I Don't Think Anyone is Great

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: The Verge Cast episode centers on first impressions of the Apple Watch after about 10 days of use, contrasting its promise with its current limitations. The hosts debate whether to review the watch itself or the broader smartwatch category, covering notifications, fitness tracking, apps, battery life, pricing, usability, and the burden of learning a new interface. They also briefly discuss the new MacBook, Android Wear, Google services on iOS, and sponsor reads.

Main Topics: Apple Watch first impressions and everyday use (Priority: 5/5): The discussion opens with hands-on reactions to the Apple Watch, emphasizing how it behaves as a day-to-day wrist device for notifications, timekeeping, calendar access, and fitness rather than as a fully mature app platform. Reviewing the product vs. reviewing the category (Priority: 5/5): The hosts struggle with how to evaluate the Apple Watch without drifting into a review of smartwatches in general or of Apple's long-term potential roadmap. Notifications, customization, and discoverability (Priority: 5/5): A major theme is how the watch handles notifications, Force Touch interactions, VIP settings, and the learning curve required to understand what the device can do and where to find features. Fitness and health tracking (Priority: 4/5): They consider the watch's fitness and heart-rate capabilities as one of its strongest current use cases, especially for running without a phone, while noting the limitations around sleep tracking and setup complexity. Apps, speed, and unfinished software (Priority: 5/5): The conversation repeatedly returns to the slowness and incompleteness of third-party apps, with examples like Uber and the need for the watch to eventually move beyond mirrored phone control. Pricing, value, and buying advice (Priority: 4/5): The hosts debate whether most people should buy the watch at all, weighing the high cost of the stainless steel model against the more plausible Sport version and comparing it with fitbits and future iterations. Other device news and product comparisons (Priority: 3/5): They also touch on the new MacBook's design, battery life, keyboard, and USB-C/dongle concerns, plus Android Wear and Google Now on iOS as competing approaches to wearables.

Key Arguments: The Apple Watch is best understood as a smartwatch whose feature set is still limited and uneven, but it can already be very useful for notifications, scheduling, and fitness. Most reviewers ended up reviewing both the device and the entire smartwatch category because the market is still immature and the watch's role is not yet fully defined. Force Touch is powerful but highly undiscoverable; users only learn its meaning through accidental exploration or guidance. Fitness tracking may be one of the strongest reasons to own the watch, especially for running without carrying an iPhone. The app experience is currently too slow and shallow; third-party apps mostly prove concepts rather than deliver polished wrist-native actions. The watch's value depends heavily on which model you buy; the cheaper Sport model seems much easier to justify than the expensive stainless steel version. Apple likely plans major software and app-platform changes later, so current reviews may age quickly as the product matures. The new MacBook is visually impressive but may not be compelling for most buyers yet because of dongles, battery tradeoffs, and speed concerns.

Data Points: Watch review length: about 7,000 words - One host describes the written Apple Watch review as having ballooned to 7,000 words before edits. Watch testing period: about 10 days - The hosts note they had the Apple Watch for roughly 10 days before reviewing it. Apple Watch stainless steel price: $650-$700 - They repeatedly cite the high price of the stainless steel model as a major issue, especially versus the Sport version. Apple Watch Sport price: about $350-$400 - They discuss the cheaper Sport model as the more realistic purchase for many people. Battery drop example: 100% to 85% quickly - One host says the watch falls from full battery to 85% relatively fast, with the last 15% lasting much longer. Battery capacity for music on watch: about 4 GB - When discussing offline music for workouts, they mention the watch has a roughly 4 GB storage limit. Raffle prize in sponsor read: $100 Amazon gift card - Listeners are told that survey participants are entered into a monthly raffle for a $100 Amazon gift card. Lynda.com catalog: over 3,000 courses - The Lynda.com ad read says the platform offers more than 3,000 on-demand video courses. Tripcase trip volume: over 30 million trips - The TripCase sponsor segment says it helped people manage over 30 million trips last year. YouTube subscribers: 600,000+ - In the sign-off, they note The Verge's YouTube channel has broken 600,000 subscribers.

Pivotal Quotes: "I think it's actually a really good fitness device. I think it has this huge potential to be that and that is a gadget, but I think has this potential just to kind of fade to the background and that's a really good thing." — Joanna Stern: Her defense of the Apple Watch as a fitness and background utility rather than a flashy novelty. "It is the most Samsung Apple product ever. It does everything." — Dieter Bohn: Used to describe the watch as sprawling, feature-rich, and somewhat overloaded. "I would take a smartwatch that was basically an analog watch with a display behind the hands and all it did was light up and show me Google Now cards." — Dieter Bohn: A hypothetical alternative that captures his preference for simpler, context-aware wearable design.

Implications: The episode suggests early Apple Watch buyers were paying for potential as much as present utility. For users, the device may be worthwhile mainly for fitness and notifications; for the industry, it points to a wearable market that still needs clearer apps, simpler onboarding, and better value.