Category: Technologies

Although Chromebooks are used all over the world now, particularly in schools, misconceptions about these web-based tablets and computers still persist. Yes, you can play games on a Chromebook, and yes you can run applications like Microsoft Office

While it’s true that Windows or Mac software can’t be directly installed on a Chromebook — including the desktop versions of Office apps — that’s not the only option when it comes to using Microsoft’s suite of productivity software.

Read more: Best Chromebook 2024

I’m not talking about the Android versions, either. Although Chromebooks can run millions of Android apps from the Google Play store, the Android versions of Microsoft Office, Outlook, OneNote and OneDrive are no longer supported on Chromebooks. When the Android apps stopped being supported on Chromebooks, another option (and in my opinion, a better one) took their place.

Progressive web apps are like mobile app versions of a website but with more features, such as offline use, the option to pin them to the taskbar, support for push notifications and updates and access to hardware features. You can find Microsoft Office 365 PWAs like Outlook and OneDrive, and they work great on Chromebooks. Here’s where to find them and install them so you can still use Office on a Chromebook.

Sign in to Office 365

Open the Chrome browser and go to Office.com, which is the landing page for Microsoft Office 365 online. If you already have an Office 365 account, sign in as you normally would. If you don’t have an Office account, you’ll need to create one. You can use any personal email you want for the account, and setting it up is a straightforward process: put in your email, set up a password, verify your email and prove you’re not a robot.

Install the Office 365 PWA

Once you’re signed in to Office 365 in Chrome, an Install icon will appear at the top right of the address bar. It looks like a computer monitor with a downward pointing arrow. Click on it and it will pop open a prompt to install Office 365. If you only want a single app like Word or Outlook, the same install option in the address bar will appear when you point the browser to the specific apps.

The installation happens fast. In a matter of moments, a window opens that looks exactly like the online version of Office 365. It is essentially a browser window but with the features of Microsoft Office mobile apps.

Read more: Best USB-C Hub 2023

Ready to work

Since the PWA behaves like installed software, you can do things like pin it to the taskbar, get notifications, work offline and easily resize it. The rest of the experience is the same as using the web versions. I actually prefer the PWA versions to the full Office downloads for most things.

If after using the PWAs you’re missing the look, feel and tools of the desktop software, you still can’t install them directly on the Chromebook. You do have other options to run Windows software on a Chromebook.

If you found an Apple Watch under the tree this Christmas, the next thing you need to do buy a bunch of Apple Watch bands to customize it with. The interchangeable bands are one of the best features of the Apple Watch, allowing you to change up the look and feel whenever you wish. And right now you can snag official Apple bands with as much as 50% off regular prices at both Verizon and Amazon.

Apple Watch Ultra owners can grab a 49mm Alpine Loop band on sale to go with it at 50% off, dropping it down to $50 at Verizon. These bands also work with 44mm and 45mm Apple Watch models, so you can use them with larger Series 9 devices and older models, too.

Prefer the Sport Band? Verizon has select colors on sale from just $25, down from $49, and Amazon has dropped prices as low as $21 on the special Black Unity and Pride Edition bands.

In the market for an upgrade on the Apple Watch itself? Be sure to check out our guide to the best Apple Watch deals for the best prices around.

Traveling during the holidays can be stressful, especially when you’re navigating a new airport or stuck in miles long traffic. So if you’re planning to catch a flight or spend several hours on the road, you can use Google Maps to help you navigate to help ease some of the stress of traveling.

While Google Maps can’t prevent a traffic jam, there are a variety of ways it can help to make the journey easier, from quickly getting around the airport to using the Maps app offline. Check out some of the app’s best features for holiday travelers below.

For more travel advice, here’s the best time to shop for airline tickets.

1. Easily navigate through airports and train stations

If you need to quickly find a store in a large mall or transit center, Google Maps has a Directory tab for all airports, malls and transit stations. This can help when you’re running around the airport trying to find a place to eat or grabbing a last-minute souvenir before catching your flight.

