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Well, you do know that the watch face would be running off the Iphone... That maybe why they don't allow it. Once they can go native, maybe they will.

Wouldn't the faces be for upcoming AW apps, not iPhone apps w/ AW connectivity?
 
The alternative would be 40,000 new "apps" submitted in the first week.

39,996 of which would be total garbage.

And all of them completely obsolete when Apple's face design SDK is eventually released.

It would be the flashlight app all over again but with the market now worth at least 10 times as much.
 
Give them a couple of months and they'll probably reverse the decision. Likely around WWDC when they announce WatchFaceKit. I don't think Apple wants to get into the digital watch face business...nor should they. They should allow talented third parties to do it and then Apple can take a cut of the sales.
 
I totally agree with you. Apple got way too popular with consumers. They should have stayed the small tech company who borrowed money ($150million) from Microsoft in 1997. Now they have too many consumers who own Apple products and its reputation as a geek company is no more. They don't even listen to what users want anymore releasing all this garbage.

Well, count me even more out of the Apple watch game. I wasn't planning on getting one yet, but what I liked about the idea was the ability to change the face. I mean, that's the core benefit of an Apple watch over another watch in its price class. My plan was to turn all the notifications off and enjoy it for the timepiece aspects.

I'm sure Apple will sell a bunch of these no matter how many mistakes are made in policy or marketing, but I'm just a bit tired with all the Apple crap these days. BTW, long time Apple user (since 1985).

Screw up Final Cut Pro; screw up iTunes UI; screw up iPhone UI; maps disaster; push, push, push change on where they want users to go rather than responsiveness to user needs.
 
Once again Apple is being help to an unfair higher standard.

Does Rolex allow a third party to custom build a watch face that is supported by Rolex? No. I think not!

Does Rolex have a programmable smart watch where it's even an option?

While the answer is no, the strict policy is still in effect.

You send your Rolex in for cleaning, any non-Rolex parts are removed and not returned.

If you want to change your Rolex watch face, they will sell you a new one. However, they have to install it and they will NOT return the old one.

So, yes it is similar.
 
I'm pretty sure this is so people don't make Watch faces that could potentially be violating some copyright?
 
It's curious then that Apple has no way for their built-in digital watch faces to show seconds. Didn't they think that might be important for some people?
You bring up what I view as one of Apple design weaknesses. Apple products are 'so well designed' and Apple is so confident that their design is 'perfect' they don't let people change much their self. It don't occur to Apple that their design decisions may not be perfect for all. No design is perfect for all. Many watches show seconds on a digital face, I would never say Apple should have shipped this as the default faces, but giving me the ability to download this type of face don't impact the products for those who are happy with the Apple chosen defaults. On the other hand maybe Apple is telling me if I am a creative geek who whats that kind of choice I should be using Android Wear...?
 
Folks, if you don't know that this is _all_ about battery life, you haven't been paying attention. The Apple Watch is on a _very_ strict energy diet. Remember current watch "apps" are really just appendages of iPhone apps, that are supposed to provide quick access to small bits of useful information. Dumping updated time information / graphics over over Bluetooth every _second_ to keep a third-party watch face working would chew up the battery in no time. We're still far away from having _real_ standalone third-party apps on the watch - give them time. All the conspiracy theories are a bit loony toons.
 
I'm honestly happy with the selection that we have, but I'd like to see what third party developers could come up with.

Just more Apple COMMUNISM, trying to FORCE people to accept whatever Johnny Ive considers "appealing" and reject what the consumer or other developers might WANT (e.g. see the Yosemite is ugly thread). :mad:

Strict controls over appearance? WTF business is it of Apple what you do with your Apple watch so long as it's not illegal? If you want your clock face to look like a happy face, so be it if it makes YOU happy. My god what control freaks. I'm starting to think Microsoft may be the future once again, after all.

They didn't allow backgrounds on the iPhone for several generations too. Give it time.

YOU give it time. I say screw Apple. :p :apple:

I can only hope someone hacks the living hell out of this thing and jailbreaks it an then offers a real app store that isn't based around Apple Communism, which I'm personally getting pretty tired of.
 
Just more Apple COMMUNISM, trying to FORCE people to accept whatever Johnny Ive considers "appealing" and reject what the consumer or other developers might WANT (e.g. see the Yosemite is ugly thread). :mad:

Strict controls over appearance? WTF business is it of Apple what you do with your Apple watch so long as it's not illegal? If you want your clock face to look like a happy face, so be it if it makes YOU happy. My god what control freaks. I'm starting to think Microsoft may be the future once again, after all.




