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Apple Watch Try-On Appointments Begin in Australia, Prospective Buyers Lining Up

Douglas B said:
How did NZ upset Apple?
Click to expand...

Vodafone gave little to no information to their customers or even their staff at physical stores. When it came time to open stores there was still no indication which stores had what products, and even when the doors opened some staff were flooded with queries they knew nothing about.

It's rumoured Vodafone tried to push the blame onto Apple and Apple have never trusted NZ since.
 
BeyondtheTech said:
Long lines? Didn't sound that way in the article. Only saw one Instagram photo of a line, wasn't anywhere near crazy like the iPhone.
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1. This is a line to try the watch on, that's it.
2. This is a first generation product, not the Apple Watch 6 so lines are going to resemble that.
3. I distinctly remember similarly "small" lines for the Original iPhone, as well as the Original iPad.
4. Come back to me on the 24th, then we can talk.

Why are people hellbent of making sure this product fails? If you don't want it, don't get it. Are you worried everyone else is going to get one in a few years and that you'll be left out? This is the only reasonable conclusion I can come to.
 
ksuyen said:
It's a surprise there is a line. It shouldn't be any lines at all. Didn't they get a memo from Angela Ahrendts?
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Angela Ahrendts can not outsmart basic human psychology. People will line-up in some form. If not to buy the product, than to pick it up or even try it on. Humans have a fundamental desire to be first.
 
valleian said:
1. This is a line to try the watch on, that's it.
2. This is a first generation product, not the Apple Watch 6 so lines are going to resemble that.
3. I distinctly remember similarly "small" lines for the Original iPhone, as well as the Original iPad.
4. Come back to me on the 24th, then we can talk.

Why are people hellbent of making sure this product fails? If you don't want it, don't get it. Are you worried everyone else is going to get one in a few years and that you'll be left out? This is the only reasonable conclusion I can come to.
Click to expand...

Original iPhone line wrapped around a city block at my closest store. I know because I stood in it all day in the rain.
 
Candlelight said:
Vodafone gave little to no information to their customers or even their staff at physical stores. When it came time to open stores there was still no indication which stores had what products, and even when the doors opened some staff were flooded with queries they knew nothing about.

It's rumoured Vodafone tried to push the blame onto Apple and Apple have never trusted NZ since.
Click to expand...

Don't you think this might have something to do with the fact that us kiwis don't have a single Apple Store? Where would they sell it?
 
valleian said:
When it's launch day, we'll talk.
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Launch day for the Apple Watch will be completely different than the original iPhone for a few reasons. The original iPhone was not available for preorder and the Apple Watch is only available for preorder. Suposidly the Apple Watch will be very limited for walk-in purchases. There was more demand for an Apple phone than an Apple watch today. I am still curious of the launch day lines.
 
I'll try not to go into too much detail/repeat everyone else here:
  • They're so much smaller than I expected
  • The UI is small - feel like I'm going to mis-tap icons
  • Steel is so shiny
  • Barely noticed the weight (haven't worn a watch in 10+ years)
  • Got a walk in try on in 2 minutes
  • Went back for a second try on
  • Employee was super protective of the watch
  • Plastic strap is super comfy
  • Leather loop is annoyingly stiff (maybe it'll loosen up over time)
  • The screen is really nice and sharp
  • I was directed to buy the watch online
  • Many employees hadn't actually tried the watch on
  • Due to the way the try on is on a demo loop and the running units are fixed, you can't actually see what it's like to use it like a watch (raise arm and see screen turn on, for example)
  • The fixed working demo watches are linked to a iPad mini which will show information on the app you open on the watch

I was there for about 30 mins trying to decide between the Space Grey Sport and the Regular Steel Classic Buckle. The SG Sport will look like it will work in a formal/business setting, but the Steel will fit right in.
 
Last edited:
Now I'm worried they're not big enough for a 6'3" guy like me.

I guess I'll try one on before ordering.
 
sammich said:
[*]Due to the way the try on is on a demo loop and the running units are fixed, you can't actually see what it's like to use it like a watch (raise arm and see screen turn on, for example)
Click to expand...
Odd. Does anyone know why they not allowing people to really use the try-on watches?
 
valleian said:
1. This is a line to try the watch on, that's it.
2. This is a first generation product, not the Apple Watch 6 so lines are going to resemble that.
3. I distinctly remember similarly "small" lines for the Original iPhone, as well as the Original iPad.
4. Come back to me on the 24th, then we can talk.

Why are people hellbent of making sure this product fails? If you don't want it, don't get it. Are you worried everyone else is going to get one in a few years and that you'll be left out? This is the only reasonable conclusion I can come to.
Click to expand...

Are you sure there were small lines for the original iPad? Why do I remember demand being fairly strong for that right off the bat?
 
Mazeman said:
Now I'm worried they're not big enough for a 6'3" guy like me.