The tab will tell you a destination’s business hours and what floor it’s on. You can look through restaurants, stores, lounges and parking lots.

2. Find out how busy an attraction is before going

To see how busy a spot is, check out Google Maps’ Busyness tool. Already you could search for a location, like a business, to see a chart that shows how crowded it is in real time. But a feature called Area Busyness lets you see when entire map areas are clogged with people.

To use the feature, open the Google Maps app on your Android or iPhone (or your computer’s browser) and move around the map to find a general area, say, downtown, a riverwalk or a quaint nearby town. The busyness information will now automatically appear on the map, so you don’t need to specifically search for a place to see how crowded it is. Google Maps may say something like “Busy Area” and when you click for more details, it could say, for example, “As busy as it gets” or “Not too busy.”

However, you can also search the location you’re after and scroll down to see busy times versus non-busy times.

3. See all your reservations in Google Maps

Google Maps can chart your holiday travels, but it can also quickly show you your flight, hotel, car rental and restaurant reservations, saving you the hassle of searching through your email for check-in times and confirmation numbers.

To see your upcoming reservations, all you have to do is search for “my reservations” in the Google Maps search box to see a list of what you’ve booked. Maps pulls this information from your emails in Gmail. You can also select an item to see more about the reservation, including date and location.

4. Make a restaurant reservation without calling

Planning a dinner night out with a large group for the holidays can be a hassle, especially when you go at a busy hour. Google Maps can help you book a lunch or dinner reservation. Here’s how.

1. In Maps, tap the Restaurants button at the top of the map to see a list of places to eat.

2. Select a restaurant that looks good, and in the window that pops up, reserve a table or join a waitlist, if it gives you that option (not all do).

Remember you can use the busyness feature mentioned above to pick the least packed place. Also, note that some restaurants that are closed to dine-in may still allow delivery, curbside pickup or outdoor seating.

5. Use Google Maps when you don’t have cell signal

Heading someplace remote where you may not have a mobile network connection? Google Maps can still give you directions when you’re offline.

1. Before you head out, search in Maps for the location where you’ll want directions.

2. In the location’s window, pull up the menu at the bottom.

3. Scroll right through the tabs and tap Download offline map, and then in the next window tap Download again. Maps will download a map to your phone for the area you selected.

Now, as you use Google Maps for directions in the area you downloaded a map for, when you lose your cellular connection Maps will switch to the offline map to guide you. Note that because you’re offline, Maps won’t be able to offer real-time traffic info.

6. Find EV charging stations nearby

If you’re taking your electric vehicle out for shopping, dinner or a vacation, Google Maps can help you find EV charging stations on your route, along with estimated wait times for a charging port. You can also filter your search by connector type — such as J1772, CCS (Combo 1 or 2) and Tesla — to see just the stations that are compatible with your EV. Note you can also search for gas stations by following these same directions. (Here’s how you can save money at the pump.)

1. In Maps, scroll through the tabs on the top of the screen and tap More.

2. Scroll down to the Services section and select Electric vehicle charging.

3. Maps will display nearby charging stations and how many are available.

4. Tap a charging station on the map to have Maps add it as a stop on your trip.

You can also use this trick to search for other places along your route, like a coffee shop.

7. Share your location with friends and family

Is anything more frustrating during a group activity than when the group gets split up and no one can find each other? Google Maps can help bring you all back together.

1. In Google Maps, tap your profile icon in the top right corner and tap Location sharing.

2. Tap Share location, and select who you want to share your location with and for how long you want to share it.

3. Tap Share, and Google Maps will send your location to everyone you’ve selected.

4. If you want to see someone else’s location, tap that person’s icon at the top of the window and then tap Request.

Apple is known as much for its high-end iPads and MacBooks as it is for the high prices they tend to demand for them. As such, it’s always a good idea to wait for a sale or go for one of the older models since they tend to go for a lot cheaper. For a limited time, there is an excellent sale at Woot on unused MacBooks and iPads with as much as 41% off. Just be aware that the sale ends on Jan. 4 at 12 a.m. CT, so there are only a few days to take advantage of these deals.

