Apple Watch Series 4 Review: A Big Deal for Our Health

So of course we have the usual parade of Apple haters commenting on every product review. I have an idea - If you don't like or need the product, don't buy it. But don't tell me I'm stupid or wasting my money or whatever if I buy it. Different strokes for different folks, right?

I have Series 2. For me, the best feature of the watch is I can always read the time by choosing a watch face with large numbers; no need for eyeglasses. In fact, I put away my two expensive Swiss watches. I wear them only on special occasions. I highly recommend the new watch to senior citizens. I am thinking about Series 4 for its EKG and other health-related applications.

I think people would be healthier in the long run if they listened to their body rather than their watch.

Three years later, and "it [the 2015 watch] no longer receives operating system updates." Seems like a complete rip-off.

Does the back still fall off after a few months? After that happened 4 times with my Apple Watch 1, I gave up, even though Apple did replace them each time. My new Fitbit hasn’t failed, at least not yet.

I have a series 2 Watch. Not long after I bought it I had to leave early for the airport, I was wearing my watch as an alarm and as I stopped it I somehow triggered the heart monitor. Checked the time later and was surprised to see my heart rate displayed. 210 beats a minute. Now you don't have to be a medical person to work out that lying in bed with a pulse rate that high was not normal. I made an appointment with my GP ( Doctor ) and that set in motion a series of events that finally had me fitted with a pacemaker which kept the A fib under control and helped by a Cyro ablation. Thank God for the NHS, never cost me a penny.

Brian Chen what I really would like to see is a true test review of the apps that are suppose to improve our health and lives. I.e. my iPhone's "Health app" shows me how many miles I have walked or run, or how many steps or floors I have climbed. The numbers the app shows is no where near the actual numbers. According to the app I should be ready for the next IronMan competition. Would I invest in the Apple Watch with health monitor if I knew it was accurate - the answer is Yes! Buying it on a review for something that is not even on the market or for sale yet and promises the world... I would be better of trusting a used car salesman.

In an interview with CNBC, AliveCor CEO Vic Gundotra disclosed that AliveCor has developed a 6-lead portable EKG system pending FDA clearance. Current AliveCor KardiaMobile sensors work with iOS and Android devices to monitor for atrial fibrillation and send rhythm strips to doctors. The AppleWatch EKG app has not been released yet for testing. AliveCor's 6-lead EKG could monitor arrthymias such as ST elevation in hyperkalemia and others involved in 100 diseases. Gundotra commented that AliveCor has extensive patents in the area and that Apple's move has drawn attention to AliveCor's much cheaper devices.

An EKG permanently working on my body? No thanks, I am like my maternal grandfather. When he was 86 years old I asked him: When was the last time you visited the doctor? And his answer was: What year is this? He worked until 94 and died a week after he retired. No pills, no treatments, no EGKs ever. He looked very happy always. We can imagine Russian hackers sending codes to indicate that 30 million Democrats are having a heart attack during election day. Oh my.

My dad had an EKG that looked pretty "normal" (I still have it). He died of a heart attack the next day...

And this will improve my life, how? By constant monitoring such things as a steps, EKG, oh and that all important Fakebook notification 'like' of that picture of the plate of linguine that was posted last night, we lose ourselves as humans and only increase our anxiety and stress should we not meet our goal of 'steps' or the EKG reports a strange but normal heart rhythm. Really, how much is this over priced, short lived, expensive piece of tech going to enhance my life? Give me a beautiful analog timepiece that is like a piece of art for my wrist that will last for me to pass down. P.S. Mac user all my life.

I have never been a fan of the Apple watch, but then I am one who still pines for rotary dial black metal phones, the ones that used to weight almost 5 pounds. However, my husband has been an Apple geek and supporter from the start, so when he mentioned the latest “medical” Apple watch with its electrocardiogram features, my interest immediately perked up for my husband has an aorta aneurysm. Although it has slowly grown over the past few years, it is still a potential life threatening issue. I am hoping that one of the new features of this new Apple watch presently has or will have in the very near future is a signal that would notify my husband if/when something goes awry with his aorta aneurysm and a call to 911 results immediately. Suddenly, this life saving “medical” Apple watch caught my immediate attention to the point that I will be secretly purchasing one for my husband for our 40th wedding anniversary. I can’t think of a better gift after so many years of wedded bliss, regardless of the cost. I need him to be on this side of the grass for a very long time. Heck, if this watch ends up saving his life, I just may purchase one for myself.

Folks would be much better off putting that $400 toward their ballooning credit card debt than spending it on another of the endless parade of tech toys that will be cool only until the $499 Series 5 watch is released to breathless Times reviews.

"Yes!" ... what folks need is yet another incomplete snippet of data to further avoid going to the doctor ... From WebMD up, technology continues to too often give us just enough info to delude us into the mistaken belief that we can be our own professionals. Modern medicine has a million things wrong with it BUT if a doctor SEES you, at least you have a chance at surviving a myriad of ills. Few devices or websites can replace the still proven axiom that a visit to your doctor is THE proactive way to save your life. Doctors are not miracle workers but just as with god, if you help, there's a far better chance for survival.

I won’t buy another apple watch. Mine lasted as long as the warranty, then died. Even the tech, who explained that it would be cheaper to buy a new one than fix the old, recommended Fitbit. I have now had a Fitbit for several years. It still works perfectly, is much less cumbersome and is easier to use. It goes for days without a recharge. Sorry Apple. Make something that « keeps on ticking » and holds a charge instead of simply moving technologically forward.

