I used Apple's fitness app for a week and it's convinced me to get an Apple Watch — here's why

Opinion
By published

I'll have to watch my wallet

iOS 16 Fitness app on an iPhone 12
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

I have always avoided using an Apple Watch because they just felt excessive to me. However, my mind has recently been changed thanks to a need to keep my steps up.

Over the last week I have been looking after some friend's dogs and, due to time constraints, haven't been able to go to the gym. As such, I've been using Apple's fitness app to help up my steps over the day. In doing so, I've finally been convinced that I need to get an Apple Watch to help my fitness journey.

Apple Watch activity app

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

The Apple Watch offers the more accurate stepcount

One of my goals over the last few weeks has been to increase the amount I've been walking to help make up for working a desk job. As such, I set myself the goal of making it to ten thousand steps a day. For the most part, the fitness app has helped with that massively because of how easy it is to set up and read. However, there are some limitations with it that I had to address.

My main issue is that I'm never a hundred percent sure how accurate it is when it comes to counting steps. For reference, the way that an iPhone measures steps is by using its built-in accelerometer to measure motion and speed. However, this can be affected by how the phone is carried, for instance, if it's in a bag or pocket, meaning that it's never 100% accurate.

This is less of an issue with an Apple Watch, as it uses its accelerometer and gyroscope to measure your arm movement. This means of measuring is considered to be more accurate when tracking steps, which, in turn, makes reaching my goal easier. However, I can't ignore the extra rings completely, especially as they were the deciding factor for me.

A photo of a running watch and phone showing calories burned

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

The Apple Watches rings are the clincher

The Apple Watch's extra rings are really the thing that has convinced me, because they offer much more detailed information than just steps. The Fitness app on the iPhone is fine for the more basic stuff, but it doesn't have a means to measure your exertion.

However, because the Apple Watch has a heart rate monitor, it can track how hard you're working; the green ring (also known as the exercise ring) only counts activity over a brisk walk. There's also something to be said for having something track my heartbeat, something that is a concern as I get older.

Also — and this is a bit more based on walking two dogs that have to stay on the lead — it would be nice to be able to check incoming WhatsApp messages without having to juggle two leashes and a phone.

Overall, this has been eye-opening for me, although I have no idea which watch I am actually going to buy. If you have an Apple Watch, which would you recommend? And what's your favorite feature? Let me know in the comments!

More from Tom's Guide

Josh Render
Josh Render
Staff Writer

Josh is a staff writer for Tom's Guide and is based in the UK. He has worked for several publications but now works primarily on mobile phones. Outside of phones, he has a passion for video games, novels, and Warhammer. 

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.