If you’re looking for a MacBook, there are two options you can pick from. The first is the 2021 M1 Pro MacBook Pro 16, one of the most powerful MacBooks of the generation and still a powerful laptop today, and it’s going for $1,600 instead of $2,699. That one is only superseded by the 2021 M1 Pro MacBook Pro 16, which is also on sale for $2,100 instead of $3,499 and is probably equivalent in power to one of the higher-end M2 MacBooks, so it’s worth buying if you want a powerful machine.

As for iPads, you have three options to pick from, starting with the 10.9-inch iPad Air 4th Gen, which is great if you want a budget-oriented iPad since it’s going for just $500. On the other hand, if you want something with a bit more oomph, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro 4th Generation has a ton of power under the hood and is going for $700, just $200 more than the iPad Air 4th gen. For an extra $110 over that, you can get the 2021 iPad Pro for $810, which is a nice upgrade, but not very necessary and you can skip it.

Those are the deals going at Woot right now, so if you like any of the options above, be sure to grab them before Jan. 4 at 12 a.m. CT. Also, if these aren’t quite the right deal for you, check out some of these other great MacBook deals and tablet deals.

Samsung makes a lot of products, from appliances to phones and tablets, but one area where it does particularly well is TVs. In fact, Samsung makes some of the best TVs on the market, so it’s no surprise that they are highly sought after — and expensive. Luckily, there’s a massive sale at Woot on new and factory-reconditioned models, so you can pick up one of Samsung’s high-end TVs for a relatively low price. There are also TVs from LG and Vizio, but the star of the sale is Samsung.

The sale ends on Jan. 31, so be sure to pick up something by then. Remember that sooner is better since stock may not last.

Many of the TVs are pretty high-end. If you want something new that’s an OLED, the cheapest option is a 65-inch S90C Series that has quantum HDR and Dolby Atmos Object Tracking Sound Lite, going for just $1,590 rather than $2,598. If you’re willing to go with a refurbished Vizio instead of a Samsung, the Vizio OLED Premium 4K TV is going for $1,100 and has a 120Hz refresh rate, which is great for gaming, sports and action-packed content. We also suggest the 65-inch LG C2 OLED TV, which CNET rates very highly. A refurbished model will run you $1,250, which is a steal.

There are also some solid QLED models up for grabs, including relatively inexpensive options like a new Samsung Neo QLED 4K QN90B Series that’s on sale for $798 instead of $1,198. We’d be remiss not to mention Samsung’s QLED The Terrace Outdoor TV, which, as the name suggests, is perfect for using outdoors. This new 65-inch model is going for $2,998 instead of $3,998. There is also a massive factory-reconditioned 85-inch Samsung QLED Q950T Series with an 8K resolution. It will run you a whopping $3,700, but that’s a good price for a high-resolution TV this big.

Of course, we also have to mention Samsung’s The Frame TV, which is as much of a piece of art as it is a TV. You can grab a factory-refurbished 55-inch version for just $900 or the 75-inch version for $1,600. You can also get the TechOrbits Tripod TV stand for just $60, which looks like an easel and will make your Frame TV look like a painting. It only fits 45-65 inch TVs.

If none of the TVs in the complete Woot TV sale tickle your fancy, check out some other great TV deals we’ve rounded up.

Huawei says its “back on track” after its revenue neared $100 billion for this year, despite continuing US sanctions on the Chinese conglomerate.

Sales to surged to more than 700 billion yuan ($98.7 billion) in 2023, the company said on Friday, which represents 9% growth from the $642 billion yuan ($92.4 billion) reported from 2022. That’s off the back of what Huawei says is its “solid” ICT infrastructure business as well as better-than-expected performance from its devices business, which includes smartphones.

