I hope they do otherwise I'm in trouble. I've spent £527 on bands. If they are not compatible I'll have to skip the second gen so I can get enough wear out of my bands.
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Apple Watch 2 and current bands/straps
- Thread starter smj1873
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I´ve been studying the schematics very closely today and it seems that there really isn't much to shrink down. Sure, a mm here and there, but I´m guessing they want to keep the digital crown in its current form and position for a while, as it will be as iconic to the watch as the home button is to the iPhone. The only real problem with shrinking the thickness is the curve that the band connector has "must fit" the "new form factor", ie. the curving. Doesn't seem like a huge problem. Besides, we know that thinning in Apple starts with lifting the OLED closer to the surface, so they might be doing that to gain better battery life for possible new sensor(s) before deciding to change the outer specs. of the case.
Just my 2 cents.
Just my 2 cents.
A 1mm change in the case? Don't think so. The case is already considerably thicker than the connectors.
Got it. But they have a lot to shave off on the case before they resort to shrinking the grooves.
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Yeah, obviously, if they go that route then the bands won't fit. They can still shave off a mm over and under the grooves before making too much impact on the digital crown, was my point.
I would imagine that it will stay the same for next gen. Jony Ive just announced more sport band colors to come out later this year a Milan design week. I highly doubt they would announce new bands halfway through the year and then completely change them on the next gen
Hello,
As one of the many of you I was in the initial group watching flights from overseas anxiously awaiting my watch to be delivered and after some time and upgrading my band to the SS link bracelet I am considering selling my watch. Now I know this wouldn't be the appropriate thread if this my only statement but I am wondering if we think the bands from Apple Watch 1 will be compatible with Apple Watch 2? If I decide to sell my watch and wait for the 2nd version id like to keep my expensive band and wait things out and just sell the Apple Watch case right now. Any thoughts?
As one of the many of you I was in the initial group watching flights from overseas anxiously awaiting my watch to be delivered and after some time and upgrading my band to the SS link bracelet I am considering selling my watch. Now I know this wouldn't be the appropriate thread if this my only statement but I am wondering if we think the bands from Apple Watch 1 will be compatible with Apple Watch 2? If I decide to sell my watch and wait for the 2nd version id like to keep my expensive band and wait things out and just sell the Apple Watch case right now. Any thoughts?
I would think that Apple would not want to tick off customers who invested hundreds (or even thousands) in purchasing multiple Apple Watch bands, but you never know. If they turn out to be incompatible I will be glad I bought inexpensive third party straps 
One of my third party bands (and another I am considering) uses adapters, so I could continue to use that strap with the new adapters if necessary.
One of my third party bands (and another I am considering) uses adapters, so I could continue to use that strap with the new adapters if necessary.
Give me one reason — just one — to change the best quick-change watch strap system I've ever seen.
You know... let me just gaze into my magic crystal ball healing pyramid.... Bear with me... You know what? Maybe. Maybe the band will work. Maybe it won't. I'd say there is a finite percentage chance it will somewhere between 0 and 100.
I wouldn't be surprised if Apple makes us buy the bands from them again. It'd be yet another way for them to make money. Cynicism aside, though, if the next watch is considered to be a "1s" (i.e. if watch updates are similar to iphones), there wouldn't be much different externally.
Agreed, at this point of trying to increase marketshare it would be ludicrous of apple to make the next generation incompatible with the older watch bands.
I doubt Apple would change watch bands for the 2nd gen Watch, but also don't think it's a "standard" that will last forever. Apple has shown it's not afraid of ditching standards (30 pin > lightning, multiple ports > USB C, ADB > USB [dating myself there lol], and I'm sure they'll be more...)
I think it would be commercial suicide for the AW1 bands to not be compatible with AW2.
If the AW2 is meaningfully better, I might buy one. But if it's not compatible with the hugely expensive Link band I bought from Apple, then there's no way I'm buying one: I don't care how much "better" it is.
Equally, would-be purchasers of the AW2 might hold back for fear that Apple will shaft them when the AW3 comes out.
Apple has ditched standards before as L.C.W. says, but there's always been good reasons for that. I can't think of a case for screwing over every first adopter of the AW1. The AW is not so compelling a product that people will be desperate to upgrade it. Apple needs to play nice if it wants us to buy more.
If the AW2 is meaningfully better, I might buy one. But if it's not compatible with the hugely expensive Link band I bought from Apple, then there's no way I'm buying one: I don't care how much "better" it is.
Equally, would-be purchasers of the AW2 might hold back for fear that Apple will shaft them when the AW3 comes out.
Apple has ditched standards before as L.C.W. says, but there's always been good reasons for that. I can't think of a case for screwing over every first adopter of the AW1. The AW is not so compelling a product that people will be desperate to upgrade it. Apple needs to play nice if it wants us to buy more.
So, the 2nd Gen Watch does everything you could ever want from a wrist-worn computer, and a few things you didn't know you needed. Yet because it is incompatible with your Gen 1 watch band, you're just going to dump the whole platform?
And why do you think Apple needs you to upgrade your Gen 1 watch. There's over a million iPhones in the US, and at best Apple may sell 10 million watches domestically in its first year. Clearly Apple has a massive untapped market that will likely buy at least 10 million watches next year, especially the holdouts for GPS, and other key features that were missing.
