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Apple Watch Launches April 24, Price Ranges From $349 to Over $10,000
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I have to disagree. There is a difference here between a typical "fashion" watch, and a prestige watch. Apple have priced the Edition well into extremely high end territory and I honestly don't just consider those kinds of brands to be 'fashion' watches but a well established, highly respected swiss brands for discerning customers. Of course there is a fashion element to them, but that's natural I suppose when it's they're so expensive.
Apple seem to feel they can just stroll into an extremely well established industry, with gold *alloys* (not pure gold I notice) - and not even a bespoke version of the 'movement' / heart of the watch but just the same heart repackaged in a different case, and price right up there with those same long established historically significant swiss brands.
It's hard to say but I think they're going to be in for a shock. Unless the kinds of buyers of these things are really that stupid as to throw away money like that. But you'd have to be certifiably insane to waste that kind of money on an Apple Watch, and not spend it on a Patek Phillipe or JLC or Rolex or similar.
It is so amazing how many people can't understand this. There's a $10,000 watch. Uh, don't buy it. Apple even created one that's $9,651 cheaper!
It's very similar to the maniacal crowing about things like the 128GB iPad, a totally tricked out Mac Pro, the price of buying every song on iTunes, etc. OK, maybe the last one I made up. But damn, people. Apple makes a bunch of products for a bunch of people. I still have zero interest in a Mac Pro because it's almost $3,000 to start with. But there are a lot of people who need something like that.
I would love one of these watches, especially if the fitness tracking works like I think it does or better. If it's the right motivational tool, then $400 or so would be a bargain. But it's hard to tell. So like I've done with every other Apple product, I'm waiting a while. If at some point they can be found starting at $299 thanks to a sale, I might be there. I got my original 8GB iPhone for $249 by waiting about 10 months and getting a refurb. OK, the 3G came out two months later at $50 cheaper, but I got to own the original one and never did like the look of the 3G with that candy-coated back.
must say that the majority of posts i see criticising the prices dont seem to be doing so because of concern for their own wallet.
and this is a website for people expressing their views not merely views on products that you are the "intended marketed" for.
it contributes nothing to constantly hammer on about this.
I think it's too early for Apple to release this.
Sometime in the future (maybe 5-10 years away), when we no longer need sim cards in our phones and battery/solar tech is vastly improved, then the watch becomes a viable option. There are times where a phone is impractical to carry with you (out running, swimming, surfing etc), and if you could have the ability to do a limited amount of stuff you would normally do with your phone without actually having your phone with you then that would be amazing and really would solve a first world problem.
For this iteration I was kind of hoping it would at least have GPS so it could track my run/cycle without me needing to carry my phone as well, but I guess that is a few versions away.
Wish they had spent the time and energy on something we are ready for, like a proper Apple TV using some of the tech they put into the iMac.
Sometime in the future (maybe 5-10 years away), when we no longer need sim cards in our phones and battery/solar tech is vastly improved, then the watch becomes a viable option. There are times where a phone is impractical to carry with you (out running, swimming, surfing etc), and if you could have the ability to do a limited amount of stuff you would normally do with your phone without actually having your phone with you then that would be amazing and really would solve a first world problem.
For this iteration I was kind of hoping it would at least have GPS so it could track my run/cycle without me needing to carry my phone as well, but I guess that is a few versions away.
Wish they had spent the time and energy on something we are ready for, like a proper Apple TV using some of the tech they put into the iMac.
I love Apple products but this is the first time I have thought Apple have lost the plot and are profit chasing.
Mess strap $149. Comparable Mesh watch strap from eBay delivered from China £2.19
18 hours battery life, IP7 rating, 1st Gen product built in China. Not impressed at all. Apple act like it was a watch designed and built by God himself.
Pebble Time Steel it is
Mess strap $149. Comparable Mesh watch strap from eBay delivered from China £2.19
18 hours battery life, IP7 rating, 1st Gen product built in China. Not impressed at all. Apple act like it was a watch designed and built by God himself.
