Minimalist Apple Watch Setup | No More Smart Watch Notifications

Summary

The video script discusses the minimalist approach to using an Apple Watch, inspired by the design principles of Dieter Rams. The creator shares their customized watch faces, including a minimalist aesthetic with a focus on health and habit tracking. They detail their process of disabling notifications to reduce distractions and simplify their digital life, while also showcasing useful apps like Drafts for voice notes and Streaks for habit tracking. The script also touches on the customization options available on the Apple Watch and the creator's personal preferences for a streamlined experience.

Takeaways

• 📱 The Apple Watch is a beautiful piece of design and technology, but it may not align with Steve Jobs' design principles due to its obtrusiveness.
• 📵 The Apple Watch's default notifications are considered annoying and distracting.
• 📉 The speaker has been trying to simplify their life and minimize distractions, including on their Apple Watch.
• ⌚ The speaker customized their Apple Watch with two minimalist watch face screens featuring a black, white, and gray aesthetic.
• 📝 The primary app used on the watch face is Drafts, which allows for quick voice-to-text notes.
• 🏋️‍♂️ The second watch face screen focuses on health and habit tracking, including Apple Fitness rings and the Streaks app.
• 🚶‍♂️ The speaker tracks daily steps using the Pedometer app and tries to achieve various daily habits.
• 🌈 The speaker turned off most notifications on the watch and uses grayscale mode to reduce stimuli.
• 📱 Customizations are primarily managed through the iPhone's Watch app, where notifications are individually turned off.
• 📦 The speaker offers minimalist watch face designs on Etsy, promoting a clean and distraction-free experience.

Q & A

What is the speaker's opinion on the Apple Watch's design in relation to Steve Jobs and Dieter Rams' principles?

The speaker believes that while the Apple Watch is a beautiful piece of design and technology, Steve Jobs, who was a student of Dieter Rams, might not approve due to Rams' design principle that good design should be unobtrusive. The speaker finds the Apple Watch's default notifications to be annoying and contrary to this principle.

What changes did the speaker make to their Apple Watch to minimize distractions?

The speaker customized their Apple Watch by turning off all notifications, using minimalist watch faces with grayscale, and limiting the installed apps to only those necessary for their daily use.

How many watch face screens does the speaker have on their Apple Watch, and what do they display?

The speaker has two watch face screens. The first one displays the date, time, and a Drafts app for quick voice notes. The second screen is focused on health and habit tracking, showing the Apple Fitness rings, daily steps, and a habit tracker app.

What is the purpose of the Drafts app on the speaker's Apple Watch?

The Drafts app is used by the speaker for recording voice notes and converting them into text when they are out on walks and have an idea they want to quickly jot down without pulling out their phone.

What health and habit tracking features does the speaker use on their Apple Watch?

The speaker uses the Apple Fitness rings to track daily activity, the Pedometer app to count daily steps, and the Streaks app to maintain habits such as stretching, journaling, closing activity rings, having a calorie deficit, and tidying up for 20 minutes.

Why did the speaker choose to have their Apple Watch display in grayscale?

The speaker chose to display their Apple Watch in grayscale to reduce visual stimuli and distractions, making the interface cleaner and less obtrusive.

How did the speaker customize the notifications on their Apple Watch?

The speaker went through the watch app on their phone, turning off all notifications one by one to ensure they were not carried over from the phone and were not打扰ing their minimalism goals.

What apps does the speaker have installed on their Apple Watch, and why?

The speaker has installed the Drafts app for voice notes, the Pedometer Plus Plus app for step counting, Peloton for workouts, Spotify for music, and Streaks for habit tracking. These apps are chosen for their utility in the speaker's minimalist lifestyle.

What is the speaker's view on the number of apps available for the Apple Watch?

The speaker believes that not all apps are necessary for their Apple Watch and have chosen to install only a select few that align with their minimalist lifestyle and daily needs.

How does the speaker feel about the Apple Watch's default settings in terms of notifications and distractions?

The speaker finds the default settings of the Apple Watch to be overly intrusive with notifications, buzzing, and ringing, which they consider to be annoying and in contrast with their goal of minimizing life and removing distractions.

What additional customization does the speaker do on their iPhone to align with their minimalist approach?

The speaker has a minimalist setup on their iPhone, which includes turning off most notifications, using grayscale display for reduced stimuli, and maintaining a limited number of essential apps.