Huawei’s latest earnings comes as the Chinese company continues to grapple with years-long US sanctions, which are aimed at restricting its access to American technology, particularly cutting-edge chips. This August, Huawei released its first 5G smartphone, representing a chipmaking breakthrough for Beijing, which has previously relied on US components for such devices.

“After years of hard work, we’ve managed to weather the storm. And now we’re pretty much back on track,” said Ken Hu, one Huawei’s rotating chairmen in end-of-year message to staff. “We have to be aware that changes in the business environment are not caused by geopolitical conflict alone, but also by fluctuating global economic cycles.”

Huawei’s smartphone performance

Huawei said on Friday that its device business surpassed expectations for 2023. It plans to “double down” on efforts in this business for 2024.

In August, Huawei announced the Mate 60 Pro smartphone, which was powered by a made-in-China chip that sanctions were designed to prevent. The handset shocked industry experts who were perplexed by how Huawei could produce an advanced smartphone complete with 5G support without key American components. However, it also indicated that Huawei had reached a new degree of self-sufficiency that China seemingly never had before.

The Mate 60 Pro helped Huawei climb back to the top of Chinese mobile brands and reclaim market share form the likes of the iPhone. According to Counterpoint Research, Huawei snatched back marketshare in 2023, growing from 10% in the first quarter to 14% in the third quarter. By comparison, Apple’s marketshare in China dropped from 20% to 15% during the same period.

However, in December, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Washington will take the “strongest possible” action to protect its national security in response to China’s chipmaking breakthrough as indicated by the 5G chip in the Mate 60 Pro.

“Hard work has enabled us to survive and grow, but we still have serious challenges ahead of us.” Hu went on to say in his year-end message. “Geopolitical and economic uncertainties abound, while technology restrictions and trade barriers continue to have an impact on the world”

Huawei was once among the top smartphone companies in the world, rivaling Apple and Samsung. However, phone sales fell dramatically since the Trump administration imposed a series of sanctions on the Chinese telecom giant beginning in 2019, in an effort to curtail its dominance. In 2020, Washington cut off Huawei’s global chip supply in a broadened round of sanctions that effectively banned global companies that use American technology or equipment from doing business with Huawei.

For several months after, Huawei had been relegated to producing mostly 4G phones or relying on a limited supply of stockpiled 5G chips. Prior to the Mate 60, the last 5G chipset Huawei developed in-house was the Kirin 9000 5G, which powered 2020’s Mate 40 Pro.

Streaming devices are now the norm, along with platforms like Netflix, Hulu, Max and other streaming services that enable us to connect and watch TV with convenience. While there are top-quality options from Apple, Roku, Google Chromecast and Amazon, it’s essential to be aware that these devices track your viewing habits in the background, despite their amazing features.

Every major smart TV streaming platform captures your viewing data. Makers of software and hardware (from your new streaming stick to your TV itself) use that data to “improve” the products and services they offer, by tailoring recommendations and the ads they show you, for example. While that’s potentially frustrating, ads do help keep the price down when you’re buying a new streaming stick.

While we’ve previously covered privacy settings for the TVs themselves, for this story we checked out all of the latest software on streaming devices from Amazon, Roku, Google and Apple.

Here’s what we found and what you can do about it on your respective new streaming players.

Amazon Fire TV Stick

Amazon told CNET that it collects limited information about customers’ use of third-party apps on Fire TV. “We collect data on the frequency and duration of use of apps on Fire TV (i.e., when a customer opens or closes an app), which helps with service and device improvements. We don’t collect information about what customers watch in third-party apps on Fire TV.”

Amazon’s privacy policy says that your Amazon device also “collects data about your use of the device and its features, such as your navigation of the home screen [and] selection of device settings (such as device language, display size, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth options).”

