Fall detection - Apple Watch. Any one has it?

[Gloria]

So my beloved 1st generation Apple Watch has bit the dust after I ran it across the door jam. Poor thing 😭. That means, I’m looking to get another Apple Watch. The 5th generation has some really intriguing features when comparing with my 1st gen, the most important of which is the fall detection. I ride at home, alone, so fall is always a concern. I’m careful when I ride, but hell, you never know.

Anyone has 5th gen apple watch? How do you like it? Or if you have gen 4, did you ever use the fall detection? Did you like it? Did it do its job when needed, and vice versa?

[fordtraktor]

I have a 5th gen and got it for the fall protection. Thank goodness I haven’t needed to use it, but I love my watch. The weather functions are much better, which I really love as a boarding barn owner!

[GreyDes]

I have a 4 and can tell you from first-hand experience that the fall detection does work!

I feel more secure having that and also appreciate not having to carry my phone when I ride, since I can call from the watch if needed.

[Gloria]

@fordtraktor, Glad to hear that weather app is better. I’ve not used mine for a long time simply because it has not been up to par.

@GreyDes, I hope you didn’t get seriously hurt? That’s scary. A friend had a fall and so far she still has no recognition of what happened. She passed out on the concrete and was later discovered by some friends who happened to stop by. Very scary stuff. My husband is working out of state a lot, so if I do fall, it’s likely that nobody will find me for a while.

[lorilu]

I have it on my series 4. Yes, it sometimes ask if I have fallen when I havnt - happened today when I swatted a horse that nipped at me. But I ride alone the vast majority of the time, and live alone… AND, I jsut discovered that I can put my music on the watch, and blutooth to earphones… I’m working on my first freestyle…

[TheJenners]

Do you have to have an iPhone?? I need a new watch too, my Fitbit Alta HR got too sweaty or something this weekend and died. I was looking at Fitbit v Garmin because I am an Android phone user…

[Gloria]

@lorilu

I have it on my series 4. Yes, it sometimes ask if I have fallen when I havnt - happened today when I swatted a horse that nipped at me. But I ride alone the vast majority of the time, and live alone… AND, I jsut discovered that I can put my music on the watch, and blutooth to earphones… I’m working on my first freestyle…

Whoa how does that work? That’s a great idea. Even if I’m not working on free style (congratulation. Working on freestyle. Exciting), it’s still nice to have music - get that cadence and tempo right. Do you need to have your iPhone with you when you ride?

[farmergirl]

@TheJenners

Do you have to have an iPhone?? I need a new watch too, my Fitbit Alta HR got too sweaty or something this weekend and died. I was looking at Fitbit v Garmin because I am an Android phone user…

Some Garmins have incident detection which seems to be very similar. I’ve been debating buying one.

[TheJenners]

Oh hmmm that leans me in that direction. Plus that this is my third fitbit in five years :rolleyes:…

[Gloria]

@TheJenners, I’m quite certain that you need an iPhone to pair with an Apple Watch… I mean, you can probably use it as a pure watch without an iPhone, but that’ not why you get it.

[TheJenners]

Thank you @Gloria

[Fellbutbackup]

@TheJenners

Oh hmmm that leans me in that direction. Plus that this is my third fitbit in five years :rolleyes:…

Fitbits are so overpriced hardware wise

[stb]

I have a Gen 4 Apple Watch and I love it. I bought it for the fall detection technology. Fortunately I haven’t fallen with it but I did bang my hand really hard and the watch asked if I had fallen.

[wsmoak]

DH has an Apple Watch and I like that it will alert if he falls. Luckily we have not needed it!

I love my Fitbit though, it does a much better job of tracking sleep and calories. Re: the cost… you are not just paying for the device, you are paying for all the programmers who wrote the software that processes the data, who created the app or website where the data can be viewed, and the bandwidth and storage space for all of it flowing into servers.

For something I wear 24x7 and an app I use multiple times a day the $15/month is worth it to me, assuming it only lasts a year – I’m on my second, this one must be two years old now, so even cheaper per month if I spread it out.

[add_leg]

@Gloria

Whoa how does that work? That’s a great idea. Even if I’m not working on free style (congratulation. Working on freestyle. Exciting), it’s still nice to have music - get that cadence and tempo right. Do you need to have your iPhone with you when you ride?

I do keep my phone on me and you need to have it on you (or really close), but I use AirPods for music/podcasts and timers for conditioning work (I use an interval timer I set up beforehand and do trot/canter sets). I’ve also used a metronome app, but I usually get annoyed at how bad I am at it and turn it off. I like to ride to music when I’m schooling if I’m alone and I can change songs on my watch (or by tapping my airpod). I also bought mine for fall detection but knock on wood haven’t used that feature yet.

[Gloria]

So gen 4 has everything I really need, and want, but I can’t find any new anywhere. I can get gen 3, but not gen 4. How strange.

[Color_of_Light]

@add leg

I do keep my phone on me and you need to have it on you (or really close),

I have a Series 4 with GPS and cellular. It does not need to have my phone anywhere nearby for it to function. If you have a Series 4 that does not have GPS and cellular, you’ll need to have your phone nearby.

[Gloria]

@Color of Light

I have a Series 4 with GPS and cellular. It does not need to have my phone anywhere nearby for it to function. If you have a Series 4 that does not have GPS and cellular, you’ll need to have your phone nearby.

Finally, someone with cellular. Do you like it? I understand that it is a higher price up front than the one with just GPS, but is it true that there is also a monthly charge with cellular? I assume that without cellular, you cannot make phone call unless your iPhone is near you?

[lorilu]

@Gloria

Whoa how does that work? That’s a great idea. Even if I’m not working on free style (congratulation. Working on freestyle. Exciting), it’s still nice to have music - get that cadence and tempo right. Do you need to have your iPhone with you when you ride?

Not for the music. Otherwise, If you dont have cellular with the phone you need the phone nearby because the watch uses the phone’s cellular. Mine has cellular - more expensive up front and $10/month but totally worth it. Last time I came off my only bruise was from where I landed on my phone…

As to the music, you can download music from your phone to the watch. Easy peasy look on line for instructions. Then I turn on the blutooth, link to my athletic earbuds (I have Elevate… pretty good, has a string between the two earbuds so I dont lose it if it falls out). Only thing I cannot do is rewind, so I ahve to listen to the whole thing. I hope to edit the music for just the trot sequence, and another clip of jsut the canter, so I can put them on repeat when I work on each gait on any given day.

SO far loving it.

[lorilu]

@add leg

I do keep my phone on me and you need to have it on you (or really close), but I use AirPods for music/podcasts and timers for conditioning work (I use an interval timer I set up beforehand and do trot/canter sets). I’ve also used a metronome app, but I usually get annoyed at how bad I am at it and turn it off. I like to ride to music when I’m schooling if I’m alone and I can change songs on my watch (or by tapping my airpod). I also bought mine for fall detection but knock on wood haven’t used that feature yet.

I do not need to have my phone on me for the music. Series 4 with cellular but I do not think the cellular is important to the music. Music was downloaded to the watch.