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Significantly fewer sales than predicted by financial analysts last year, when the product was revealed..

They estimated 10, 15 and even 30 million units sold in 2015.
http://fortune.com/2014/09/09/the-apple-watch-what-the-analysts-are-saying/

This story reports only an estimate, and only US sales, but I don't see global sales for 2015 hitting 10 million, let alone higher.

This is a classic boondoggle where analysis hacks will overestimate like crazy to make a stock look bad. This makes the stock a good target to short. IMO, three million iPhone just on preorder is great. Now it is time to see how long the trend lasts. My take is we'll see a price drop over the holiday season.
 
Wearable technology may be the future, but this product isn't it.. Why Apple felt the need to come out with such a product before it's time has everything to do with $ and continuing to add revenue to impress its shareholders. Personally, I wish Apple would base decisions on which product to make next not on what will impress Wall Street but on true innovation that will shake up the landscape. Some say that we are in a technological "plateau," but I'm not buying it. Apple has billions of dollars in cash on hand. They should have the ability to come up with new breakthrough technologies that stun the market.

It's not just money. It takes time. Apple actually spends less on R&D than Google and Samsung.

I disagree that the Apple Watch is ahead of its time. It's just that people had unrealistic expectations about it and its purpose. I don't think it was intended to be the "next big thing." That's not to say Apple is satisfied with the current sales, but they may be expecting this to be an add-on purchase and a supplemental revenue stream rather than a primary revenue stream.
 
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3M in the US alone? If true it's a huge hit. So much for the Watch "flopping".
You people need to understand is not about the numbers of watches sold, is about the trend. If this turns out to be true and Apple is selling 10,000 watches a day then on the next quarter they will sell 900,000 watches. That's a really bad number.
 
You people need to understand is not about the numbers of watches sold, is about the trend. If this turns out to be true and Apple is selling 10,000 watches a day then on the next quarter they will sell 900,000 watches. That's a really bad number.
The Watch is likely going to have a seasonal purchasing pattern. We can analyze trends early next year. Right now it's too early seeing as we don't yet have a full quarter of product availability or a holiday quarter.
 
It's not just money. It takes time. Apple actually spends less on R&D than Google and Samsung.

I disagree that the Apple Watch is ahead of its time. It's just that people had unrealistic expectations about it and its purpose. I don't think it was intended to be the "next big thing." That's not to say Apple is satisfied with the current sales, but they may be expecting this to be an add-on purchase and a supplemental revenue stream rather than a primary revenue stream.
Go see the Apple Watch reveal on youtube please. The way Tim Cook introduced this product is embarrassing, he introduced like it was a mind blowing revolutionary product ahead of its time, better than everything Apple had done combined.
 
The Watch is likely going to have a seasonal purchasing pattern. We can analyze trends early next year. Right now it's too early seeing as we don't yet have a full quarter of product availability or a holiday quarter.
You don't need a full year to see the picture, this is not a seasonal product, it won't sell better in the summer than in the spring. Its not a tank top or a sweater. We'll find out soon enough if the Apple Watch is a failure in terms of sales, the product itself obviously is.
 
Wearable technology may be the future, but this product isn't it.. Why Apple felt the need to come out with such a product before it's time has everything to do with $ and continuing to add revenue to impress its shareholders. Personally, I wish Apple would base decisions on which product to make next not on what will impress Wall Street but on true innovation that will shake up the landscape. Some say that we are in a technological "plateau," but I'm not buying it. Apple has billions of dollars in cash on hand. They should have the ability to come up with new breakthrough technologies that stun the market.

Instead we are left with a product that seems motivated by a desire to add more revenue by manipulating customers through unprecedented marketing, over the type hyperbole, and an attempt to sell something that is neither breakthrough nor different from every other smartwatch that is on the market. Is it the most impressively designed and built with high quality? Absolutely. Does it have near non-existent utility function? Sure seems like it. When its biggest attribute being sold by those who have bought into the hype seems to be that it allows one to check notifications on the wrist, versus pulling the phone out of your pocket, or "gasp," turning the phone on if it's already on your desk, you know you have a dud.

Apple needs to refocus and not take its customer base for granted. Not all of us will buy a new product just because you say its amazing. Show us its amazing. I don't care what Pharrell or the Blonde Salad (Instagram Connection for those of us "in the know") have to say about it.
I'm sorry you feel you were manipulated into buying the Apple Watch based on being "in the know" about Blonde Salad. I'm sorry you regret your purchase. (I'm assuming you bought it and are talking from personal experience and not speaking for all Apple users EXCEPT yourself--because that makes everything you said .)
Many of us bought the Apple Watch knowing full well that we were buying the equivalent of a first-generation iPhone. That was another product that Apple released before the world was ready for its category. It's quite possible that Apple has released the first generation Apple Watch without some key features and functionality that future models will have. Some of those features weren't technically feasible yet, and others will require feedback from people who are using the first generation models. It makes no sense for Apple to wait until the wearables category is mature to introduce its first generation product. They didn't get to where they are now by waiting until most computers had GUI before coming out with the Lisa. They didn't let other Smart Phone manufacturers grab the marketshare and define the category before introducing the iPhone. I don't see why you think they should wait until Pebble or Motorola defines the wrist computer before coming out with their own first generation product.
The things Apple is learning about smart watches by bringing the Apple Watch to market can't be acquired by copying other companies after those other companies have defined the market. If Apple had waited three more years to bring out the iPhone, it certainly would have had more functionality than the iPhone did in 2007, but it wouldn't have been as mature a product as the iPhone 4, and Apple wouldn't have become the phenomenally successful company that it is.
 
