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Apple Watch Marketing Page Updated With 'Timekeeping', 'New Ways to Connect', 'Health and Fitness' Pages

The :apple:Watch is so intriguing.

A popular response to seeing any smart watch is "It requires a phone in my pocket? What's the point? I'd just take my phone out." We looked at Apple to be the ones who would bring us a watch that didn't require a phone, but they didn't deliver that.

Even the first batch of third-party apps will be running on your iPhone. Many of the first-party features require an iPhone to be in your pocket.

...and yet Apple thinks there is enough value in this category to release the product anyway. Tim Cook wouldn't have wanted the first post-Jobs product to be a failure, so they must be genuinely, completely, 100% convinced.
 
A Time Piece
A Communicator
A Fitness Tracker

But only for small portions of a day because you'll need to take it off and charge it if you actually use it with the screen on for any amount of time.

alternative you could wear any number of watches to tell the time, and a proper fitness tracker that will track you, and not have to plug your phone in to charge every night.
 
ApfelSchaf said:
...and yet, the voices of these skeptics might ultimately prove prophetic:

http://techcrunch.com/2014/11/25/id...ent-growth-drops-7-2-in-2014-to-235-7m-units/


Call me stupid, but as long as I have my Mac Book Pro I still fail to see the purpose a tablet.
Click to expand...

Seeing as the original iPad outsold every tablet PC ever sold, I'd say the people who made those predictions were wrong.

However, let's see how their complaints stack up in 2014:

"It's a big iPod touch." - Then Android tablets are just big Android phones, and they're selling well still.

"Doesn't do anything your iPhone and laptop don't already." No, but many people's iPads replace their laptops. Again, same thing on the Android side, and they're not seeing a sales decline.

"This thing will be destroyed by the HP Slate." iPad sales are not declining because everyone is buying the HP Slate instead.

"Name sounds like a feminine hygiene product." I'd actually forgotten this was a thing until this thread, but okay, I've no answer to this other than people don't seem to associate iPad with anything other than the tablet computer.

"For consumption only, not productivity." Pages, Keynote, Numbers, iMovie, GarageBand, Notes, Mail... All apps that let you be productive.

"Just an extra gadget to carry around and charge. You need a man-bag to carry it." Still thinner, lighter, less hassle than a laptop.

"Oversized bezel." iPad Air fixes that, if it were ever really a problem.

"Unappealing price points." iPad Air 1 / iPad mini fixed that.

"No multitasking." iOS 4.2.1 fixed this for iPad users.

"No camera." Fixed with iPad 2.

"Where's a stylus?" Again, the tablets that ARE succeeding are not doing so because they ship with styluses.

"No GPS..." Third party accessory / Maps + Data plan fix this.

"No iChat camera, immensely disappointing." iPad 2 + Facetime fix this.

"Hoping Apple would break free from AT&T." You can get an iPad with the other major carriers, too.
 
Sorry.

It's a nice quality looking device, but how small that watch face looks in the middle of the whole front black area of the device just looks so bad to me.

I do hope Apple, in time can fit a better (larger) screen, so that things like watch faces are not stuck in the center of a sea of blackness with a really really thick black bezel around the actual display area.

It's easy to argue that you need a bezel on a iPhone or an iPad so you can hold the device by the edges and the dead bezel area on those devices is there so when you hold it, you do not touch the screen area.

There is zero excuse for having one on a watch.

I realize this is the best Apple can do right now, with whoever is making the screen for them (Samsung / LG ?) But I do hope they can address this very soon is upcoming models.

I know, in general Apple Loves BIG bezels, but again there really is no need to have one on the watch, and given the devices obvious small size in the 1st place. ANY dead/bezel area is a negative.
 
RayDonovan said:
Oh man, this is going to flop so bad...
Click to expand...

This will sell millions and millions and drive a whole new category of software and products! I love to see naysayers get slapped by reality!

I can't wait to get mine; but I really think the average price will be in the $800 range for the stainless models. Less than I paid for my iPhone 6 plus. Really not a lot of money.

And the stock value will keep going up...
 
Traverse said:
When you're in college preparing for grad school, yes, $350 is an investment. :p At least when it comes to a more novelty item. An iPhone or MacBook costs more, but provides a functional benefit. I am merely saying that I want to wait and see how the concept develops and make sure this isn't something Apple will dump in 2 years.
Click to expand...

Don't worry about apple dumping it in a few years, only Jobs had the balls to kill products, they will flog the watch for many many years to come. You will be more likely to outgrow the toy and get a real mechanical watch :)
 
Ah yeah, more glamour fashion shots and beats marketing bull than actual technology.

Can't wait for apple to pair up with Kardashians or whatever reality-star-du-jour to really sell the point. Buy it because people on tv have it, that way you'll be as cool as them.
 
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Patriot24 said:
A timepiece. A communicator. A fitness tracker.
A timepiece. A communicator. A fitness tracker.
A timepiece. A communicator. A fitness tracker.

Are you getting it? These are not three separate devices. This is one device.
Click to expand...

