{"id":34687,"date":"2022-01-13T16:39:03","date_gmt":"2022-01-13T21:39:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=34687"},"modified":"2022-01-17T15:06:38","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T20:06:38","slug":"uber-removes-watch-app","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2022\/01\/13\/uber-removes-watch-app\/","title":{"rendered":"Uber Removes Watch App"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chris Welch<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

Uber has quietly shut down its Apple Watch app, with the software now showing a message that instructs people to “please switch to the Uber mobile app.” The company is “no longer supporting the Apple Watch app,” according to the text, which ends with Uber apologizing for any inconvenience caused by the app’s discontinuation. There’s also a sad face emoji to drive that sentiment home.<\/p>\n

[…]<\/p>\n

On the one hand, this is another example of smartwatches continuing to shed apps — even those that are massively popular and borderline essential on a phone — that aren’t core to their purpose(s) of fitness tracking, notifications, music playback, and so on. I’ve long had Uber installed on my Apple Watch, and I don’t think there was a single occasion where I hailed a ride from my wrist.<\/p>\n

[…]<\/p>\n

But it also goes to show that, in some ways, smartwatches are only moving further away from being able to serve as a standalone smartphone fill-in — even temporarily.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

I wonder whether this is because the apps didn’t get much use, with people preferring the app on the phone that they carry anyway, or because no one seems to like the experience<\/a> of developing and testing for watchOS.<\/p>\n\n

Jesse Squires<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

I think many apps simply don’t make sense on the watch. I would not install any of the above apps, for example. But even apps that do seem to belong<\/em> on Apple Watch remain awful. In my earlier post<\/a>, I mentioned how RunKeeper was no match for the built-in Workout app. RunKeeper is glitchy, flakey, and has a significantly inferior UI compared to the Workout app.<\/p>\n

At this point, the only<\/em> third-party watch app that I have installed is Spotify.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n