Can the Apple Watch help human society regain the habit of wearing watches?

On October 7, Apple Watch was released. In an interview with the media, Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed the hope that Apple Watch, as a latecomer to the smartwatch market, could redefine the category of "smartwatch" and repeat the glory of the iPhone and iPad.

The Apple Watch is clearly a latecomer. Manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics , Sony, and Pebble have already launched a large number of smart watches and have even begun to build a watch application ecosystem.

However, the "enemy" of Apple Watch is not only these early competitors, but also a bigger "enemy", which is the human lifestyle related to watches. Long before the advent of smartphones, the popularity of mobile phones made it convenient for people to see the time, and wearing watches has become a rare habit among young people.

Can the Apple Watch get people back into the habit of wearing watches?

Before wristwatches, people used pocket watches to tell time. When the first wristwatch came out, people thought it would never replace pocket watches. Although wristwatches began to be mass-produced in the 1880s, it wasn't until 1927 that wristwatch sales in the United States began to surpass pocket watches.

Later, with the introduction of European design styles and the promotion of the masculine image of the First World War, watches began to become a must-have for many officers, and wearing watches began to replace the traditional habit of taking out pocket watches from pockets.

After entering the 20th century, the custom of wearing watches was not accepted by everyone. In the eyes of some people, looking at the time on the watch in social occasions was considered impolite.

However, the pace of human life was accelerating, time was standardized, and radio, telephone, and later television connected people in a whole new way. Punching in and going to work in factories became a new way of production and life.

People need a faster way to check time, and the best place for a watch is on the human wrist.

With the Apple Watch, Cook and Apple are hoping to unleash a similar revolution in social habits—one so powerful that it may make the Apple Watch a failure, at least initially.

Alexis McCrossen, a professor at Southern Methodist University who has researched and published books on the history of timepieces, said the Apple Watch, like the earliest wristwatches, faces some challenges that need to be overcome.

MacRossen said that today Apple is making two bets: one is that people like larger smartphone screens and want to get more information, which gave birth to the Apple iPhone 6 Plus.

Meanwhile, Apple's other bet is the Apple Watch, which it believes people want to access information anytime, anywhere.

McCrosson reminded Apple that people have iPhones and can get information through their phones instead of watches.

The advent of mobile phones has made us accustomed to hearing someone talking to someone on the other end of the phone in a restaurant or on the bus (even if we feel uncomfortable). In addition, people who are constantly checking their phones or using mobile apps are also annoying.

The advent of Apple Watch will make mobile devices no longer "privacy in pockets" and more easily exposed in public.

McCrosson said people like to run various apps, especially on their phones, and she doesn't think the Apple Watch can change that.

Recently, she asked her history students what they thought of the Apple Watch. The responses were not positive. Many students questioned what functions a smartwatch could have in today's modern world that would make people unable to move without it.

Cook wants the Apple Watch to redefine the watch, not the smartphone, and other companies have historically tried to reinvent the watch but have failed.

In 1972, Hamilton Watch Company launched the Pulsar 1, priced at $2,100, the world's first electronic watch.

However, ten years after the advent of electronic watches, many people still want to have the time function of a classic analog clock when buying a watch.

Most importantly, today's younger generation no longer wears watches, including the students in McRossin's history class.

Regardless, just like in the 1920s, the world is changing at an unprecedented pace. Social habits will continue to change, and sooner or later, the Internet will be integrated into our lives in unprecedented ways.

The good news for the Apple Watch is that it's closer to success than any other smartwatch.

Invasion of our lives

Personal Internet integration is an important purpose of Google's smart glasses "Google Glass". Apple has realized some weaknesses of Google Glass, such as threats to other people's privacy and ugly Bluetooth headsets.

As the Internet transitioned from PCs to mobile phones, devices and people are getting closer and closer. Many people carry their phones with them from morning till night. Some even say that smartphones have become an "organ" of the human body.

If wearable devices such as the Apple Watch become popular, the distance between devices and people will be further shortened. Smart watches are very personal - "personal" and "intimate" are two words that Apple CEO Cook frequently mentioned when he first demonstrated the Apple Watch. And this is where the Apple Watch is likely to change the world, because this product can do one thing that computers cannot do: it will take your body as its home and live on your wrist.

Compared with any technology product people have used before, Apple Watch is closer to the human body and enters your private space. What Apple Watch wants is to snuggle up with you and become a part of "me".

It sounds novel, but also a little unnerving. People tend to adopt Apple products quickly, and when new technology is adopted so quickly, there are often unintended consequences. When the iPhone was introduced, it was hailed as a marvel of design and engineering, but no one really realized at the time what impact it would have on people's lives. No one expected that the iPhone would attract our attention like the constant force of gravity. Are there any emails that I haven't checked yet? Is there anything happening on Weibo and WeChat? Can I play games at this meeting without being noticed? With a phone in hand, you can never give it your full attention.

Smartphones have created a need for us to post photos of our daily lives on Weibo and WeChat Moments and read other people's comments every few minutes. This virtual network experience distracts us and does not represent our real life.

The "good thing" about Apple Watch is that it's always with you, and you don't even need to take it out of your bag, which is more convenient than a mobile phone. But unlike a mobile phone, you can't throw the Apple Watch aside and enjoy a moment of leisure.

If Apple succeeds in making wearables a real product category, it will mean that it has successfully established a network of nodes that will be scattered throughout the human body, with Apple setting the standards. At that point, we will have to make a decision: how much control do we want? Or to put it another way: how much control are we ready to give up?

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.