My 89-year old father, a health fanatic and appreciator of gizmos, uses his new Apple watch to monitor his heart and to remind himself to stay active each day. (He checks to see if he's been too sedentary.) Let me say that he's pretty active: I just helped him paint the second story of their house; he insisted on carrying the window shutters up and down the ladder. When I was younger, he taught me to turn weekly lawn mowing into a game and see if, each week, I can beat my "time." (No pressure, just as fun.) If it fits your inclination and lifestyle, these kinds of gizmos can be useful and fun.

I don't understand why anyone would want to wear such a big ugly watch.

Being connected without smartphone opens up so many possibilities, like live tracking or calling and getting urgent messages while out running. This is especially the case with phones continuing to increase in size. The new AirPods which will hopefully come out soon, together with the series 4, may prove an awesome combination. I just wished Apple would focus more on sports tracking, where Garmin is still king.

We have absolutely no idea about the natural history of atrial fibrillation detected in this manner. Ideally, Apple et al should either find people who are willing for forego treatment for AF detected with their devices OR run a proper randomized controlled trial to test whether the devices offer benefit rather than just increase healthcare utilization. Until that happens, we could very well waste gobs of money on unnecessary, potentially dangerous treatment... and never be the wiser.

I am very skeptical about the ability of the watch to accurately detect heart issues by just having "wrist sensor"..I am an avid fitness fanatic. As such, I move my arms, wrists and sweat a lot..To think an apple watch on your wrist can accurately measure heart rate and potentially detect a heart arrhythmia under these conditions is pure fantasy..I would guess if one was sitting completely still, did not sweat, was void of any potential electrical interferences, it may work. But to overpay for this piece of wrist hardware junk that may not even work in the most "ideal" conditions is not a way I would want to waste my money..No thanks!

Being able to detect AFib is a game changer for millions because AFib typically does not have symptoms. If a person has AFib for several days and doesn't know it and fails to see their doctor immediately, a clot can form in the heart and cause a stroke. Therefore, if someone has had an incident of AFib, the standard protocol is to put them on potent blood thinners to protect them from clots in the event there is another incident of undetected AFib. AliveCor Kardia (released a personal EKG last year last) and now Apple Watch Series 4 make AFib detectable for everyone. The result is people no longer have to go on blood thinners strictly as a precaution but can get to their doctors for treatment before the clot forms. Blood thinners are the nemesis of an active lifestyle, and as a result, they can further undermine health. Bravo Kardia and Apple! BTW, it's FDA "Cleared," not FDA "Approved." Cleared means the claims are NOT believed to be false. Approved means it's been shown to be effective in the treatment. It's likely the FDA is splitting hairs on terminology to not be seen as working counter to the current AFib treatment protocols that have not yet been changed to recognize the potential of the personal EKG AFib detector.

So I’m guessing those half-dozen straps I have for my first gen Apple watch will no longer fit either new model. Well that’s just swell — for Apple. By the way, 44mm is danged big for non Schwarzenegger types. So many watches these days are the size of clocks.

A nonsensensical toy for those who like play a docotor. The big failure of watch industry (so far?) Is its inability to produce a watch with interplanetary calendar functions. A watch should show the local year CE and the sequential number of the local day of the local year not only on the Earth, but on other planets as well. For example, on Earth today, September 19, is the 261th day of the year 2018 CE.

This is an excellent column of the consumer-electronics genre. It answered all the questions I've been wondering about since the introduction of the Series 4, most especially regarding the heart-monitoring aspects. I hadn't been aware of the app for falls, a concern that I, as an avid hiker, have had for myself and that a sibling, who insists on walking solo over slippery rocks at the beach, should also have. (So the column solved the annual Christmas-gift dilemma, too.) Instead of giving us desk-bound technical gobbledegook I can't understand and don't want to know about, Mr. Chen has an EKG for our sake, hikes 7.7 miles, and ends up with a hilarious account of his attempts to test the "fall" feature. (Have the gym's lawyers canceled his membership?) His praise for the device is appropriately tempered with advice on who should consider buying, who might not, and who should wait. Well done!

a single lead ekg is about as useful as taking your pulse. this technology has a future but it hasn't arrived. for now it's likely to do more harm than good. but thanks to you apple's stock price will do well. good job. and nice flack work on the laver cup too, three articles for an exhibition lacking many top players. I love that you mentioned that last year's event quickly sold out without mentioning that this year's is selling very poorly. 400$ to see jack sock play, can't imagine why it's mostly unsold.

Why do we persist in using the abbreviation, EKG, for the German, “Elektrokardiogram”? Surely it makes more sense for English writers, who use the English form “Electrocardiogram,” to abbreviate it to ECG. I noticed that at the Apple Keynote, where the watch was revealed, the abbreviation used was ECG. Way to go, Apple!

Like so many reviews of Apple products, this one is too willing to give kudos to Apple, even when the tech, and the company's approach, are rather questionable. The much-touted EKG feature is not even available yet! Even more insidious is a detail that almost slips by unnoticed: The "original" Apple Watch, introduced less than 3 years ago, is already obsolete to the point where Apple no longer issues updates for it. Why do consumers continue to spend hundreds of hard-earned dollars on incremental technology that Apple intentionally kills in less than 3 years?

Thank you for an excellent article.