[seec]

I have been using an Apple Watch since 2018 (bought for the "superior" swim tracking back then) and I think they are really not that good for sports tracking.

There is 3rd party software that makes the deal much better but it's ridiculous that they aren't able to provide the same quality/usefulness natively and it's added costs/frictions in the use experience.

I don't care much for the smartwatch thing (I think they are largely useless for the most part) and I believe this is exactly why Apple is trying very hard to not open up.

For smartwatch purposes, something as expensive (and with such a small life) as an Apple Watch doesn't make a lot of sense. You are spending way too much on some basic functionality and for sports tracking Apple really needs to step up to provide value matching the price.

The Apple Watch Ultra is decent but widely overpriced for what it does, even the most ardent Apple fans will say as much (like MKBHD who basically acknowledged that the Ultra primary feature was to be able to show that you had the most expensive watch from Apple).