Here’s how you limit the amount of data Fire TV collects. All settings can be found by going to Settings, then Preferences, then Privacy Settings.

• Choose Device Usage Data and turn this setting off.
• Go to Collect App Usage Data and turn this setting off.
• Select Interest-based Ads and turn this setting off.

Now, your Amazon Fire TV device will not be able to track your data for marketing purposes or be able to look at the frequency and duration of your usage of downloaded apps. It will also not give you targeted advertising, but it will still have ads. For more details check out Amazon’s privacy settings FAQ.

Google Chromecast with Google TV

Google has one privacy policy across the company’s products, which details the data it collects to sell ads or recommend other content such as YouTube videos.

The data collected includes terms you search for, videos you watch, views and interactions with content and ads, voice and audio information when you use audio features, purchase activity, people with whom you communicate or share content, activity on third-party sites and applications that use our services.

Google says that Google Chromecast as a platform does not perform ACR or monitor what specific content users are watching.

Here’s how to control data on the Google Chromecast with Google TV.

• Head to Settings and scroll down to the section labeled Privacy. There you can access settings for Location, Usage and Diagnostics and Ads. There are also sections for account settings that feature Google Assistant as well as Payment and Purchases. Finally, the section has app settings where you can control App Permissions, Special App Access and Security and Restrictions.
• Click Usage and diagnostics and make sure that the tab is switched off. This means that you are no longer sending diagnostic info to Google.
• Click Ads, and Opt Out of Ads Personalization, to keep apps from using your ID to build personalized ad profiles.
• To manage other data Google has on you, such as YouTube and search histories and web and activity data, head to myactivity.google.com.

Roku

Roku’s privacy policy states that the company will collect “your search history, search results, audio information when you use voice-enabled features, channels you access (including usage statistics such as what channels you access, the time you access them and how long you spend viewing them), interactions with content and advertisements, and settings and preferences.”

Roku says that it shares data with advertisers “including ads that you view within Roku’s Channels and Third-Party Channels, as well as ads included in content that you view through your Roku TV’s antenna and connected devices.”

Here’s what you need to do to limit or disable some of the tracking.

• From the main Roku menu, open Settings and head to Privacy.
• For Advertising, make sure that the box Limit ad tracking is checked. This stops Roku from personalizing ads and sharing viewing data from streaming channels for the purpose of measurement. Roku will let channel providers know that you prefer not to have personalized ads, but according to Roku, it is up to the providers if they honor your preference or not. Likewise, “Limit Ad Tracking” will not stop individual channels, like Hulu or Netflix, from collecting their own data on your usage or passing that info on to other parties.
• For those Roku devices that come with an embedded microphone in the remote, you can go to Microphone and then Channel Microphone Access to choose how a channel gains access to the microphone. You can always allow them access, never allow them access or have a prompt pop up and ask for permission to access the microphone. With the Channel Permissions button, you can manage the permissions for each individual channel.

Apple TV

Apple’s privacy policy says that the company collects information from your Apple ID mainly so that you can seamlessly pick up where you left off on other devices. The information that it tracks includes “what content you’re playing, when you played it, the device you played it from and where exactly in the content you paused or stopped watching. We also collect a detailed history of all playback activity for Apple TV channels and Apple TV Plus.”

It also states that the company does share some information with partners that “work with Apple to provide our products and services, help Apple market to customers and sell ads on Apple’s behalf to display in the App Store and Apple News and Stocks.”

Unlike the others on this list, Apple always asks if you want individual apps to track your usage the first time that you use them. You can prevent each app from seeing your data by clicking no every time this pops up.

Apple also has some more privacy settings that you can change. Here’s how to find them:

First, you’ll have to find and click on the settings icon. Hit the General tab, then scroll down to Privacy. The Privacy menu features Location Services, Tracking, Photos, Bluetooth, HomeKit, Media and Apple Music as well as Apple TV Users.