I'm sorry you feel you were manipulated into buying the Apple Watch based on being "in the know" about Blonde Salad. I'm sorry you regret your purchase. (I'm assuming you bought it and are talking from personal experience and not speaking for all Apple users EXCEPT yourself--because that makes everything you said .)
Many of us bought the Apple Watch knowing full well that we were buying the equivalent of a first-generation iPhone. That was another product that Apple released before the world was ready for its category. It's quite possible that Apple has released the first generation Apple Watch without some key features and functionality that future models will have. Some of those features weren't technically feasible yet, and others will require feedback from people who are using the first generation models. It makes no sense for Apple to wait until the wearables category is mature to introduce its first generation product. They didn't get to where they are now by waiting until most computers had GUI before coming out with the Lisa. They didn't let other Smart Phone manufacturers grab the marketshare and define the category before introducing the iPhone. I don't see why you think they should wait until Pebble or Motorola defines the wrist computer before coming out with their own first generation product.
The things Apple is learning about smart watches by bringing the Apple Watch to market can't be acquired by copying other companies after those other companies have defined the market. If Apple had waited three more years to bring out the iPhone, it certainly would have had more functionality than the iPhone did in 2007, but it wouldn't have been as mature a product as the iPhone 4, and Apple wouldn't have become the phenomenally successful company that it is.

I really don't get people like you. How can you compare a revolutionary first of its kind product like the iPhone to the Apple Watch? The iPhone was brand new technology, it had multitouch and that was enough to destroy every competitor out there. The Apple Watch doesn't offer anything new, or do you seriously think the Digital Crown is a revolutionary technology that in a couple of years every product will have?
 
You don't need a full year to see the picture, this is not a seasonal product, it won't sell better in the summer than in the spring. Its not a tank top or a sweater. We'll find out soon enough if the Apple Watch is a failure in terms of sales, the product itself obviously is.
Really? You don't think Apple will sell more watches as holiday gifts in the fall than they did in the summer months? Remember that the units sold in the fall will come pre-loaded with Watch OS 2.0, and their ads will show people doing things that are not possible yet with Watch OS 1.
 
You people need to understand is not about the numbers of watches sold, is about the trend. If this turns out to be true and Apple is selling 10,000 watches a day then on the next quarter they will sell 900,000 watches. That's a really bad number.

900,000 x $350 (even though the article says the current average price is $505) is $315,000,000, or $1,260,000,000 in revenue a year from a wholly new product line. If it was any company but Apple there would be parties in the street.
 
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I really don't get people like you. How can you compare a revolutionary first of its kind product like the iPhone to the Apple Watch? The iPhone was brand new technology, it had multitouch and that was enough to destroy every competitor out there. The Apple Watch doesn't offer anything new, or do you seriously think the Digital Crown is a revolutionary technology that in a couple of years every product will have?
I was THERE in 2007, and I bought the first iPhone. And people like you were also there, telling me that the iPhone wasn't really a smart phone, since it lacked such obvious smart phone requirements as user-loaded apps and cut and paste. Sure it was a well-built piece of kit, but that wasn't going to be enough to make it a success.
Why are you harping on the Digital Crown, and not the Force Touch display? Are you thinking that Force Touch is unlikely to find its way onto competitors' products in some form or another?
The Apple Watch has sold three times as many units as the iPhone had sold at this point in its career.
 
Really? You don't think Apple will sell more watches as holiday gifts in the fall than they did in the summer months? Remember that the units sold in the fall will come pre-loaded with Watch OS 2.0, and their ads will show people doing things that are not possible yet with Watch OS 1.
Obviously a product will sell better in the holidays, there's no need to point that out.
 
900,000 x $350 (even though the article says the current average price is $505) is $315,000,000, or $1,260,000,000 in revenue a year from a wholly new product line. If it was any company but Apple there would be parties in the street.
Yes you're right but thats not the case, this is Apple and those numbers are really bad for their new biggest product, specially because it's the first new product after Steve Jobs and it seems to be a total failure.
 
