Welcome to another privacy tech focused article. Smart watches are incredibly stupid, and I fully regret supporting, buying, or reviewing them over the years. I’m being transparent: I apologize for ever recommending them.
Smart Watch vs Old School
I’ve shifted to an old-school Casio that cost me $30 (CAD), and it is light years better. This simple watch has one primary function—to tell the date and time—plus a basic stopwatch and alarm. That’s it.
Every smart watch from Apple, Google, or Samsung is designed with a primary function to collect and sell your data. Features like heart rate and step counting are just secondary excuses. Why do you think Google bought Fitbit? It wasn’t for the hardware; it was for the data. Setting up my Casio took less than two minutes without even opening the manual. Best of all, the battery is rated to last two to three years with no charging, no software upgrades, and no nonsense. It is time to discourage these privacy nightmares and the absurd addiction that comes with them.
Setting up an Apple Watch or a Fitbit is a total hassle. Most people I know spend a minimum of 10 minutes on it, but between pairing issues and mandatory software updates, it often drags on for 40 minutes. Bluetooth connectivity is atrocious and buggy across every brand I’ve used. Even after that nightmare setup, the battery only lasts a week or two at most.
The reliability is a joke. My Fitbit is currently out of sync by two days and two hours for no reason at all. It just breaks every few months. Meanwhile, my Casio hasn’t had a single issue; its only motive is to tell the time, and it does it perfectly.
Health Issues
Beyond the tech failures, there’s a massive mental health cost. Seeing everyone glued to their screens when I used to take the train to Toronto is sickening. I’ve dropped all social media, except YouTube, because companies like Meta are predatory with health data. Switching to a basic watch stopped the constant urge to check text alerts or calendar reminders. I feel mentally fresh now that I’m not obsessed with useless “trash” data like step counts or heart rates.
You don’t need a smartwatch to be healthy. During the pandemic, I was struggling with my weight while raising three young kids, but I managed to lose 42 pounds without any of these gadgets. Look at natural bodybuilders from the 1930s—they had phenomenal physiques with zero performance-enhancing drugs, no apps, and no smartwatches. They just used hard work and grit.
They didn’t need all this fancy stuff in the 30s, and neither do you. This tech will actually throw you way off. Trust me, I’ve done it without. When I was fat, I’ll admit it was hard to even get on the elliptical. I just walked outside and obsessed over hitting 10,000 or 15,000 steps on my tracker. It was only later, once I lost enough weight to actually use the elliptical properly, that I stopped counting steps entirely. That is when I got the leanest I’ve ever been in my life.
Going without a smart watch is actually healthier. Do your research, understand diet, and stop looking at screens. It’s just better for you.
Privacy Nightmare
Plus, the privacy situation is an absolute nightmare. Look at the facts: back in 2018, US military patrol routes and classified base locations in Afghanistan and Syria were leaked because of smart watch data.
People claim Apple is the king of privacy, but that is a big fat lie. They settled a class-action lawsuit after it was revealed Siri was recording conversations via the Apple Watch. Google also paid nearly $400 million in 2022 for tracking users’ location data even after they turned it off. By settling, these companies are basically admitting they’re guilty behind closed doors.
Now, authorities are even using smart watch data in DUI cases in 2025. They’ll get a warrant for your Google or Apple data to see if your heart rate spiked or if your GPS shows you were swerving. I am 100 percent against drinking and driving, but this is a slippery slope. What if you’re doing something completely legal, like protesting, and they use all this calculated data against you in court? It’s a dangerous precedent.
Imagine you’re at a peaceful protest and the police start harassing you. Your heart rate spikes because you’re scared—not because you’re doing anything wrong—but that data could be used to falsely accuse you of aggression. That is the core of the privacy problem.
Regulations are severely lacking, especially in the US. Most people don’t realize that the health data on your smartwatch—your heart rate, age, and weight—is not protected by HIPAA. These companies can, and absolutely do, sell that data.
This leads to a massive data trap with insurance companies. They’ll offer you discounts if you share your watch data to “prove” you’re healthy. But what if you have a genetic heart irregularity or a hereditary disorder? Even if you eat well and exercise, they can use that data to hike your rates or deny you coverage entirely. It’s a terrible idea that should be outlawed.
Now, some argue that Apple Watches save lives by detecting heart issues. While that’s true, it doesn’t excuse the privacy invasion. Technology has advanced to the point where these chips could function independently on the watch. Why does it need to sync to your phone and send your most intimate data over the internet to be sold just to alert you of a health issue?
Traditional watches are just light years better. They tell the time accurately, have fantastic battery life, and don’t suffer from buggy software or syncing issues. They aren’t “smart,” which means they aren’t collecting your data or trying to manipulate you. They have one purpose: to tell the time.