YOU give it time. I say screw Apple. :p :apple:

I can only hope someone hacks the living hell out of this thing and jailbreaks it an then offers a real app store that isn't based around Apple Communism, which I'm personally getting pretty tired of.

You keep saying apple Communism. Sounds more like capitalism to me.
 
While the answer is no, the strict policy is still in effect.

You send your Rolex in for cleaning, any non-Rolex parts are removed and not returned.

If you want to change your Rolex watch face, they will sell you a new one. However, they have to install it and they will NOT return the old one.

So, yes it is similar.

Other than telling the time and date, the similarities between a Rolex and the Apple Watch are next to nothing.

I understand your point. I just think the OP was going a little off the deep end with an analogy that doesn't quite fit.
 
Does Rolex have a programmable smart watch where it's even an option?

Perfect reasoning, I wish you were around every time someone says "Apple watch is crap. My Casio Watch lasts 37 months with one battery", it's probably just bad timing :) . Cheers.
 
A pity. Surely they'll allow 'em later, but true to form they'll allow increased capabilities gradually to make sure each major step doesn't get irreversibly screwed up.

The two I want to write/get:
- A "bezier numbers" version where the sorta-cursive form melts from one number into the next.
- A highly context-dependent version changing the display depending on circumstances: normal face for regular general activity, ETA when apparently driving to a recurring/scheduled destination, dark-friendly long-period (say, quarter-hour accuracy is enough) sleep monitor version at night, etc - to wit, it watches what you're doing and gives an expression of time matching the temporal measurement you really want.

----------

Just more Apple COMMUNISM, trying to FORCE people to accept

Not force. You don't like the "walled garden" and the fact the caretaker is trying to keep weeds out of the new section? You are welcome to leave; try https://www.android.com/intl/en_us/wear/
 
Seriously?!
I'm pretty skeptical of the Apple Watch, even more so after seeing it in person, but I figured alternate watch apps were going to be the big hit app for it.

This is just a whole new kind of stupid.
 
Just more Apple COMMUNISM, trying to FORCE people to accept whatever Johnny Ive considers "appealing" and reject what the consumer or other developers might WANT (e.g. see the Yosemite is ugly thread). :mad:

Strict controls over appearance? WTF business is it of Apple what you do with your Apple watch so long as it's not illegal? If you want your clock face to look like a happy face, so be it if it makes YOU happy. My god what control freaks. I'm starting to think Microsoft may be the future once again, after all.



YOU give it time. I say screw Apple. :p :apple:

I can only hope someone hacks the living hell out of this thing and jailbreaks it an then offers a real app store that isn't based around Apple Communism, which I'm personally getting pretty tired of.

Like I said, I would like to see other faces, but honestly I do like what we have right now. I really like the utility and color faces, those are my favorite. Even if this wasn't an Apple-branded watch, I'd still think the faces were awesome. I'm not an Apple-brainwashed fanatic, although I do really like their products.
 
Time for someone to run up and throw a miniature brass-headed hammer through this tiny screen. Who would've thought that Apple's solution to 1984 was not to get rid of total control, but to make its customers desire it.
 
Time for someone to run up and throw a miniature brass-headed hammer through this tiny screen. Who would've thought that Apple's solution to 1984 was not to get rid of total control, but to make its customers desire it.

So very true!!
 
They didn't allow backgrounds on the iPhone for several generations too. Give it time.

:)

Humor isn't dead!

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Yeah, people said the same about the Apple TV 3rd gen..... Yet still no jailbreak has appeared.

I honestly don't think they tried very hard. Many even claimed as much.

I didn't mind much because I'm a streaming device whore... Roku does so much more anyway and has a wifi remote. The Apple TV is antiquated and a new version would be a ridiculous sell, with an IR remote. I'm plenty aware of apps but the Remote app is even inferior to The Roku app.

Anyway, terribly off-topic.

I think the watch has a much higher chance of being jailbroken than the ATV and I would love that. Restricting watch faces is asinine, sorry, it's "Apple". We all know how the game is played in Cupertino. No one should be remotely surprised by this.
 
I'd argue that telling the time is not the core function of the Watch, despite the marketing and historic purpose of watches. The core function of the Watch is receiving notifications.

As John Gruber has pointed out, the Watch fails in this fundamental respect because you have to move your wrist in a specific way for the watch face to turn on. Forget about discreetly checking the time out of the corner of your eye when you're in a meeting or with someone.

Personally I'm not impressed with Apple's watch faces. They may have spent 100s of hours designing them, but they don't move me at all, hopefully developers can come in to make something better eventually.
 
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