Pebble Time Steel it is
When I was in Harrods last year they had gold iPhone cases that cost close to $100K USD. Admittedly there were some diamonds involved too.
But think about it. Apple are having to charge $10K-$17K for their gold watch. Imagine how much more metal is in a laptop or even a phone.
As for your point about how few people there are with money to burn, I would point out that Rolex produce 2,000 watches a day. In 2011 (the last year I could find data on) they COSC certified over 750K watches. Their nearest (and also expensive) competitor Omega certified 500K.
So take the two best selling luxury watch brands and they certified well over one million watches. Most of what they make cost well north of $6000.
While I don't suspect there are tons of people willing to spend $10K to $17K on an Apple Watch, I believe there is a market for it. I don't think Apple would be stupid enough to put this much effort in if there were not.
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I love Apple products but this is the first time I have thought Apple have lost the plot and are profit chasing.
Mess strap $149. Comparable Mesh watch strap from eBay delivered from China £2.19
18 hours battery life, IP7 rating, 1st Gen product built in China. Not impressed at all. Apple act like it was a watch designed and built by God himself.
Pebble Time Steel it is
That is utter nonsense. Milanese straps frequently retail in that price point. I just did some searches in fact and saw many selling for $80-$190.
Saying that you think you found something that maybe looks slightly similar on eBay for under $5 isn't the same at all. I could find a 'Rolex' that claims to look like the real thing. In fact I have a work colleague who seems addicted to buying fake Rolexes, but when you handle them it is pretty obvious they are nothing like the real thing.
You also have to understand that the whole 'made in China' insult is both culturally offensive, and not synonymous with bad products. The iPhone 6 is made in China, and is arguably one of the best built phones around today.
Ultimately, the Apple Watch isn't for everyone. Enjoy your Pebble.
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The kind of person who drops $10K on a first gen Apple Watch just because it is made of gold, could care less what it will be worth in five years.
But that said, the fact it is actually gold will keep the value up there. Remember, the technology has a retail value of about $500. So the other $9500 is mostly the cost of the metal. If gold keeps it's value, so will the watch.
I bought a Pebble when there was no other thing like it out there. It was weird, ugly and felt cheap. Now that Apple announced the Apple Watch prices my Pebble looks great, beautiful and feels great! Thanks Apple but no thanks!
You act like Tim Cook rolled the dice and towards the end of last year went into the boardroom at Apple and said, "Okay geeks, I want a watch on my desk by this Christmas."
Just the look and attention to detail of things like the interchangeable bands and digital crown and so on, tell me that they put some serious thought and several years of development into this thing.
Pretty sure smarter people than you or I spent some serious time, effort and talent on this thing.
First of all, the Edition is kind of a red herring. The kind of people who live in Dubai and spend their time taking pictures of lions standing on the roof of their Ferraris (that's actually a thing!
) don't have to decide between an Edition and a Patek Phillipe, they have have both, or several of each. It would be as big a decision as you or I buying a song on iTunes for 99c.They won't agonize over what else they could have bought.
I gave this example before, but have you heard of bottle service? People actually drop thousands of dollars for the right to sit in the VIP section in night clubs and then spend thousands on drinks that have been marked up over 1000%. Not because it's a smart move, but simply because they can.
In fact it was in the news recently, one of these rich idiots posted a receipt from a nightclub where he had spent over $300K in a single evening.
Normal people will decide if they want to make the leap from an aluminum to a stainless steel version. Crazy rich people say, I'll get three Edition watches and wear them all at once, while petting my tiger. Then they'll hash tag it with something crass.
I say good for Apple for relieving some of these idiots of their cash. Perhaps they can use the profits to invent the next cool laptop for normal people.
