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When smartwatches started to really emerge in the early 2010s, it would not be too much hyperbole to say that my reaction to them was one of disgust. Smartphones were already being whipped out of pockets and fixedly gazed at to an increasing degree, and the thought that people were now going to strap this kind of tech to their body, and have a screen literally at hand 24\/7, seemed like a harbinger of a dystopian future. One which was going to further fragment our attention spans and conversations, and make us a little more automaton and a little less human. <\/span><\/p>\n That remained my attitude towards smartwatches until a friend shared a surprising observation: she said that her smartwatch made her <\/span>less <\/span><\/i>attached to her phone, and to digital tech in general, rather than more.<\/span><\/p>\n Then I started hearing the same thing from other folks.<\/span><\/p>\n The more I thought about this observation, the more it made sense to me.<\/span><\/p>\n Trying to be a good digital minimalist<\/span><\/a>, I would put my phone in another room from where I worked, in order to avoid being tempted to check it. But I couldn\u2019t cut myself off from communication altogether; I might get a call that something had happened with my kids at school, or a text from a friend who had a urgent question. So I\u2019d periodically go find my phone to check for calls or texts. Invariably though, once I picked up the phone, I\u2019d think, \u201cWell, while I\u2019m looking, might as well do a little skim of Instagram . . . and let me see what the weather is going to be like tomorrow . . . and I wonder what\u2019s happening on Twitter.\u201d What was supposed to be a quick one-minute check for messages would turn into a twenty-minute time sink of mindless scrolling. <\/span><\/p>\n What my smartwatch-wearing friends told me was that their watches alleviated this problem by allowing them to see incoming messages at a glance, without getting sucked in to the other apps and features on their phones. Sure, smartwatches can host some of the same apps that are available on smartphones, but their functionality is more limited, and they\u2019re more awkward, and thus less enticing, to use.<\/span><\/p>\n Based on these recommendations, this year I took the plunge and got myself an Apple Watch. After trying it for a few months, I\u2019ve found that the observation of others — that it helps you detach from tech — has been born out.<\/span><\/p>\n I\u2019ve set the watch to only give me notifications for calendar appointments, calls, and texts. The watch essentially functions as a 1980s telephone. 80s Man would have a land-line phone at home and the office, and could it hear it ring, regardless of what he was doing, but could choose to answer it or not, or answer it and keep the call quick if he was pressed for time. Or, perhaps more accurately, it\u2019s like having an old school secretary who says, \u201cMr. McKay, it\u2019s Mr. Smith on the line.\u201d I can decide whether to put Mr. Smith through (i.e., answer the call\/respond to the text right then), or to have my \u201csecretary\u201d take a message. Generally, it\u2019s the latter; I don\u2019t immediately answer my texts via my smartwatch, but respond later using my smartphone.<\/span><\/p>\n The calendar notifications have been handy in reminding me when I have a scheduled phone call or other meeting. It\u2019s easy to get lost in the flow of work, so it\u2019s nice to be buzzed with a reminder that some appointment is coming up.<\/span><\/p>\n Overall, I\u2019ve found — in a surprise to my curmudgeonly expectations — that by putting a screen on my wrist, I\u2019ve been looking at screens less in general. I pick up my phone less often, and thus get sucked into its vortex less frequently. <\/span><\/p>\n If I\u2019m going to an intimate gathering of friends or out for a dinner date with Kate, I\u2019ll generally take off the watch and swap it for <\/span>a classic, analog timepiece<\/span><\/a>; 80s Man didn\u2019t have his phone follow him to restaurants and other people\u2019s homes, and glancing down at texts can fragment conversation, as well as your mind, sidetracking your thoughts with external concerns and questions. <\/span>I still try to be as present with people as possible<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n