you are attracted to the new display and ECG function (which will be activated later this year) and have no issue spending money for a new watch, then sure go for the new Apple Watch Series 4.  

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