Wrong. It's two devices.

Because 2 of those 3 things, it can't actually do - unless it's tethered to an iPhone.
 
I still think it is a good product but doesn't have enough in it, from what's been announced so far, for me to warrant spending $400+ in Australian currency for the baseline model, even now if that may not even come with a Sapphire screen.
I'll most likely wait until the 2nd generation until I start to seriously consider getting one, but I hope it has a bright future ahead in it.
Then again if they want a really bright future in it, they would release a 3rd party app for Android so they can use the :apple:Watch (almost wrote iWatch ;) ) despite it potentially result in slightly less iPhone sales. And by doing that, it would mostly be for basic functions and nothing complex like the health features to get people to invest into the iOS ecosystem. That I say has a 30-40% chance of happening in a couple of years from now.
 
cuencap said:
Thank you, Mr. "I'm too rich and out of touch with the Generation Y and millenials of today."

Why don't you go back to your office full of artwork purchased with your disposable income and shut the door?
Click to expand...

On the other hand, you seem to be under the impression that everything has to conform to your generation's needs and wants. Maybe this watch is designed for people at a more advanced stage of life than you are in, hence the higher price. Ever think of that?

Consider what women in their 20s are willing to pay for shoes and purses and men are willing to pay for sports shoes, $350 isn't that outrageous, even for your generation.

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pxmpxm said:
Ah yeah, more glamour fashion shots and beats marketing bull than actual technology.

Can't wait for apple to pair up with Kardashians or whatever reality-star-du-jour to really sell the point. Buy it because people on tv have it, that way you'll be as cool as them.
Click to expand...

A Kardashian wouldn't influence me but Stephen Colbert? Maybe :)

Older people aren't as shallow as you claim. Not everyone is a millennial. Thank goodness.

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inscrewtable said:
How come Apple has Alex and Jane, sending heartbeats, rather than Alex and George.
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Why do you assume Alex is a man? HOMOPHOBE! /sarcasm
 
paulsdenton said:
This will sell millions and millions and drive a whole new category of software and products! I love to see naysayers get slapped by reality!

I can't wait to get mine; but I really think the average price will be in the $800 range for the stainless models. Less than I paid for my iPhone 6 plus. Really not a lot of money.

And the stock value will keep going up...
Click to expand...


I am a naysayer that really wants to be proven wrong! I want to believe but like so many others, I just don't see it taking off. Not in its current state anyway.

Charging it every night is almost a deal breaker. For example, how does one track their sleep if the watch is on the bedside table charging?
 
Reason077 said:
Wrong. It's two devices.

Because 2 of those 3 things, it can't actually do - unless it's tethered to an iPhone.
Click to expand...

Huh! Only thing it can't do for tracking is GPS and many people don't use that for fitness.

Why? Because its god damn unreliable. The distance calculated by the GPS on my phone is ALWAYS different from the distance I know something is on the map.

It is the communicator part that it can't do. Though it can communicate with devices that are not the phone itself through blue tooth, so even that is not totally true either.

Must suck be to be so damn wrong.
 
Complications

Even if, in the watchmaking industry, the term 'Complications' is used to describe other elements on a watchface other than the actual clock - I would have expected Apple to come up with far better terminology.

When you want to build something super personal, simple and powerful - describing any element as a 'Complication', irregardless of paying respect to an industry, just seems like a bad idea.
 
Piggie said:
Sorry.

It's a nice quality looking device, but how small that watch face looks in the middle of the whole front black area of the device just looks so bad to me.

I do hope Apple, in time can fit a better (larger) screen, so that things like watch faces are not stuck in the center of a sea of blackness with a really really thick black bezel around the actual display area.

It's easy to argue that you need a bezel on a iPhone or an iPad so you can hold the device by the edges and the dead bezel area on those devices is there so when you hold it, you do not touch the screen area.

There is zero excuse for having one on a watch.

I realize this is the best Apple can do right now, with whoever is making the screen for them (Samsung / LG ?) But I do hope they can address this very soon is upcoming models.

I know, in general Apple Loves BIG bezels, but again there really is no need to have one on the watch, and given the devices obvious small size in the 1st place. ANY dead/bezel area is a negative.
Click to expand...

The problem is that the screen consumes A LOT OF POWER (without the cell/GPS, that will be the biggest power user by far), while they need the watch to be a certain size to accommodate the battery. That's why the bezel is so large.

If the display took less power they'd make it bigger. Not sure if there are any upcoming technology that enables that.

If SOC efficiency increases, they could:
- Make the watch thinner (same bezel size) or smaller (smaller bezel)
- Increase the display size (decreasing bezel)
- Make the watch processor faster
- Add some power hungry functionality
- Make the watch last longer
 
Traverse said:
When you're in college preparing for grad school, yes, $350 is an investment. :p At least when it comes to a more novelty item. An iPhone or MacBook costs more, but provides a functional benefit. I am merely saying that I want to wait and see how the concept develops and make sure this isn't something Apple will dump in 2 years.
Click to expand...

