Smart watches?

[Ron Selzer]

I have an Apple phone and now considering an Apple Watch.
Is there one that will monitor my blood sugar?
See adds all the time for watches that monitor blood sugar and then have no specifics about it, all so far seem to be adds from China.
Thanks
Ron

[Jim Becker]

I forgot to mention that the watch app I use the most is...the timer...when cooking. My induction range oven also speaks to it...and the washer and dryer and the refrigerator and the alarm and the doorbell and, and, and... LOL My wrist gets a workout.

[Jim Becker]

I have an Apple phone and now considering an Apple Watch.
Is there one that will monitor my blood sugar?
See adds all the time for watches that monitor blood sugar and then have no specifics about it, all so far seem to be adds from China.
Thanks
Ron

Ron, at the present time, the Apple Watch and other devices, such as Garman, don't have the ability to directly do glucose monitoring, but from what I can tell, they may be able to be used to monitor a device that does.

[Bruce Page]

My wife and I try to go to the gym twice a week. Along with the Apple watch keeping track of the different exercises I do, I listen to music or podcasts through it. The Apple watch paired with bluetooth headphones or buds means that I can leave my heavy phone in the locker.

[Bill Dufour]

My 85 year old friend git an apple watch. It is somewhat useful to him and... It has a function that if he falls, or drops the watch off the dresser, the watch will ask if he is okay. If no response it starts calling/emailing/texting down a list of contacts. I think that is all free on wifi/bluetooth. Not sure if it works outside the wifi range or not.
Bill D

[Tony Joyce]

I have an Apple phone and now considering an Apple Watch.
Is there one that will monitor my blood sugar?
See adds all the time for watches that monitor blood sugar and then have no specifics about it, all so far seem to be adds from China.
Thanks
Ron

This was my initial reason for looking at one also. My understanding is this is still in development stages. No time frame given yet.
I went ahead and got a Series 9 and am enjoying it for walking(steps,accumulated workout. etc.) and heart rate. Also sleep track.
I love it so far.

[Alan Lightstone]

My wife and I have Apple watches. She wears hers all the time. I only wear mine when I remember before taking a walk.

I initially bought mine as I was travelling up on a plane during Covid for a cardiac cath. I liked that it had pulse oximetry and HR monitoring. Not sure how much I really trust the readings it gives for pulse oximetry, as I'm used to using professional equipment for that.

That being said, on an every day basis I wear a normal, not smart watch and far prefer that. I much rather look at my wrist for the time than my phone.

As far as glucose readings, the watches/phone do work for that if you are wearing a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) such as Dexcom, Freestyle Libre, etc...). But that's an expensive, invasive device. The gold standard for now, but clearly work needs to be done on them. A fully implanted intravenous, not subcutaneous monitoring device that reports in real-time, not 30 minutes delayed is what is truly needed. And having this report to your smart watch is easy, though the FDA would have to clear all of this. I'm pretty skeptical about a device with no internal tube/needle into your body that can read continuous glucose.

Billions are being put into this research. Hopefully with better devices soon.

[Tom M King]

Some models require a dedicated cell service contract if you want to make calls and texting with it when not close to your phone. Ones without its own service can do calls and texts but the phone needs to be somewhere close.

[Jim Becker]

Some models require a dedicated cell service contract if you want to make calls and texting with it when not close to your phone. Ones without its own service can do calls and texts but the phone needs to be somewhere close.

All of them that can make/receive calls independently require a device subscription for wireless service. I can't speak for non-Apple, but for Apple Watch, the cellular capable have a lower cost "number" subscription from the carrier, but folks calling you just call your regular cell number. They are tied together in the system so that calls to your normal mobile number ring on both devices even when your phone is "somewhere else". This is a handy feature for folks who are involved in physical activities like running and other sports so they have the safety of connectivity without having to carry the larger device with them. There is also an alternative configuration that can be used with kids so a parent can communicate via the kid's watch without the kid having to have or "own" a phone.

[Ernie Hobbs]

I've been using a Apple series 6 for about 3 years. I resisted getting one for a long time, but now it is something I wouldn't want to be without. I have other watches, but never think about wearing them. I'll probably just give them away to my son.

I mainly use my watch to track steps/mileage for walking, which I do every day. It's also nice to have the weather on the face so I can glance down to see the forecast for the day. In addition, I use it for notifications from my phone to see whether it important enough to pull my phone out of my pocket. I don't really use it to answer calls, since my phone never far away.

I will probably upgrade to a newer version sometime this year. I wear it all the time, and I've scratched the face a few times from mishaps or carelessness in the shop, so when I have to wear a suit for work, sometimes I think a newer watch would look better. But not a big deal.

[Ernie Hobbs]

Any recommendations?

You might want to check with your insurance company. I got my watch as a health benefit through United Healthcare- they sent me the watch and I "paid it back" by tracking my steps and reaching milestones". I lost a lot of weight that year, so actually I did it twice -so I gave one to my wife, too.

[Pat Germain]

Very interesting information here.

I would like to get a smart watch, but they aren't permitted where I work which would make it pretty much useless. It took six months for my coworker to get approval to wear his hearing aids in the office because they are Bluetooth capable and that's not allowed either. There's a guy down the hall who has cochlear implants. I can't imagine the hell he must have gone through to get permission to bring his head into the building.

[Michael Weber]

Very interesting information here.

I would like to get a smart watch, but they aren't permitted where I work which would make it pretty much useless. It took six months for my coworker to get approval to wear his hearing aids in the office because they are Bluetooth capable and that's not allowed either. There's a guy down the hall who has cochlear implants. I can't imagine the hell he must have gone through to get permission to bring his head into the building.

Dang, I thought about asking where you worked but decided you might have to kill me if you told me.

[Brian Elfert]

A great feature of the Apple Watch is the fall detection. If you fall and don't get up quickly it will call 911 or other emergency contact. I know an elderly person who fell outside and was seriously hurt who was saved by this. They couldn't get up and probably would not have been able to call on a cell phone. I am not sure if Android powered watches have this. A Life Alert type device would also do this, but there is a monthly cost for the monitoring.

[John M Wilson]

A great feature of the Apple Watch is the fall detection. I am not sure if Android powered watches have this.

Yes, my Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 has this feature. I'm not sure if all android watches do.

As I mentioned in my previous post, my neighbor's experience was the primary reason I got a smart watch, but I have found that it does many other very convenient things.

Compared to some of the other things I "waste" my money on (cough, cough, woodworking tools) it's a pretty small expense for the peace of mind it offers.