Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

After 3 days, my Black Sport Band is wearing down.

Andrew.s said:
Yeah, the oil/rubber on rubber markings are definitely normal wear, but not so much the peeling.
Click to expand...
I would say it is normal wear, because...it's rubber, you know? It's gonna wear. Instead of swapping bands and wasting natural resources on trashing a fully functional band, just take an eraser to it and rub off the rest of that surface coating. Your new band is going to start looking exactly the same eventually, wether it's within days or weeks or months. Because, it's rubber. Rubber wears.

Next batch of bands Apple makes might not have any surface coat at all, as it's just costing them money when panicked people run back to have their bands replaced. :p
 
Mine's been good for about 5 weeks and counting. I wear it all the time, to the gym and occasional riding my bike to/from work, which is about 15 miles round trip.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AppleWes
Buy a leather loop, you will never look back. I put a loop on my SGS and it looks like a whole new watch, now I only use the sport bad if im doing outdoor work, or running. The quality of the sport band isn't good, your replacement will be the same, its only rubber
 
  • Like
Reactions: Thepixelsedge
I've decided not to exchange the strap. I agree that all of the black ones will eventually peel off the coating.

Instead I bought a strap adapter and a nice leather band for occasions when I need the AWS to look better. The rubber strap will be reserved for workouts.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lennyvalentin
stonerwinst said:
How long ago did you get it swapped? Does the new one have the same issue?

Wondering if the issue is isolated to certain batch of bands.
Click to expand...
I got it swapped on Saturday night. I know plenty of people who haven't had the peeling issue and they've had the watch for months. Again, the shiny oily looking wear is totally normal though. I got that again after one day of use.
 
ChrisH10 said:
So I got my Apple Watch Sport on Monday night and put it on Tuesday morning. I've been wearing it for about 2-3 days now and I'm already seeing wear on the Black Sport Band. Black Sport Discoloration

Now, I've owned other watches before with the same type of material and I've never seen a watch wear down this fast. Here's a comparison between a watch I've owned/worn for two years (going through sweat,dust,dirt,showers,etc) compared next to the Black Sport band that I got Monday night.

Timex vs Apple Watch Band Wear

I really don't think it should be wearing down this fast (I can understand if it wears down after a couple months, but not after 2 days). I've contacted Apple Support and the representatives were surprised and nervous as well since they ordered the same watch as what I have. They said it wasn't normal and they would look into it as well as replace the band for me since this was a special case.

For those wondering, it seems like the matte finish is coming off the watch and is not repairable (as in running through alcohol). Also, the wear is on both sides of the watch (front and back)

Does anyone else have the same issue as me?
Click to expand...

I have the same issue with mine. I have the black Apple Watch all black and the band... Just not happy after $600+
 
Just checked my blue band that came with the new gold version and it too had those marks where there is contact. I used the magic eraser on it and it looks new, not that it was a big deal anyway.
 
Weird. I wear the hell out of mine, and no wear marks at all.

Wonder if it could be related to some product you are using (soap, etc.). A friend and I had the same FitBit, but she had to replace hers twice while mine still looked brand new. Turns out she was using a sunscreen lotion daily that was breaking down the band.
 
Andrew.s said:
Yeah, the oil/rubber on rubber markings are definitely normal wear, but not so much the peeling. I had the same peeling on my band after 2 weeks and got it swapped over the weekend at the genius bar.
Click to expand...
UPDATE: Almost 3 months later now and still haven't experienced any peeling again. All is good.
 
I had the peeling issue as well again and again and again on black sports bands. I eventually got someone in the customer relations department at AppleCare (they have a lot more power than the normal AppleCare reps). I was sent 3 black sport bands before they found a different solution. After 1-2 weeks, each black sport band started having the same wear issues that are detailed here. I wasn't concerned about the wear on the bottom of the band, where it touched the connector and all that, I was getting the "peeling" on top of the band, on places it didn't even touch my skin. Was very strange. And it kept happening again and again. Meanwhile I have green and white sport bands and they never had any issues. Only black. Well I really wanted a black band so the customer relations rep suggested they could send me the black classic buckle. Great idea except I had a black sport watch, so it wouldn't match. Get this - she then offered to upgrade my watch. Not kidding. They took back my sport watch and gave me a brand new $700 stainless steel apple watch with classic buckle. So yeah, that worked out okay for me.

Best part is that I was able to keep one of the peeling bands and a few weeks after getting my new watch I spent a good hour rubbing the peeling layer away and now it looks pretty normal lol. So I ended up with the best of both worlds lol.

Apple really did right by me. So if any rep is telling you they won't replace it, they will. You just need to get another rep.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jgelin
paulgandersman said:
I had the peeling issue as well again and again and again on black sports bands. I eventually got someone in the customer relations department at AppleCare (they have a lot more power than the normal AppleCare reps). I was sent 3 black sport bands before they found a different solution. After 1-2 weeks, each black sport band started having the same wear issues that are detailed here. I wasn't concerned about the wear on the bottom of the band, where it touched the connector and all that, I was getting the "peeling" on top of the band, on places it didn't even touch my skin. Was very strange. And it kept happening again and again. Meanwhile I have green and white sport bands and they never had any issues. Only black. Well I really wanted a black band so the customer relations rep suggested they could send me the black classic buckle. Great idea except I had a black sport watch, so it wouldn't match. Get this - she then offered to upgrade my watch. Not kidding. They took back my sport watch and gave me a brand new $700 stainless steel apple watch with classic buckle. So yeah, that worked out okay for me.

Best part is that I was able to keep one of the peeling bands and a few weeks after getting my new watch I spent a good hour rubbing the peeling layer away and now it looks pretty normal lol. So I ended up with the best of both worlds lol.

Apple really did right by me. So if any rep is telling you they won't replace it, they will. You just need to get another rep.
Click to expand...
I am having the peeling issues too. I will call apple care tonight to see if they can help me. I can only hope they will treat me as well as they have you.
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    1.2 MB · Views: 414
after how many years.. black sport band is still the same after days of usage...
so disappointing.
 
Photography said:
Sorry, but I don't think this is acceptable to pay $350-400 and say it's "normal wear and tear" to be doing this after only three days, or even at all.
Click to expand...
I’m sure Apple doesn’t think it’s acceptable either. And that’s why the band will be replaced.
[doublepost=1520008134][/doublepost]
Newtons Apple said:
The bands is only a couple of bucks for them to make. I had one and in less than a week it looked like the OP's images. I am thinking it is normal.
Click to expand...
It’s not normal. My black one doesn’t look like that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back