The problem is that the watch is NOT pure gold. They are classifying it as 18k gold. So it is an alloy but unlike other 18k alloys, they are actually using less gold per volume. They are getting away with still calling it 18k because they are mixing it with ceramic and not other metals. So even the "gold" part of the equation is pretty much a sham. Anybody buying this for the gold will be in for a rude awakening if they think that part is going to hold any value.
And if a Porsche Macan were $20K, I'd buy one this afternoon.
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It is 18K gold. By definition it is not pure gold. If it were, it would be 24K gold, and would be susceptible to damage very easily.
I'm not a metallurgist, so I don't know how easy it would be to melt this down and reclaim the gold. And since none of us know precisely what the chemical composition of the Apple Watch is, I don't think any of us are qualified to comment.
My thinking though is that if they can claim it is 18K gold, then there is still plenty of gold in there that could be reclaimed. I don't believe that once you have made a gold Apple Watch the gold is gone forever.
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In 2011 (the most recent stats I could find) the top two luxury watch makers, Rolex and Omega produced and certified for sale about 1.2 million watches. And keep in mind that neither company makes anything for less than $4,000 at this point.
People wear watches. Maybe not people of college age, at least not as much. But plenty of people wear watches. Have you ever walked into jewelry store, or the jewelry department in a store like Macy's or Nordstrom? They have hundreds of watches for sale. Many costing thousands of dollars. If no one bought or purchased watches any more why would they waste all that retail space?
Just because YOU don't wear a watch, doesn't mean no one does.
I'm a businessman who travels a lot. 122 flights last year and 128 the year before. I'd love a watch that could display my boarding pass, tell me what gate to go to, switch time zones when I do, tell me what the weather is going to be like, and which hotel I booked. All at a glance without pulling out my phone.
I can't wait to own one of these.
I have been on the fence about purchasing one since it was originally announced last fall. At this point, I think I'm going to sit this round out. As tempting as it is, I don't think I'll use the watch all that much. I don't mind pulling my iPhone out of my pocket to text someone back or look something up. I've never been a watch person anyway, so I know that has some influence on me. I'm sure once the watch is released, I will go to my local Apple store to check it out. But I'll probably wait until at least the 2nd generation is released, if I even decide I want one.
I think what the previous poster was referring to is that Apple isn't using 18K gold in the traditional sense. They are using this patent, http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph...srchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=20140361670.PGNR., which is a metal matrix alloy. It's a way for Apple to get away with having less actual gold in this watch body than would be the case in a traditional gold watch body of the same weight. I've seen estimates saying less gold by as much as 50%. So people aren't even getting the amount of "gold" they think they are getting.
I could not get your link to work. In any case, as I have stated before, the average man in the street will not look at the Edition as anything other than toys for the 1%.
Anyone that has to save up for a watch like that would be far better off with a nice Rolex or Omega.
Whether you believe it or not there is a market for gold things, don't ask me why.
This company:
http://www.brikk.com/store/p155/LUX_IPHONE_6 PLUS PINK_GOLD_DIAMONDS_SELECT_-_BLACK_128GB.html
Takes an iPhone and covers it in gold and diamonds, and sells it for $58K. The kind of people who do this are not worrying about a return on investment, or how much gold is in it, or if they can resell it.
Apple Watch Launches April 24, Price Ranges From $349 to Over $10,000
I'm just backing my point that the Edition watch isn't something that people that fall into this category (myself included) actually want. When we can buy much more prestigious watches with decades or centuries of heritage, why on earth would we buy this? Many of my friends share this hobby, and I'm on several high end watch owners forums, and Apple is getting publicly ridiculed for even thinking they can step into this market and offer something people with this kind of money and the desire to spend it on watches even want. And these forum members I speak of (if you own 20+ Rolexes, APs, PPs, etc, you can afford an Edition watch) are the very same people Apple is supposedly targeting with this model. Shows me Apple has done no real research into why people buy watches at that level.
