One week with Apple Watch sleep tracking has made me a believer – but not in the benefits of seven hours of sleep each night. Instead, about my first days in bed with the watchOS 7 public beta software on my wrist, I realized it is in fact possible to train yourself in following a sleep program.
Sorry, right?
As I’m sure you, reader, can relate, most of the months my home has spent the last few months sabotaging my sleep program in ways I never thought possible. And, because I’m testing fitness trackers, I’m acutely aware of how much sleep I’ve lost.
But Apple Watch sleep tracking has brought me the tangible delay I needed: a routine. When Apple first announced that the long-awaited feature would be included in the company’s health instrument catalog, I will admit that I was skeptical about how it and the Apple Watch compare to even the best Fitbit in providing handling of sleep data.
After testing with watchOS 7 on mine Apple Watch Series 5, however, I’m convinced that the perfect sleep tracking system is for people like me, who just want to know if they’ve had enough rest, and want some simple tools to get enough zzz’s.
That’s because, just like closing Apple’s activity rings, taking a nap with the Apple Watch is a goal. While it may not be as simple as following fitness tracking for a run or a bike ride, managing a bedtime schedule may remind you to start winding up for the night if you intend to pursue your self-prescribed shuteye quota. .
Apple Watch setup for sleep tracking
Once I have the iOS 14 beta on my iPhone and watchOS 7 beta on my Apple Watch, sleep tracking was simple. In the native Health app, there is a new sleeping tablet that gives you the option to create a schedule or multiple schedules, depending on what time you want to sleep and wake up.
I made two schedules: One for the weekends that put me to sleep from 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and one for the weekend from 12:30 to 9 p.m.
Other configuration features include automatic sleep mode, which prevents you from turning on sleep during your desired sleep hours, and track time in bed with iPhone, which factors when you pick up or use your iPhone at night in your daily sleep data. You can also enable simplified iPhone and Apple Watch interfaces, which I appreciated as visual cues that I should try to sleep on, instead of watching TikToks.
Finally, I assigned a ‘Wind Down’ window of 30 minutes, which means at 11am or 12pm my Apple Watch and iPhone give me a little hug to start getting ready for sleep. This is also when my Watch will remind me of the juice, when the battery is less than 30% full.
It’s all about the Wind Down
Wind Down is the integral advantage of Apple Watch sleep tracking. I never knew what to do with myself in that early period between finishing an episode of Ozark and (hopefully) remembering my night stay regime.
My iPhone makes that half hour a little more intentional by inserting a series of preselected keyboard shortcuts during my Wind Down window. It launches Spotify so I can turn on some relaxing music (like Hamilton, because that’s all I’re listening to these days) and opens my calendar so I can wrap up my day knowing what’s on tap for tomorrow. I’ve added a shortcut key for Amazon Alexa so I can make adjustments to mine Philips Hue lights for bed, too.
You can completely skip this element of Apple Watch’s sleep tracking, but I found it fun playing with the idea of routine that Apple is trying to achieve.
Apple Watch data for sleep tracking
Most fitness trackers, such as those of Fitbit, Garmin, and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3, give you very detailed data on how much time you are in REM sleep, light sleep, or you sleep in bed. I, for one, may not care what stage of sleep I am in, or how much deep sleep I get – I just want to know if I have slept well – but I respect that not everyone feels that way.
The Galaxy Watch 3, and other fitness trackers I’ve tested, offer more action-packed insights that someone with consistent sleep issues may need. For me, going to bed the same night every night was enough of an adjustment to regulate my hours of rest. For others, something like Fitbit Premium, which offers personalized guidance on how to sleep better and have more energy, may be a better choice.
Is the Apple Watch’s sleep tracking accurate?
My colleague Henry T. Casey used AutoSleep, one of the best sleep tracking apps for Apple Watch from a third-party developer, now several months. When he followed it one night along Apple’s next sleep, he found that Apple gave him credit with almost a whole extra hour of sleep that he felt he was not getting.
TLDR: AutoSleep is more accurate because it can be calibrated, provides 24-hour tracking (naps), provides insight into sleep, has smart alarm. Apple Sleep is for people with a strict schedule who want a simple recording of sleep time and simple set and forget alarm.August 12, 2020
Henry reported his experience via Twitter, and an AutoSleep representative wrote back, saying the program “is more accurate because it can be calibrated, provides 24-hour tracking (naps), provides insight into sleep, has smart alarms.” Apple’s sleep software, on the other hand, is suitable “for people with a strict schedule who want a simple record of time to sleep.”
During my first week with Apple Watch sleep tracking, I also wore the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 on bed. I found that my Apple Watch did a better job of recognizing when I did not sleep in the morning at 5 o’clock in the morning, once because my black Labrador Retriever wanted to get up early in the morning and once because a nuisance both of us alarm clock clutter.
Here’s how to wake up with Apple’s sleep tracking. Kinda under the impression that my watch was registered to be seen when I got out of bed at 11:45 to get water, and around 5 o’clock when my dog tried to wake me up for breakfast. Pic.twitter.com/wgF6I1ZkXx11 August 2020
For the data it claims to track – how many hours you sleep and spend in bed – I think Apple’s readings are spot on. I plan to use it longer, and against competing fitness trackers, to see if my experience holds up.
The Apple Watch is thanks to a battery boost
Another edge-portable alternative from Samsung like Fitbit holds over the Apple Watch because it relates to sleep tracking is the battery life. Until recently, I charged my Apple Watch every night, every night, like I do my iPhone. This week I adjusted myself to jog it a bit before bed, and tomorrow again, when the new interface of Good Morning lets me know the battery status of my watch.
But the last two days of watching the Galaxy Watch 3, and some fitness trackers that last a week, now more than ever I think the Apple Watch needs a better battery life.
As Apple Watch 6 rumors and leaks prove true, then the next-generation watch should get this upgrade, which, IMHO, Apple Watch will only make sleep tracking more attractive. My competitive nature is sold to the routine needed to achieve my sleep goals, so is it too much to ask for hardware to match?
Apple Watch view for sleep tracking
The Apple Watch sleep tracking software I use is still in beta stages, which means Apple may change it before the official release of watchOS 7. As it is now, I’m more impressed than I am thought I would be.
What I like most is not the data for sleep tracking itself, but the guidance Apple provides in getting me ready for bed. No more doom rolling for me! Plus, Apple’s gamification of sleep – in the same way as with activity – has made me just as motivated to meet my bedtime goals as I exercise 30 minutes every day. Maybe that’s just what I needed to get my sleep schedule back on track.
