Apple Watch Nike Series 5 Review

February 29, 2020 — by Per Christensson

They say you don't know what you got until it's gone. With technology, sometimes you don't know what you're missing until you upgrade.

I finally upgraded my old Apple Watch Series 2 to a new Series 5 "Nike" watch at the end of 2019. I should have upgraded a long time ago. Maybe I was nostalgic after wearing the same watch on my wrist for several years. Or maybe I was hesitant to trade in my old model because I was underwhelmed by the last two iPhones. Whatever the reason, I waited too long.

In some ways, the Series 5 is just another Apple Watch. In other ways, it is significantly better. Based on my experience over the past three months, here are my top reasons to upgrade:

1. Performance

The Series 5 is fast. It is extremely responsive and loads apps way faster than the Series 2. Granted the Series 2 was slow when I bought it and even slower a few years later, but the speed of the Series 5 isn't even comparable. A few minutes testing the watch at the Apple Store was all I needed to confirm this, but I'm happy to say the speed continues to impress me in everyday use.

2. Storage

The Series 5 has 32 gigabytes of flash storage. Good luck finding this information on Apple's website. It's there, but mysteriously hidden. I don't understand why Apple doesn't promote this feature since it's a big deal. The Series 2 had a storage capacity of 4GB. The Series 5 has eight times more. The difference is significant because I could only fit a small amount of my iTunes library on my old watch. I can fit more than half of my 50-gigabyte library on this one. Now when I workout, I don't have to listen to the same playlist every time.

3. Screen

The screen on the Series 5 is slightly bigger than the Series 2. But the small bump in size makes a big difference. Everything is more readable and easier to navigate. I found myself accidentally tapping the wrong things on my old watch, but that rarely happens on this one.

4. HTML Email

The Series 2 could only display plain text email messages. I was pleasantly surprised to learn the Series 5 displays HTML-formatted emails, making it a practical means of checking my email. I decided to add the email app to my home screen, which didn't make sense on my old watch.

5. Always-On Screen

The main difference between the Series 4 and the Series 5 is that the 5 includes an "always-on" display. It doesn't go black whenever you put your arm down like all previous Apple Watches. I've gotten so used to this new feature, I take for granted being able to check the time without performing the "raise to wake" motion.

What I Don't Like About the Series 5

The Apple Watch Series 5 is a considerable improvement over the Series 2. But I still think there are still several ways to make the Apple Watch better.

1. Get rid of that stupid "digital crown" on the side of the watch. It is pointless and often gets in the way. The first thing I did after buying the Series 5 was reverse the default orientation so I can have the button facing away from my hand. A long touchpad along the side of the watch would be much better IMO.
2. Provide an option to only show the time by default. The "always-on" feature is nice, but it shows too much data and looks cluttered with the modular watch face. You can hide personal data in the Apple Watch settings, but I would prefer if the watch face just showed the time when inactive.
3. Improve stand detection. Like my Series 2, the Series 5 doesn't always detect my "stand hours" correctly. For example, the other week, I walked downstairs, unloaded my entire dishwasher, made some coffee, then walked back upstairs to my office. My Apple Watch still didn't register that I had stood up. That is pretty concerning and makes me wonder how accurate the activity tracking is.

Summary

Overall, I am pleased with the Apple Watch Series 5 Nike edition. I mainly use it for tracking my workouts and playing music with my AirPods at the gym. But I also use it to read text messages, check the weather, view my calendar, and pay at retail stores. If you already own an Apple Watch Series 4, the Series 5 is probably not worth the upgrade. But I think it is worth considering if you have a Series 3, and definitely worthwhile if you have a Series 1 or 2.

The Apple Watch Nike Series 5 is not perfect, and I hope Apple continues to improve it in future versions. I listed a few things I don't like, and I could put together an even longer list of suggestions for Apple. But the fact is I use my Apple Watch every day and that speaks for itself.

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