I think the point is you don't understand the correct meaning of the word investment. I am not trolling, but this is pretty fundamental... These are not going to increase in value.

Now I wish I had bought some Apple shares in the market crash in 2009 - $90 which are now $820 (adjusted)

Or perhaps bought shares instead of my 17″ PowerBook G4 in 2003... I's have about $300,000

Now that's an investment!
 
luigi408 said:
Yeah, no thanks. Maybe the second generation if Apple adds GPS and better fitness features. I'm not going to be taking my iPhone 6 Plus + watch just to work out. Fitbit Surge is what I'm waiting for. I want a fitness watch plus some smart watch functionality, not the other way around. Tried MS Band but too uncomfortable.
Click to expand...

So, you want GPS and a watch that lasts half a day if you use it? You do realize that the small watch is 40-50 smaller than the Moto 360 don't you. If you want a brick on your wrist you can have what you want right now...

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Dave245 said:
I wonder if there is going to be an option to buy more straps, it would be nice to have more than one, for example to buy the Apple Watch sport band and the stainless steel one. I also wonder if Apple will charge a premium for these straps if indeed they do sell them separately.

In regards the Apple Watch itself do they all have a sapphire screen? apart from the size what are the differences between them.
Click to expand...

The sport watch doesn't have a sapphire screen. It has an equivalent to Gorilla glass 4.

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MacSince1990 said:
I'm not even sure what she is, but she's *really* strange looking, somehow familiar, and kind of creeping me out.

Aren't all hipsters pretty much white though?

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Gross. She looks about 12..
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Girls like that haven't looked "strange" since the late 1970s... Were have you been? BTW, I was one of those strange girls in the late 1980s...
 
RayDonovan said:
I am a naysayer that really wants to be proven wrong! I want to believe but like so many others, I just don't see it taking off. Not in its current state anyway.

Charging it every night is almost a deal breaker. For example, how does one track their sleep if the watch is on the bedside table charging?
Click to expand...

The bigger question for me is, why do people need to "track" their sleep? You go to bed at 11pm and get up at 6am. That's 7 hours, for those that can't track the time. So what if you get up to go to the wc, and what would you be tracking that for anyway? This whole push for data on everything we do is totally ridiculous. Unless you're training for the Olympics and you're trying to get the absolute maximum from your body, knowing that you walked 12,582 steps is going to do what for you?
 
jmgregory1 said:
The bigger question for me is, why do people need to "track" their sleep? You go to bed at 11pm and get up at 6am. That's 7 hours, for those that can't track the time. So what if you get up to go to the wc, and what would you be tracking that for anyway? This whole push for data on everything we do is totally ridiculous. Unless you're training for the Olympics and you're trying to get the absolute maximum from your body, knowing that you walked 12,582 steps is going to do what for you?
Click to expand...

It's not knowing that I did 12,582 steps that would do something for me, it's knowing that I've done 582 steps and I need to move that would do something for me.
 
prowlmedia said:
I think the point is you don't understand the correct meaning of the word investment. I am not trolling, but this is pretty fundamental... These are not going to increase in value.

Now I wish I had bought some Apple shares in the market crash in 2009 - $90 which are now $820 (adjusted)

Or perhaps bought shares instead of my 17″ PowerBook G4 in 2003... I's have about $300,000

Now that's an investment!
Click to expand...

I'm an accounting major about to enter grad school, trust me, I know what an investment is. (And not all investments increase in value :p)

I did not use the term properly in a technical setting, but I don't try to be formal online, I tend to be more relaxed. I should have said I'm not sure it's worth the cash outlay for me.

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MH01 said:
Don't worry about apple dumping it in a few years, only Jobs had the balls to kill products, they will flog the watch for many many years to come. You will be more likely to outgrow the toy and get a real mechanical watch :)
Click to expand...

They dropped Aperature. :(
 
samiznaetekto said:
Are YOU not getting it? These are not three separate devices. These are TWO devices. One on your wrist. And one in your pocket.
Click to expand...

Reason077 said:
Wrong. It's two devices.

Because 2 of those 3 things, it can't actually do - unless it's tethered to an iPhone.
Click to expand...

You know it was just a joke meant to frame the watch the way Jobs did the iPhone, right?

Ya'll are a little uptight about this thing. It is just a watch. Like, humor and stuff.
 
So it has the ability to show time? who would've thought...

I don't know, i'm still not sold on this, i just dont see any additional benefit from buying a smartwatch. The only thing i would buy is one of those fitness bands that track heart rate, calories and such.

and besides all, i'd never buy a watch that i knew every 3rd person in the same room will also own it.
 
At first I thought that it was a bad thing to be tethered to a phone and sort of still do. But then I was thinking...what is the normal lifespan of an Apple phone? If the watch were to be untethered, would that mean that it, also, will have a lifespan that will eventually be unsupported rendering it useless? But while it's tethered, it may be simple software upgrades to keep it linked and supported by the newer phones.

Most timepieces of that cost and higher last for a very long time if the owner wants them to. So a watch that won't have a span longer than the original phone it's tethered to may create an issue.
 
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