The first presentations, which appeared on Apple’s dedicated site at the start of the month, demonstrate how to manage messages via the watch, how to personalize it by changing the watch faces, and how to use Digital Touch, the feature that “lets you communicate with the people you care about” by sending sketches, tap patterns, and even a digital representation of your heartbeat.
Four more videos showed up on Wednesday, covering phone calls, Siri, Maps, and Music. The first presentation, which focuses on the watch’s phone functions, shows how you can mute the ringtone by simply covering the watch with your hand, or take the call on the watch with a simple tap. You can also transfer it to your iPhone, or refuse the call and send a message instead. To quickly reach those you contact most, simply hit the side button to bring up a circular image-based list and then use the Digital Crown to select the person you want to get in touch with.
The Siri video is a straightforward affair – anyone who already uses the digital assistant on their iPhone should find it easy to get started with Watch-based Siri, just be prepared for a few quizzical looks if you start chatting to your wrist in public.
Crank it up with “Hey, Siri,” and take it from there – you can ask to place a call, get directions, set notifications, and plenty more besides. Apple recently rolled out a new site explaining how to get the most out of its virtual assistant – you can read more about it here.
Watch wearers may need some extra convincing when it comes to using Maps on the device’s relatively small display, but the video offers a few ideas as to how to make the most of the app. It’s super-quick to see your current location, for example, and you can easily zoom in and out of the map by turning the Digital Crown.
Finally, Apple offers a run-through on how to use the Music app. The video shows how tracks playing on your iPhone appear in the Watch’s Music app, and you can ask Siri to select a new one at any time. Alternatively, the Digital Crown lets you explore your entire library via Songs, Albums, Artists, and so on. It also shows you how to store playlists on the Watch, independent of your iPhone. If you didn’t already know, Apple’s smartwatch comes with 8GB of storage, 2GB of which can be used to hold audio tracks.
Apple’s growing collection of Watch videos will interest anyone keen to learn more about what exactly the gadget can do, while interested buyers might also find them useful as they ponder whether to hand over a minimum of $350 to the Cupertino company.
