Review: The still optional but pleasantly refined Apple Watch Series 2

Whether you wanted to or not, you knew about the Apple Watch as soon as it came out last year. And even if you heard "wearable" and immediately thought "fitness," Apple was very intentional about pushing the Watch's non-fitness features as the main reason to buy it. While there are things the Apple Watch can do that are primarily found in smartwatches versus fitness trackers, Apple hasn't yet convinced consumers at large that they need those features—or that they're worth $350, at least.

The true value of a smartwatch may still be up for debate, but what's undeniable is that people see practical value in connected fitness devices. With the Apple Watch Series 2, Apple has decided to embrace that. The second-generation model of the company's smartwatch builds upon the foundations of the original by adding a built-in GPS, water-resistant design, and swim tracking abilities. It runs watchOS 3 as well, which adds to the fitness features while boosting the performance of the watch and fine-tuning some of those smartwatch characteristics.

After spending some time with these new releases, the Series 2 hardware and software updates are both welcome and necessary, especially since the new device successfully attempts to answer some questions about the necessity of Apple's wearable. (Some, but not all.)

New hardware, bands, and a Nike collaboration

Not a whole lot has changed about the Apple Watch Series 2's external design. On the surface it looks nearly identical to the original, and you have to have a razor sharp eye to see the difference. Because of the newly included onboard GPS, the Series 2 is a hair thicker and heavier than the original watch. But unless you set the two versions side by side on a table, you likely won't notice the difference. The Series 2 doesn't feel any heavier on your wrist.

The Series 2 is still the rounded-square, mini iPhone-looking device we've come to know over the past year and a half. The crown and side button remain unchanged, as do the discrete band release buttons on the watch's underside. The only other change is that Apple made the Series 2's AMOLED display twice as bright as the touchscreen on the original. It is noticeable if you bump the brightness up all the way, and that makes reading the display in direct sunlight much easier. Most of the time, though, I kept my Series 2 (and the original watch I was testing) at about half brightness because that's the level that was most comfortable for me.

The Series 2 comes in the same 38mm and 42mm case sizes as the original, and you still have the aluminum and stainless steel styles to choose from (starting at $369 and $549, respectively). The wildly expensive, $10,000+ gold Edition style isn't an option for the Series 2, but it has been replaced by a ceramic option that is less ostentatious. It's also less expensive, starting only at the relatively high price of $1,249.

The one outlier in all of these options is the Apple Watch Series 2 Nike+ model, which comes out in October. Don't be confused by the branding—in most ways this is still a standard aluminum Apple Watch, just with some extra Nike perks. You get a few exclusive watch faces when you purchase this model, all of which feature bold typography and bright colors (ideal for displaying data while exercising). You also get a dual-colored Sport band that's slightly different from Apple's regular Sport bands. This one has small holes dotting the entire band and is made of a slightly thinner material; both of these aspects make it easier to wear during intense exercise, and the holes allow your skin to breathe a little more freely.

If you want the Nike watch faces or the special band, you'll need to wait for the Nike+ model to come out, since Apple won't be selling those separately. If you like the look of them or the comfort they bring to a workout, you should wait and get a Nike+ version. The Nike+ Run Club app for the Apple Watch, the program that actually tracks your workouts, is available for anyone to download.

Even if you can't get the Nike bands separately, you can pick from a huge variety of Sport, nylon, stainless steel, woven, and leather bands for the Series 2. The leather band collection also includes a couple new Hermès styles, including a "double buckle cuff" (available for the 38mm case only) that has two strips of leather that conjoin when they meet at the watch case and a deployment buckle strap (42mm only). Being Hermès, those bands nearly triple the cost of the Series 2 itself, bumping the final price up to $1,499 and $1,399, respectively.

The Apple Watch has more band options than most other wearables and fitness trackers, which is a good thing if you want to frequently change the look and feel of your watch. However, just like with the first Apple Watch, these optional accessories add up over time. When you purchase the Series 2, you'll get one included band that is dependent on the case model you choose (stainless steel cases have the most first-purchase options, including Sport, leather, and stainless steel band options). Any bands you buy after that will set you back at least $50, which is the price of one additional Sport band. Ironically, when you compare that to the $200 Fitbit Blaze's accessories, there's only a small difference. The Blaze starts off cheaper than any Apple Watch model, but an additional leather band costs $100 and a new stainless steel one will set you back $130. The bigger price discrepancies between the Series 2 and its competitors come when you want luxe bands such as the $149 leather loop or the  $339 Hermès single tour.

Workout app

On the Series 2 watch, the Workout app is designated by an icon of a running man in a neon yellow circle. Opening this brings you to a list of common workouts including indoor and outdoor walks, runs and cycles, elliptical trainer, stair stepper, and more. There's also an "other" category that looks unassuming at first, but it will become important for anyone who plays sports or regularly does other kinds of activities. After you record an "other" workout, you can name the activity and choose from an even bigger list of exercises including basketball, soccer, strength training, and more.

No matter which workout you choose, you'll always be taken to the next screen to choose your goal. This could be time-, distance-, or calorie-based, or you could have an open goal where the watch just records you without a specific end goal in mind. Choose the goal you want and then the watch will count you down to begin the workout. It's really simple and self-explanatory to use for the first time, and after you do a few workouts, the watch will show your most recent stats in the Workout app's page underneath quick-start panels. This allows you to choose the same workout with the same goal more quickly from the selection list.

While you're working out, the watch will send you light haptic taps to your wrist when you've hit certain milestones such as the half-way point in a five-mile run. During an open-goal run I completed, the watch tapped me when I reached two miles, which I appreciated as an acknowledgement of my progress. I run primarily on a treadmill, so I can usually see my distance and time on the machine, but those periodic updates from the watch will come in especially handy when I run outside. The watch was also on-point with its distance calculations: it was always within .1 miles of the distances estimated by my machines (treadmills, ellipticals, etc).

One gripe I have with the Workout app is that there's no auto-tracking feature. Most of Fitbit's devices can automatically track sessions of activities like running that are longer than 10 minutes, and it's a convenient feature to have if you make a habit of forgetting to manually start a workout. It's also helpful when you're in situations where you didn't realize how much activity you were doing until you were finished. Say you and your friend meet up for coffee and end up going on a walk together, Fitbit's auto-tracking would be able to see that as a walking activity and save it to your daily log as a completed session.

Since the watch can identify stroke type while swimming, I asked Apple about this kind of auto-tracking for other activities. A representative couldn't tell me if a similar feature would be coming out any time soon, but we did discuss how auto-tracking really only works for activities that involve arm movement. It's assumed you'll be swinging your arms, even a little bit, while running or walking, but it's harder to decipher arm movements for different sports or dance routines.

Another thing the watch cannot do that most fitness trackers can is track sleep. There's no native sleep tracking function, although there are a few third-party apps that offer to do so (and the new "bedtime" feature in iOS 10 is a rudimentary preview of what may one day become sleep tracking). That's because the original Apple Watch's battery life wouldn't be able to survive an entire day and night of tracking anything, but it might be possible with the Series 2 since the battery life has been improved. Some users who like sleep tracking features may feel lost without it on the Apple Watch, however, many devices measure movement as the main indicator of a good night's sleep and that isn't always accurate. Sleep analysis should still be taken with a grain of salt, no matter which device is capturing it, which is probably another reason why Apple hasn't invested in that feature for its watch.