I was THERE in 2007, and I bought the first iPhone. And people like you were also there, telling me that the iPhone wasn't really a smart phone, since it lacked such obvious smart phone requirements as user-loaded apps and cut and paste. Sure it was a well-built piece of kit, but that wasn't going to be enough to make it a success.
Why are you harping on the Digital Crown, and not the Force Touch display? Are you thinking that Force Touch is unlikely to find its way onto competitors' products in some form or another?
The Apple Watch has sold three times as many units as the iPhone had sold at this point in its career.
People like me? The moment I saw the iPhone introduction I was blown away, I knew it was going to revolutionize everything, and I mean everything. It was a product from the future, there was nothing like it before. The Apple Watch offers nothing new, nor mind blowing.
 
3 million fools and their money will soon be parted...

So I have spoken to 3 people who have one 2 were purchased as gifts and one for them selves... NOT ONE of them loved it nor would buy it again. Doesn't that say it all

Wow, that's a blanket statement.

My experience is just the opposite: I know about a dozen people who have them, and they all love them. No one returned theirs or regretted the purchase, and fully half of them want to upgrade to the next one. So, amongst Apple Watch owners I know, there's a very high satisfaction rate.

I myself was very lukewarm on the Watch: I didn't need another device beeping away at me and I was frustrated at the long delivery time (almost cancelled). I was unprepared for just how useful it would be. As soon as I received it I liked it instantly. It's not something I sit and play with, but it quickly became an extension to my digital life. I especially like using it as an interface for maps & directions, for receiving and replying to text messages, and for paying with Apple Pay (which I do a lot, and it's phenomenally cool). I use the remote viewfinder feature to take photos from my phone (useful when playing with the kids), and use other remote apps to control my Apple TV and Keynote and PowerPoint presentations. We've replaced all our other fitness trackers and now use the watch (and other third party apps on the watch) to track our activity. I love that it takes my heart rate throughout the day and that it prompts me to get up from the office desk and move around.

Now, after a couple months, my wife and I both love our watches. Previously, I wore a solar-charged Casio Pathfinder with atomic accuracy (e.g. it sets itself with a time signal). I loved that watch, but it was big and heavy and honestly I wore it perhaps 40% of the time. I have not forgotten my Apple watch one single time since it arrived.
 
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This whole wearables FAD/Gimmick needs to die.
That may be your wish, but is not likely to happen. Fast forward 10 to 15 years and I believe wearable electronics will be as ubiquitous as smartphones are today. It just seems like a natural progression. All we need to make wearables take off in a big way is continued miniaturization, thus allowing more onboard capabilities and more powerful processors, as well as significantly improved battery technology. All these mentioned necessities are coming our way in the not too distant future.

And (not if) but when that happens, wearables will not just augment smartphones, but rather replace them altogether.
 
On the principle that "All generalities are false" it's rather curious to observe that one generality: "Every point Benjamin Frost makes is Apple-derogatory AND false" would seem to be an exception to said principle.

At this point, it's safe to say that Benjamin Frost's credibility is less than that of a dead slug. But he is obviously getting paid by someone spend this days waiting for an Apple article to respond to and embarrass himself with. But his responses have now become so far out there, that he is going to lose his gig.
 
People like me? The moment I saw the iPhone introduction I was blown away, I knew it was going to revolutionize everything, and I mean everything. It was a product from the future, there was nothing like it before. The Apple Watch offers nothing new, nor mind blowing.
People like you have aged since then. You're like the guy who was the first on his block to get a VCR, but resisted getting a DVD player because he didn't see the point. Now people like you are complaining that you want to actually own a license to play digital copies of your music rather than stream any music from the cloud at any time.
 
Yikes. The numbers are actually higher than I expected, if true.

For such an expensive and niche product, that's a LOT of money going into Apple's coffers.

Apple's marketing prowess is formidable. Their diversification from a computer company into a mainstream (and now fashion) company should not be underestimated.

I hope that they still have a division focused on real computers, but that seems less and less likely, given their current offerings.

Still, congrats are merited for Apple.

But I'm still not, and never will be, interested in an Apple watch. It's official: I'm old. ;)
 
It's not just money. It takes time. Apple actually spends less on R&D than Google and Samsung.

I disagree that the Apple Watch is ahead of its time. It's just that people had unrealistic expectations about it and its purpose. I don't think it was intended to be the "next big thing." That's not to say Apple is satisfied with the current sales, but they may be expecting this to be an add-on purchase and a supplemental revenue stream rather than a primary revenue stream.
I wish people would stop with the "next big thing" nonsense. I hate it as much as "what's the killer app". I love Touch ID and Pay. I would be seriously bummed if I had to give either or both of them up. Are either of them considered "the next big thing"? No, but who cares? If I find something useful and enjoyable I couldn't care less how someone tags it.
 
If these numbers are accurate, this would mean that in terms of revenue, the Apple Watch is already a $1,000,000,000+ business (probably closer to $1.5 billion)! I don't think any other smartwatch is even close to that!
 
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