• Click on Tracking and make sure that Allow Apps to Ask to Track is On.
• Go back to the Privacy menu. You will see a separate section called Analytics and Improvements.
• Change Share Apple TV Analytics to Off.
• Change Improve Siri and Dictation to Off.

You’ve now limited Apple from tracking your analytics and using your data to improve Siri or dictation.

If you were extra good this year, there may have been a shiny new gadget with your name on it under the tree. And if you’re looking to make the most of your new phone, smartwatch, tablet or other device, there are tons of accessories to help you unlock its full potential. Right now, you can snag some of them for less at Best Buy’s ongoing accessories sale.

Now through Dec. 31, the tech retailer is offering serious savings on cases, cables, chargers, storage drives and much, much more — with some items discounted by up to 65%. If you got a sleek new iPhone, you could snag this MagSafe wireless charger for $29 right now, which saves you $10 compared with the usual price. You can also transform your 10th-gen iPad with this Logitech Combo keyboard case, which is currently $30 off, dropping the price to $130. And if you’re looking to boost the storage on your new PS5, you can grab the Samsung 980 Pro 2TB SSD — our favorite M.2 storage drive for Sony’s next-gen gaming console — for $150, which is $80 off.

There are tons of other excellent bargains, including up to 50% off PC accessories, $410 off soundbars, 50% off gaming gear and much more, so be sure to shop the entire selection. And while the holidays are winding down, the savings aren’t over quite yet. Check out our roundup of the best after-Christmas deals for more last-minute bargains.

It’s important to stick to a specific budget during the holidays, but it can be very challenging, especially with all the great end-of-year deals that tend to happen. Luckily, there are some great options out there, such as this one-year Gold Star Costco membership for $60 from StackSocial. Rather than get a more traditional discount up-front, once you buy the membership, StackSocial will give you back $40 worth of Costco credit, saving you 66% off the cost of the membership. While you still need to shell out the original $60, it essentially means you’ll get the one-year membership for just $20.

StackSocial has extended this offer through the end of the year, giving you a little more time to cash in on this incredible deal before it disappears. We’d recommend signing up sooner rather than later if you don’t want to miss out on these savings. Keep in mind, this offer is only available only to new customers, or those whose memberships have expired for more than 18 months. If you’ve been considering nabbing an annual Costco membership, this is a great way to keep more cash in your pocket.

Read more: How to Get the Most Out of Your Costco Membership

With a Costco Gold Star subscription, you’ll get one membership card for your household. It allows you to shop at any Costco warehouse worldwide, as well as online at Costco.com. While Costco is a great place to save on groceries and other everyday essentials, it offers a lot more. A Gold Star membership also means you can use Costco’s gas stations and pharmacies, as well as Costco’s optical and hearing aid centers. Don’t overlook Costco for some excellent holiday shopping: Costco frequently has seasonal plants, decor, furniture, electronics and other products.

After you sign up, you’ll receive your $40 shop card via email. The card can be used both in-store and online so you can use it right away. It’s also worth noting that after you pay for membership through StackSocial, you’ll have until Jan. 27 to redeem the membership, or you may not be able to take advantage of the deal.

The Apple Watch Series 9 leaves me wanting more, in both good ways and not-so-good ways.

Wearing the $399 Series 9 as my regular watch for three months (aside from taking a few breaks to test other smartwatches) has given me a lot to look forward to, thanks to new features like Double Tap and Siri’s ability to answer health questions. At the same time, these fresh tricks aren’t integral enough to my daily life to make the Apple Watch Series 9 feel significantly different from its predecessor.

My initial impression of the Series 9 from September holds true. It’s the best smartwatch for iPhone owners (and perhaps the best smartwatch) in general, thanks to its snappy and easy-to-navigate interface, wide selection of health monitoring options and smooth integration with Apple products. The biggest reason to buy it over the cheaper Apple Watch SE remains the Series 9’s extra health and wellness tracking functionality, such as ECG monitoring, blood oxygen readings and temperature sensing. If your primary reason for buying a smartwatch is keeping a closer eye on your health, the Series 9 is the right choice.