As for a justifiable reason to change the band connector designs ... how about introducing smart bands that connect via that "hidden diagnostic port"? In its current state, I don't see it being used. However, a redesign that requires the lugs to fit differently might make that concept a reality. That seems like a pretty compelling reason to orphan the first ten bands.
Apple doesn't have to do anything differently with the watch than they ever have done before. The investment in watch bands is not likely to be so massive such that customers can't accept the hit. If so, they probably should have thought about what they were buying and who they were buying it from before they did, as well as getting a better job before being so reckless with income they didn't have to spend so frivolously. When the original iPhone came out, I spent $599. Eventually got a $100 Apple Store gift card following Apple's $200 price drop only 3 months later. Then the following June the 3G came out. The fact I'd overpaid by $200, and had to replace every accessory I purchased for use with the original iPhone, didn't matter in the end. I still stepped up and bought the 3G because ... it had 3G! And that's all it took. I suspect anyone who's found the Watch useful will just as easily justify the 2nd Gen upgrade regardless if the first gen bands aren't compatible.
And it's not like the 1st Gen watch will be totally useless. In fact I expect Apple to keep selling them for $100 discount, along with the accessory watch bands. Meaning, yours will likely have a decent resale value, as well as all those watch bands you're so heavily invested in.
As and when there's a compelling reason to change the band connectors, then yes, of course they'll change. But I suspect the existing system will stay for a while yet. Like many, I've bought a few watch straps (mostly from Apple: the Milanese loop and a few sport bands) and love being able to change the look day to day.
If the system changes, I'd still buy the next generation watch if it offered something more that I wanted but I'd be reluctant to buy extra straps whereas if the system stays the same and there are new colours that I like then I'll probably be in the market for a few more or for a leather loop or whatever. Ultimately, I think Apple get more of my money if they keep the connectors the same.
If the system changes, I'd still buy the next generation watch if it offered something more that I wanted but I'd be reluctant to buy extra straps whereas if the system stays the same and there are new colours that I like then I'll probably be in the market for a few more or for a leather loop or whatever. Ultimately, I think Apple get more of my money if they keep the connectors the same.
And what's a "compelling" reason to you?
Here's the thing, the current Watch design is carefully balanced in its proportions. That seems to be a major consideration. If Apple makes the watch thinner, as many expect, will the current band connector proportions still look right?
While that may not be a compelling reason for you, it may be for Apple and the fashion industry they seem eager to impress.
I'd also question whether it's your money Apple wants. A couple of hundred dollars in Sport bands is nothing compared to a $600 watch, and Apple wants the big game.
I had a girlfriend who bought a pair of $500 boots she wore all the time for a year. Then almost to the day she bought a new dress and announced she needed some new boots. I encouraged her that her old boots would look great with the new dress and she shot me down without discussion. And she never wore those boots again, nor many of the outfits she bought to wear with those boots. Funny how fashion works. Spending another $500 on a new set of boots to match one dress that cost much less than the boots, not to mention replacing many of her previous outfits with new ones to go with the new boots taught me a very important lesson -- for some people being in fashion is far more important than maximizing the value of a previous purchase.
Apple wants to sell to my ex-girlfriend, who has to have the latest boot style, and doesn't care that she'll have to replace much of her wardrobe to go with it. I mean why do you think Apple sold millions of 16GB iPhone 6Ss in Rose Gold? Was it because of the faster processor? Was it the better camera that could shoot higher resolution pictures and 4K video? Was it the 3D Touch that nobody really knew if they needed? Or was it because rose gold was the new must have color? I'd wager the latter was the only thing that mattered to a great many of Apple's customers, whether they just bought a 6 last year, or not. Who knows, maybe they had to buy new boots to match their new phone in the process.
I got my watch replace under warranty today and it came in a box like this. I imagine they'll do something similar for Apple Watch 2 for current AW owners.
Apple is not afraid to change connectors, but before that they always get used for many hardware generations. I'm very sure the current, brand-new Watch connector will be used for several years at least.
This is not exactly the same thing. For starters, the Watch is a wearable fashion item. Apple has never created a fashion wearable before. We have no idea what kind of priority they will give the outward design appearance from year to year. Unlike the iPhone, I doubt the watch will keep the identical body for two years straight.
Also, it's first generation product. Apple's iOS devices have changed radically from 1st gen to 2nd, usually because the implement new features they discovered while they were creating the first gen. The "diagnostic port" may be one such area for use with smart bands. I don't necessarily see them just removing the port cover and adding contacts to the band lugs. That design seems very rudimentary to me.
This means the lug connectors could change to accommodate a new style shape, or contour, or for a slimmer proportion in relation to the new design, or to accommodate a new technology. Better to change it after the first generation, than perpetuate a problem for better integrating the new technology later.
Now I agree 100% that the current Watch connector design will be used for many years, but that doesn't mean that last years bands will fit next years watches, especially for the 2nd generation when the "diagnostic port" is introduced into the bands. While the connector will work essentially identically between every generation, proportional scaling and design contours may dictate the dimensions of the actual lug must change. I can even imagine a situation where the old band lugs still work in the slot, they may just stick out slightly on the sides ... are the 38mm and 42mm bands interchangeable now? If they are, then that's the kind of change I'm describing with future compatibility, and the lugs fit but are either too narrow or too wide for the new case. If not, that also matches the scenario I describe for future incompatibility, in which the lug is scaled for proportion between the watch sizes.