The Apple Watch finally went on sale Friday, and starting on April 24 the devices will be popping up on the wrists of your friends and co-workers. You might even be getting one yourself. And if you are, there’s one thing to keep in mind: If you’re not careful, it could turn you into a rude jerk.
Apple wants the Watch to make you more present in the moment and to free you from the supposed tyranny of your iPhone, but what the Watch does is bring another screen into your life with all the associated tapping, beeping, and peek-sneaking. Here are a few crucial dos and don’ts to keep you from being that guy.
Do: Curate Your Notifications
Bloomberg’s own Joshua Topolsky sometimes found himself frustrated with the flood of notifications landing on his wrist. If you turn everything on, you’re quickly going to find yourself overwhelmed and worse off than you were pre-Watch. Prioritize your notifications and only have the most important ones go to the Watch. The rest you can handle the old-fashioned way without making everyone around you think they are preventing you from getting to your next appointment.
If you get your hands on an Apple Watch, don’t complain about it. No one wants to hear your sob story.
Don’t: Stare Too Long
Checking your wrist is the original impolite gesture. It says “I have somewhere else to be and I’m telling you to wrap it up.” A quick glance most of us can forgive, but if the info you need from your Apple Watch isn’t immediately discernible, lower your wrist and either finish what you’re doing or politely excuse yourself to handle the alert. Standing with your wrist up and nodding like you’re half-paying attention is the new old rude.
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