Apple briefly stopped selling the Series 9 online and in its stores because of a patent dispute with health tech company Masimo regarding the watch’s blood oxygen detection feature. But an appeals court paused the ban Wednesday, according to CNBC, and Apple has since resumed sales of the Series 9. At least for now.

If you are able to get your hands on a Series 9 and are considering whether it’s worth it, here are my thoughts after using it for three months. For a deeper dive into everything that’s new with the Series 9, check out my full review from September.

Siri gets a health boost on the Apple Watch Series 9

A big part of why I wanted to revisit the Series 9 is because some of the watch’s most interesting features weren’t available at launch. Siri’s ability to answer health-oriented questions is one such example. Apple announced this functionality when the watch debuted in September, but only brought it to the watch through a software update in December. The Series 9 and Ultra 2 are the only Apple Watches that support this feature because the feature requires Apple’s latest processor.

I’ve been excited to try this out because it could solve one of the Apple Watch’s biggest problems: that it can be too difficult to find specific health statistics at a glance. Seeing how many steps you’ve taken this week, for example, can take a few taps in Apple’s Health app. Siri’s ability to answer questions like these on the fly opens up a lot of potential for Apple’s digital assistant to become even more useful.

So far, I’ve been asking the Series 9 questions like how I slept last night, how many minutes I’ve spent exercising this week, how far I’ve walked today and what my average walking heart rate is. Siri has been able to answer these questions with ease, but I also feel like Apple’s virtual helper could be doing much more in this area. For example, I’d love to be able to ask Siri what time I should go to sleep tonight based on my daily activity and the previous night’s sleep. Siri also couldn’t tell me what my most active day was for this week when asked.

Part of that is because of Siri and the Apple Watch’s limitations. While Apple does highlight trends related to your sleep and allows you to set a bedtime schedule, it doesn’t offer sleep coaching features that provide advice on how to improve your sleep. Nor does it provide bedtime recommendations based on your activity and slumber patterns, like some of its rivals. How can Siri tell me when to hit the sack based on how busy my day was if the Apple Watch isn’t analyzing that type of data?

Siri can also only answer health questions based on data from the last week or so since such queries are processed on the watch itself rather than the cloud for privacy reasons. Still, Siri’s new health knowledge feels like an important first step toward making the Apple Watch (and Siri) better health-tracking companions.

Double Tap on the Apple Watch Series 9

Another major new feature that wasn’t available until after the Series 9 launched is Double Tap. As the name implies, Double Tap makes it possible to navigate your Apple Watch by tapping your thumb and index finger together. It’s kind of like an invisible button for scrolling through your widget stack and dismissing notifications. You can also use Double Tap to answer and dismiss calls, play or pause music, reply to text messages through voice dictation, manage timers and capture a photo with your iPhone using the Camera Remote app.

Shortly after Double Tap arrived on the Series 9, I wrote that I hadn’t been using the feature often. My opinion hasn’t changed, although Double Tap does feel more responsive than before. I don’t know if the feature itself has improved with new software updates, or if I’ve just had more time to get the hang of it.

The biggest problem is that Double Tap doesn’t feel intuitive just yet. While I love the idea of using my Apple Watch without having to touch it with my opposite hand, I’m conditioned to tap or swipe, or even twist the Digital Crown before tapping my fingers together. Whenever I use Double Tap, it feels like I’m consciously thinking about it rather than having it be a genuine reaction when my wrist buzzes.

That said, I’m excited about what Double Tap means for the Apple Watch. It feels like the start of the Apple Watch becoming a more intuitive, ambient screen that lives on your wrist rather than something that you have to consciously interact with. Although I don’t find Double Tap very useful yet, that’s just one opinion. My colleague Lexy Savvides called Double Tap “helpful” and “accurate” after testing the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2.

