Jonathan Poritsky:

I don’t turn my phone completely off. I recognize that I could, but the fact is that there are things in this world that might be more important than the movie I’m in. I don’t think any notification that has gone off on my phone during a movie has ever more important than the movie itself, but when that day comes, do I really want to miss it? I’m talking about the big deal stuff: life and, more likely, death. I ignore the tiny buzzing in my pocket just fine.

Now, the exception to keeping my phone in my pocket is simple: if I ever get the dreaded double call, the phone will come partway, though never above the waist, out of my pocket to see who’s calling. If it’s nothing, it slips away out of sight. If it’s something then I spring into action out in the hallway. My loved ones know (as all loved ones really should) that the double call is reserved for emergencies only. I suppose I’d make a similar exception for something like ten texts in a row.

So how does this all play out if you have an Apple Watch?

Jonathan gets right one thing that I believe most people get wrong about the Apple Watch’s notification system: It’s not designed to make the notifications you don’t care about more tolerable, it’s designed to make the ones you don’t want to miss more accessible. There’s a profound difference between the two.