Futurelawyer

Luxury Watches Are Pretty; But, What Exactly Do They Do?

Prufrock says: "I grow old, I grow old. I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled". Eliot's poem captures the angst of old age, and the fear of dying. But, as I grow old, I am conscious of the fragility of the short time I have left, and I have cast off childish things. Luxury watches are one of those things. This used Rolex Submariner is on sale for $12,500. Many years ago, I got one from a client in the jewelry business for $2,500, and I thought it was beautiful. But, a couple of years later, I sold for the same price, and used the money to make a couple of mortgage payments. I realized, even then, that a luxury timepiece is pretty; but, overkill for what it does. I have written before about my collection of Smartwatches, which are also attractive; but, they do so much more. My current Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, tells time, gives the date, and much, much more. It shows me my email, text messages, weather, blood pressure, heart rate, does a competent ECG, measures my steps, and my blood oxygen levels. It sends texts, makes phone calls, keeps my calendar, acts as a compass, plays music, can serve as a flashlight, and many other functions. It cost $400. It is truly a mobile computer on my wrist. I have certainly cast off childish things, and am no longer in my salad days. 

How Long Has The FutureLawyer Loved Gadgets?

When Chester Gould began Dick Tracy in 1931, it was an homage to Eliot Ness, during a time in which the good guys went after the bad guys, and their exploits were chronicled in the paper based newspapers and comic books. In 1946, Dick acquired a two way wrist radio, which later became the idea for a wrist phone that sent video back and forth. As a young boy, I was fascinated with the wrist communication device, and it sparked the later development of the SmartWatch, using tech developed for Smartphones. It also informed my lifelong interest in gadgets and computers, and was the principal driver of my pursuit of tech that could amplify my law practice. So, thank Chester Gould and his creation for what you are reading today.

 

"On January 13, 1946,[7] the two-Way Wrist Radio became one of the strip's most immediately recognizable icons, worn as a wristwatch by Tracy and members of the police force. This radio wristwatch inspired Martin Cooper's invention of the mobile phone, and may have inspired later smartwatches.[8] The two-Way Wrist Radio was upgraded to a two-Way Wrist TV in 1964.[9] This development also led to the introduction of an important supporting character, Diet Smith, an eccentric industrialist who financed the development of this equipment. In a conspicuous coincidence, the idea of a radio built into a wrist watch played an important role in the story line of "Superman – The Talking Cat" broadcast on the Mutual Broadcasting System on January 9 through 28, 1946 (episodes 878 through 891)."

 

So, the next time you take a call or text or email on your wrist, you can thank a comic book character. And Dick Tracy.

Rolex Users...What's On Your Wrist?

Best Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Apps. I don't want to beat a dead horse; but, other than impressing me with how much money you are willing to spend to tell other people how much money you are willing to spend on a wrist ornament, why would anyone pay thousands of dollars for a brain dead appliance that only tells the time and date? Educate me please. Then, take a look at the very nice looking wrist computer called the Galaxy Watch 4. Then, take a look at the applications that can be downloaded and used on the Watch 4. My faves, other than the extensive collection of medical apps that rival anything the tricorder could do on StarTrek, are the information apps: Google maps on your wrist. Google Keep, which has all sorts of essential information that I need to get through the day. My calendar, alarms, music, calculator, weather, news, and much more. Oh, and it can make and receive phone calls, email, texts, and post on Facebook. Cost? Around $400 plus $10 a month for the phone service. It operates separately from your phone, if you want, and gently vibrates on your wrist when something deserves your attention. I don't wear it to bed; but, if I needed to track my sleep patterns for a medical reason, I could. I do wear it in the Gulf of Mexico, the backyard pool, and just rinse it off when I am done. What's on your wrist?

FutureLawyer Breathes A Sigh Of Relief As He Reviews One UI Watch.

Galaxy Watch 4 One UI Watch. I admit that I was a little worried about the coming Galaxy Watch 4. I have grown to love the Galaxy watch line, and the Tizen OS. It is intuitive, easy to use, and very efficient. I am happy that Samsung has kept the Tizen OS look and feel on top of adding Wear OS to its watches. In fact, Galaxy Wear isn't even visible, as the Tizen icons and commands are virtually identical to the Watch 3. Thanks, Samsung and Google, for recognizing that the Tizen interface was superior to the original Wear OS.

A First Look At The Galaxy Watch 4 Classic.

On August 27th (11 days from now, but who's counting?), I will take delivery of the latest Galaxy SmartWatch, and I am looking forward to taking it for a spin. In the meantime, I have to be satisfied with this unboxing video, and the opinions of others. If you want to see what watch fanatics are so excited about, here it is:

 

Is That A Doctor In Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Tired Of Waiting Rooms?