I guess I'll try one on before ordering.
Click to expand...

I would say definitely. I am a watch guy (and a fan of bigger watches) and when I saw that their measurements were lug-to-lug (length) vs. diameter (as, you know, the rest of the watch world does it) I was shocked. 42mm lug-to-lug is tiny. Most of mine are in the 50-52mm range l2l. If it were 42mm across and 50mm l2l, I'd say it might be a reasonable size for a normal-sized person's wrist. 42mm is going to wear incredibly small.

But, to each his own. I was never going to buy one anyway, but I have a feeling a lot of people are going to try them on and go "wow, this is a lot smaller than I expected".
 
Hey, at least there's a line at the Sydney Samsung store. Security dudes and all. :cool:

https://twitter.com/_HairForceOne/status/586313943943000064/photo/1
CCMBbLqUAAApDcW.jpg:large
 
AFDoc said:
Do skinny jeans actually go with anything? I mean it goes with being a female of course..... What man wears skinny jeans?
Click to expand...

Why? Illogical statement is illogical.

Anyway back on topic, I'll be interested to see how hard the servers get hammered tonight. That should be an interesting indication of how much demand there is.
 
sammich said:
I'll try not to go into too much detail/repeat everyone else here:
  • They're so much smaller than I expected
  • The UI is small - feel like I'm going to mis-tap icons
  • Steel is so shiny
  • Barely noticed the weight (haven't worn a watch in 10+ years)
  • Got a walk in try on in 2 minutes
  • Went back for a second try on
  • Employee was super protective of the watch
  • Plastic strap is super comfy
  • Leather loop is annoyingly stiff (maybe it'll loosen up over time)
  • The screen is really nice and sharp
  • I was directed to buy the watch online
  • Many employees hadn't actually tried the watch on
  • Due to the way the try on is on a demo loop and the running units are fixed, you can't actually see what it's like to use it like a watch (raise arm and see screen turn on, for example)
  • The fixed working demo watches are linked to a iPad mini which will show information on the app you open on the watch

I was there for about 30 mins trying to decide between the Space Grey Sport and the Regular Steel Classic Buckle. The SG Sport will look like it will work in a formal/business setting, but the Steel will fit right in.
Click to expand...

Awesome post, thanks for the feedback!
 
JarScott said:
Talk about supply constraints when every Apple Store has about 20 of them under a piece of glass! :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Let me help you here. You see, Apple has to have product for display. That's how a lot of sales occur. They need to decide how many different types to display and how many they need for all the customers. So, somehow they figured that out. Then there are those for regular customers, special customers, and on and on.

I hope this helps you understand this. Let me know if I can be of any further help. Good luck.
 
Rigby said:
Odd. Does anyone know why they not allowing people to really use the try-on watches?
Click to expand...

My guess is that many of the features would not work without pairing the device to an iPhone and they didn't want to tie up one iPhone per try on watch. And they don't let you pair the watch with your own phone.

The first thing I did with the watch was put it on my right wrist with the digital crown facing my hand. So unfortunately the demo was upside down! I didn't have the option - on the demo watch - to tell it to flip right side up down. No big deal because you can easily play with the other watches that are nearby mounted on plates somehow linked to iPad Minis.
 
Infinitewisdom said:
Are you sure there were small lines for the original iPad? Why do I remember demand being fairly strong for that right off the bat?
Click to expand...

Demand was a bit higher than the Original iPhone, most likely because people were a bit more familiar with the idea of the iPad than the iPhone. It still wasn't like a modern day iPhone launch. I didn't wait in line for the iPad, but I did pass by the line a couple of times on the day of.
 
Douglas B said:
My guess is that many of the features would not work without pairing the device to an iPhone and they didn't want to tie up one iPhone per try on watch. And they don't let you pair the watch with your own phone.
Click to expand...
Ah, that makes sense. I guess the fixed demo units are paired with the integrated iPad (which not only shows the explanation screens on its own display, but also "streams" apps to the watch).
 
Thanks for the initial updates/thoughts from those who have tried - really useful.

The various comments about the length (or lack of) queues are missing the main objective I think. I'd guess the real point of Ahrendts' statement about removing lines are for PR purposes. The big media stories during the iPhone 6 launch were that 8 out of 10 people were placed there to bulk buy for onward sale to places such as China. Others were there wearing sponsored t-shirts to market non Apple stuff.

Bad PR all round for Apple when the world sees aged and confused non English speaking people being asked by the media why they were there rather than the previous waves of excited early adopters. Same with people trying to jump in front of the camera to talk about an unrelated Kick-Starter project.

With the online order process and limits of 1 or 2 watches per customer, the above issues are largely eliminated. End result likely that majority of people who may end up in-line on Day-1 (if any), will be there to pick up their pre-orders - ie real customers who, if shown on tv/in the media, will better reflect the image Apple wants to portray.
 
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