The Apple Watch Series 9 as a health tracker

The Apple Watch Series 9 has all the health and wellness tracking metrics that are expected of a watch at this price. That includes:

• ECG monitoring
• High and low heart rate notifications
• Irregular heart rate notifications
• Blood oxygen monitoring
• Overnight temperature readings
• Sleep tracking
• A wide variety of workout types
• Automatic workout detection for certain exercises like walking, running and cycling
• The Mindfulness app for breathing exercises and mood logging

All of these features are present in the Series 8 as well, but the cheaper $249 Apple Watch SE is missing ECG monitoring, blood oxygen and skin temperature readings. The pricier $799 Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a few extras for athletes and outdoor enthusiasts, such as a more rugged titanium build and dual-frequency GPS.

While the Series 9 checks the right boxes, I wish Apple did more to make sense of all the health data it gathers. Products from Garmin, Oura and Fitbit can make observations about whether you’re ready for a workout or need to take a rest day based on factors like activity and sleep. Apple can nudge you to get up and move, but the Apple Watch is still missing these big-picture observations. Google-owned Fitbit is also launching a program called Fitbit Labs in 2024 that will use AI to connect the dots between certain data points, in yet another sign that Apple’s rivals are investing in new ways to analyze and contextualize health metrics and activity.

You also don’t get nearly as much sleep data from the Apple Watch as you do with other trackers from the companies mentioned above. The Apple Watch can log sleep duration and stages of sleep along with highlighting trends such as average sleep duration over the past week and changes in respiratory rate.

Other trackers provide sleep scoring and coaching features that assess the quality of your sleep, making it easier to make decisions about whether you need to get to bed earlier or later. Garmin, for example, was able to tell me whether my sleep was calm, too short or non-restorative. Knowing that I didn’t sleep well the night before made me feel more motivated to wind down earlier the following evening.

Apple Watch Series 9 battery life

The Apple Watch Series 9 typically lasts between one to two days depending on how you’re using it. That’s about average for smartwatches in this price range, although watches from Fitbit and Garmin typically last for multiple days on a single charge. You’ll need the pricier Apple Watch Ultra 2, pictured above if you want longer battery life

When I didn’t exercise, track sleep or record outdoor walks, the Apple Watch Series 9 lasted for about two full days. But after a full day of use that included about 30 to 40 minutes of indoor exercise and an outdoor walk, plus overnight sleep tracking, the Series 9 had 35% of its battery left when I woke up in the morning. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 lasted for about two full days even after tracking GPS workouts and monitoring sleep, according to CNET’s testing.

Luckily, the Series 9 can charge fairly fast. It went from 35% to 92% after 30 minutes, which fit nicely with my morning routine. I left the watch on its charger while I got ready to head to the office, and the battery was almost full by the time I left.

Still, the Series 9’s battery life does limit its appeal as a sleep tracker compared to competitors. The Garmin Venu 3 lasted for about a week during my testing, for example, and the Oura ring usually lasts for about four days, according to my colleague Scott Stein who has worn it for months.

While Garmin and Oura’s devices may fall short in other areas compared to the Apple Watch, their relatively long battery life and deeper metrics may make them a better choice for those who prioritize sleep monitoring above all else in a wearable. Multi-day battery life makes it easier to track sleep without potentially having to sacrifice some activity tracking the next day.

Apple Watch Series 9 overall thoughts

As I wrote in my initial review, the Apple Watch Series 9 isn’t a big leap over the Series 8. If you have a recent Apple Watch, especially the Series 7 or Series 8, you can hold off on upgrading.

The subtle changes in the Series 9 set the Apple Watch up for a promising future. I’m still waiting for workout recovery metrics and more detailed sleep insights, but updates like Siri’s ability to answer health questions and Double Tap make it clear that there’s more in store for the Apple Watch beyond new health sensors.