I ordered my Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic yesterday. A big 46 mm case, and LTE built in for phone functions, it is surprisingly affordable, at $399. It won't add to my monthly bill, since it is replacing my original Galaxy Watch, which has earned a nice retirement in my watch case. But, the marvelous thing is that, in addition to being 20% faster than previous iterations, and graphics that are 10 times speedier, this little wrist computer is a medical office on my wrist. Within 15 seconds, I can monitor the following medical information: Blood pressure, ECG, Blood oxygen level (SpO2), VO2 Max, Irregular heartbeats, Body composition, Sleep tracking, Skeletal muscle, Basal metabolic rate, Body water percentage, and Body fat percentage. You can set alerts and reminders, and we are truly entering an age in which a computer can keep an eye on us all day and all night long, making us far better able to keep track of our condition. I never tire of asking skeptics the question: "What's on your wrist?" The Watch 4 is designed to work with Samsung phones, which is perfect for me, because I have owned and used every Galaxy phone since the first ones. 

It Looks Like A Watch, Acts Like A Watch, But It Is A Smartwatch.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 4. In a few days, the evolution of the Smartwatch will be complete. No tiny little rectangle tied to a locked down OS. No more bulky, thick, case with a passing resemblance to a classic high end wristwatch. The Galaxy Watch 4 (I will be getting the Classic version) is a premium regular watch look alike that is a like a computer on the wrist. It will be faster, sleeker, and have more functions than some notebook computers. It will have bio-metric sensors that rival a well equipped medical lab, and, alas, will, among other things, measure the body fat index. I hate that index. In the near future, it will likely measure blood sugar, and the watches already measure heartrate, do a competent ECG, measure blood pressure, and other things. All this in addition to regular text, email, web browsing, telephone calls, and much more. Want to know the population of Katmandu? Just ask. This all comes in a package that costs under $500, and, if you want the phone features, another $10 to $15 a month. I predicted that these wrist computers would go mainstream in the future. The future is now. In a final nod to uniformity, Samsung has merged Tizen and Wear OS into the OneUI Watch OS, which combines the best features of both. The countdown begins.

A Watch OS For All Of Us?

Wear OS And Tizen Unite Into One Platform To Take On Apple. I am heartened by the latest reporting that Samsung and Google are doing a complete merger of Tizen OS and Wear OS for future Smartwatches. If the Tizen front end is combined with a faster, smoother, more unified experience, the coming Smartwatches could become mainstream. Longer battery life and much more choice in apps may be the mark of a future filled with great devices. The ugly, boxy, little Apple smartwatches will become an afterthought in the history of wrist computing.

Galaxy Watch 4 - The End Of Tizen?

Galaxy Watch 4 May End Up As The Most Impressive Smartwatch. I was disappointed to learn that Samsung is abandoning Tizen as the OS for the next Galaxy SmartWatch. I have used both Tizen and Wear enabled watches, and Tizen is far superior in ease of use, and speed. Of course, Wear might be improved by the collaboration with Samsung; I remain open to being convinced. TizenWear OS may take the best of both worlds, and turn Wear into a great OS for watches. The new watches will be slimmer and lighter, and use Titanium alloy. It will be a long summer waiting for the introduction of the next wave of Smartwatches.

Saturday Wrist Check. What's On Your Wrist?

One of these watches costs $7,500. It tells the time. It tells the date. The other watch costs $499. It tells the time. It tells the date. It receives and sends email. It receives and makes phone calls. It receives and sends text messages. It monitors health functions like heartbeats per minute, EKG single lead medical grade heart readings, blood pressure and blood oxygen level readings, acts as a stopwatch, contains a GPS device, connects to the Internet by voice to search the knowledge of the world, navigates the roads of the U.S., measures each step taken during a day, monitors sleep patterns at night, keeps track of an appointments calendar, measures stress, plays thousands of songs and other music stored within it and on the Internet, takes Altimeter and Barometer readings, keeps a constant update on weather, temperature, chance of rain and other weather information, locally and globally, monitors swimming, cycling, running and other exercise activity, is water resistant to 10 meters, makes and saves voice recordings for later playback and use, acts as a remote control for various brands of Televisions, automatically syncs with information entered on a compatible smartphone, connects to Amazon Alexa, serves as a cooking timer, acts with remote terminals to conduct no touch payment at thousands of merchants, changes its watch face at the touch of a finger into one of hundreds of different alternatives, controls Microsoft Power Point presentations, and more. Any questions?