Spending a Week With the Apple Watch SE: Should You Get it Over the Series 8?

Today we’re taking a look at the new Apple Watch SE. Announced during the September Far Out event, the SE was released alongside the Apple Watch Series 8 and the Apple Watch Ultra.

While the Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra pack far more features than the Apple Watch SE, there’s still a lot that the SE has to offer. With that, let’s take a look at my experiences using the Apple Watch SE over the past week.

Apple Watch SE: A Great Starting Point

Personally, I’m not really a watch person. Well, at least I wasn’t. Since first getting a cell phone way back when, simply checking the time on my phone was all I needed. Prior to this, I wasn’t entirely a fan of wearing watches or things around my wrist in the first place. Has the Apple Watch SE changed this opinion? Yes, somewhat. Let’s take a look.

If you’re looking for my experience in purchasing the Apple Watch SE, be sure to check out our podcast. Suffice to say, going in-person to an Apple Store the day after launch was likely not the easiest way to purchase the new device. I would highly recommend simply ordering online and having it delivered, or ordering online and then picking your device up in-store.

Nonetheless, new device in hand, I set out to start checking out the experience of owning an Apple Watch. As mentioned, having a watch in general is still an exciting change for me, though I will admit that I did at one point own a FitBit. However, I will also note that it managed to last all of a month before it broke. Since this is not a review of the FitBit, I’ll leave it at that.

With that in mind, setting up the Apple Watch SE was not an issue at all. It quickly paired with my iPhone 12 Pro and set-up was relatively swift. As somewhat of a new Apple Watch user, my favorite part of the setup process was customizing my main screen. Apple provides you a good amount of options, and being able to set up what I wanted to see on my screen is also a fantastic perk.

Putting it to the Test

Of course, for those that did listen to the podcast, you would know that the feature I wanted to check out most is the new Crash Detection feature. The new iPhone 14 series as well as the new Apple Watch series are now able to use science and tech to be able to detect when a user is involved in a car wreck. As someone that is relatively prone to accidents outside of a vehicle, I immediately wanted to see if I could set it off without getting into an actual car wreck.

So naturally I tried a rollercoaster.

Failing an Experiment

Without going too much into this experiment, I will say that all of my attempts did fail. While the commercials for Crash Detection may show a car flipping itself over and over, Crash Detection typically looks for deceleration of g-forces. To make a long story short: rides that make immediate stops are more likely to set off Crash Detection rather than any other part of the experience. So while the big hills may be fun, the ride stopping at the end of its cycle may set off Crash Detection before anything else, though either situation is rather unlikely.

However, my local park being Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, I was able to watch some advertisements for the newly arriving Peanuts specials, in thanks to a partnership between Cedar Point and the IP.

Naturally, after completing the experiment, it seemed rather obvious that someone working for Apple would have also wanted to perform the same test, “for science”. It would probably also be a major problem if people were unable to get Crash Detection to disable on a roller coaster once the ten-second countdown hit zero.

Apple Watch SE VS. Apple Watch Series 8

With that said, while the new Apple Watch SE does feature Crash Detection, there are of course some notable differences between the SE and the new Series 8. Arguably the largest feature missing from the SE would be the always-on display.

However, after a week, I don’t think I’m missing the always-on display that much. Again, maybe my somewhat new experiences with the Apple Watch are preventing me from fully crystalizing the potential of the feature, but if anything, the SE’s screen lights up for me plenty, and I’m not sure I’m missing vital information in the nano-seconds it takes the screen to go bright.

The Series 8 also features a larger screen, though I like the 44mm size of my SE.

Of course, there’s other features I’m missing out on as well. This includes:

• Health features: The Apple Watch Series 8 also includes several health features that the SE simply doesn’t have. This includes a third-generation optical heart sensor (the SE uses the second-gen), blood oxygen sensor and Blood Oxygen app, electrical heart sensor and ECG app, temperature sensing and ovulation estimates. Since I’ve never tried ovulating, I don’t think that one is for me. However, the other features may be the only thing I miss from not having the Apple Watch Series 8.
• Fast charging: While the new Apple Watch Series 8 does feature fast charging, this doesn’t seem like a dealbreaker for me. Charging my Apple Watch SE while I get ready for my day is more than enough time to give it the power it needs to go a solid two days without a charge.

The Final Word

In the end, I’m happy with the Apple Watch SE. While the health features found in the Apple Watch Series 8 are far superior to the health features found in the SE, I’m not fully convinced that I need an abundance of health features at this point in my life. At least, I hope not.

Personally, I’m still having fun imagining I’m James Bond as I send a friend a text message using Voice Dictation.

If you’re new to the world of the Apple Watch, I personally think the SE is a good starting point. However, it is worth noting that the Apple Watch Series 8 does pack far more features into the device over the SE. If you’re the type that really likes or even needs to monitor your health, you may want to consider the Apple Watch Series 8. Additionally, if an always-on display is truly crucial to you as well, you may also want to consider the Series 8.

However, if you’re like me and are just entering the world of the Apple Watch, I still contest that it is a great starting point for new users. It can also be a great gift idea for those already shopping for this upcoming holiday season.

Have you gotten the Apple Watch Series 8 or the Apple Watch SE? Let us know your experience in the comments.