Do you need a smart watch?

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Perhaps the best way to save considerable amounts of money in your everyday life is to constantly question your motivation for buying anything not crucially necessary. The process of not thinking through their purchases has led to countless maxed out credit cards and monthly payments with huge interests for computers, gaming consoles, large-screen TVs and other items – things without which a man (or woman) can be happy, but at the time buying them seemed like a good idea. As time passes, the objects of our desires change – in the last few years these were smartphones and tablets, and today they are increasingly the wearable gadgets that are in the centre of the media’s attention. They all look cool and trendy, and desirable as such, but we should ask ourselves: do we really need them?

Let’s take a look at what the smart watch is: either a small smartphone, or a wrist-size computer with specific functions, which is also capable of telling us the time. A smart watch is basically an improved version of the classic fitness tracker, a device that was meant to be used by a certain niche of consumers (sportsmen, fitness enthusiasts, you name it) which provides them with useful information about their workout. The smart watch goes one step further – it adds a series of other functions to the fitness bands, like messaging, web browsing, reminders, calendars, navigation, whatever the developers can cram under its small hood. This makes the smart watch seem like a desirable piece of technology. But we all have to ask ourselves: are these extra functions worth the extra cash we need to spend on them?

Basically, all the extra features of a smart watch are things the smartphone also does. This is why I say that the fitness band was a good product, and the smart watch is not: heartbeat sensors, calorie counters and similar things are really useful, and necessary, to have at hand when you work out, but a calendar, a reminder service, a game, a navigation software and all the extra features a smart watch offers me are not something I need on my wrist, as long as I can reach into my pocket and take a look at my phone.

OK, of course, there are situations when taking a peek on your watch is preferable to reaching into your pocket – while on a crowded bus or in the tube, while biking or when in a conference room, during a meeting, when casinolavida.com keeps bothering you with its special offers. But ask yourself: do these situations really need an investment of a few hundred dollars?

Thinking about your acquisition plans for an extra hour, considering the benefits (the REAL benefits) of a product before committing to buy it can save you a ton of cash – and not just when it comes to gadgets like the smart watch.