I'm just backing my point that the Edition watch isn't something that people that fall into this category (myself included) actually want. When we can buy much more prestigious watches with decades or centuries of heritage, why on earth would we buy this? Many of my friends share this hobby, and I'm on several high end watch owners forums, and Apple is getting publicly ridiculed for even thinking they can step into this market and offer something people with this kind of money and the desire to spend it on watches even want. And these forum members I speak of (if you own 20+ Rolexes, APs, PPs, etc, you can afford an Edition watch) are the very same people Apple is supposedly targeting with this model. Shows me Apple has done no real research into why people buy watches at that level.
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Waited for it, but...pricing is way too much
I'm fun of apple products and gadgets, so I waited for the watch to be a replacement for my fitbit wrist band...
The $350 price was known for some time, but I knew I would want the steel version. I hoped for a price about $450 or so for the steel version. As I know now it will be way more, especially if I look at anything else than a Sports Band (and most likely I would).
In the summary the pricing for the Apple Watch pushed me away from it. I will look back at fitbit or other fitness bands, or maybe even pebble watch. I cannot justify spending $700 on the watch/fitness device.
I hope when Apple releases the 2nd edition of the watch they will adjust pricing so this thing can be a gadget many of us can wear. For now I believe for many of apple funs this will be way out of reach...!!!
I'm fun of apple products and gadgets, so I waited for the watch to be a replacement for my fitbit wrist band...
The $350 price was known for some time, but I knew I would want the steel version. I hoped for a price about $450 or so for the steel version. As I know now it will be way more, especially if I look at anything else than a Sports Band (and most likely I would).
In the summary the pricing for the Apple Watch pushed me away from it. I will look back at fitbit or other fitness bands, or maybe even pebble watch. I cannot justify spending $700 on the watch/fitness device.
I hope when Apple releases the 2nd edition of the watch they will adjust pricing so this thing can be a gadget many of us can wear. For now I believe for many of apple funs this will be way out of reach...!!!
interesting, I have 2 of the watches you listed. and yet. I have no interesting in getting 10K apple watch. Why is that?
maybe it's because it's no different than dressing up a Toyota Camry and trying to sell it for a super-car price?
take a 350 watch.... put it in a 900 dollars worth of gold, and sell it for 9000 dollars profit!
Maybe? Just Maybe?
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I did, and more like 1400 with link bracelet I wanted.
So thank you happy for saving me close to 1000 dollars
Bingo. Glad another watch enthusiast gets it. No watch nuts want this. An analogy I and some friends came up with this morning is very similar to what you said...
If honda made an Accord with solid gold sheet panels (instead of typical steel), and priced it in the same league as true exotic luxury/super cars (hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars), those customers still wouldn't buy it. Why? Because it's still an accord, just in a fancy shell.
I own/have owned many watches at or over the $10k mark, and I don't want anything to do with this thing.
The problem is there just doesn't seem to be any "good" reason to go out and buy one of these. I don't doubt for one second that this thing is going to sell. Apple isn't stupid and they obviously know people will buy these. I'm sure there are plenty of people eager to drop thousands of dollars on them. But aside from tech-junkies and Apple fanatics, what benefit does owning one of these have over just using my phone? That I don't have to take it out of my pocket? Not good enough.
I have not spoken to 1 friend or anyone else interested in buying this watch. Most think, well I got a phone..., aren't the phones the reason we don't wear watches now? That is basically what i'm hearing.
Agree 1000%
$400 for the stainless with stainless band is about on the money, for what is in essence, a glorified Casio, as someone else mentioned.
Don't get me wrong, Casio are by far, the legends of digital watches.
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This comment says it all.
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What makes you think you need to "service" a watch every 5 years?
My Seiko 6309-7040 (automatic movement) has been running "like a clock" since 1982 without a single service. Ditto for my other Seiko's, ditto for my Rado, etc. etc.
Your argument here is nonsense.
The fact is, the Apple watch has less functions than the phone which it requires to function. It will keep time just as well as any other watch.
Oh yeah, the phone you have to carry with the apple watch keeps good time too.