I didn’t get the Milanese with my SS gold watch for that very reason. My husband thought I should but I heeded advice on this forum
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Graphite Steel vs Space Black Titanium
- Thread starter batman75
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Got mine SS Graphite today and was pleasantly surprised 
. Looks so much better in person. Looks like more of a premium watch then the SS Space Black I had. One of my concerns was how the frame would look compared to the Space Black which looked like it was made from one single piece. Luckily this Graphite looks just as good .
A tip if you are in between band sizes, choose the smaller number.
Ps. Is there a way to order bands with a graphite pin?, saw the picture of a box in a previous post, but can't find any info on Apple's website regarding which type of pin is used.
. Looks so much better in person. Looks like more of a premium watch then the SS Space Black I had. One of my concerns was how the frame would look compared to the Space Black which looked like it was made from one single piece. Luckily this Graphite looks just as good .A tip if you are in between band sizes, choose the smaller number.
Ps. Is there a way to order bands with a graphite pin?, saw the picture of a box in a previous post, but can't find any info on Apple's website regarding which type of pin is used.
I could be wrong, but I think you only get the graphite pin if you order the band with the watch.Got mine SS Graphite today and was pleasantly surprised
A tip if you are in between band sizes, choose the smaller number.
Ps. Is there a way to order bands with a graphite pin?, saw the picture of a box in a previous post, but can't find any info on Apple's website regarding which type of pin is used.
Yes which is very strange considering they don’t have graphite with the sport band available as a default order option. You have to pair them up in the studio.
I’ve had my graphite SS for a week now. The titanium I ordered the same day is set to be delivered at some point today and all week I’ve been in an internal debate over which to keep.
The titanium looks great but this graphite has continued to grow on me each day I’ve worn it. I’ve got a black leather loop and the black sport band with graphite pin that came with the watch and both setups look amazing. I can’t say I feel the same about the gray band that comes with the Ti so that helps on my decision a little. Another bonus is the $100 I save by sticking with the SS basically means I get my leather loop for free.
I plan on wearing the Ti for a couple of days at least but I’m at about a 90/10 split on keeping the graphite.
The titanium looks great but this graphite has continued to grow on me each day I’ve worn it. I’ve got a black leather loop and the black sport band with graphite pin that came with the watch and both setups look amazing. I can’t say I feel the same about the gray band that comes with the Ti so that helps on my decision a little. Another bonus is the $100 I save by sticking with the SS basically means I get my leather loop for free.
I plan on wearing the Ti for a couple of days at least but I’m at about a 90/10 split on keeping the graphite.
I have the Graphite SS Watch with the Black Sports Band and they match perfectly.
The black sports band is more 'smokey black' than it is 'pitch black'. Also come with a matching graphite pin too. Very stylish.
No but i have ordered the old style leather loop for my graphite which apparently is more of a dark grey than black. Looks better than the new leather loop which looks a little cheap.
Will do. The loops is being delivered on Wednesday and my watch is due on FridayWould be interesting to see pictures when you get it.
I ordered this - SS Graphite with Black Leather Link. Also ordered the Baltic Blue and Saddle Leather Links as well as a Black Solo Loop. My delivery date is Oct 14-21. The Leather Links are delayed. No one has received one yet.
Thanks for the reply. I can’t trust the dlc coating alone I am afraid.
The titanium black has also got dlc coating , yet it is can accumulate starches easily. I suspect the shiny surface of the graphite can reflect scratches more than the space black. But it’s just my speculation. Nothing but the actual usage would reveal the real facts.
I'm assuming you mean scratches rather than starches?
Please cite your examples -- and not the early ones from last year where it was unclear if people we seeing real scratches vs. material rubbed off of the item used to try to create the scratches. Looking at the Titanium threads, there seems to be a dearth of reports of any real scratching on the SBTi models.
Last edited:
The Space Black Stainless Steel DLC coating is extremely resilient based on reports (and my own experience as an S4 SBSS owner) and that is a shiny coating like the Graphite SS DLC coating.
yes, space black with DLC coating is touch. but it can still scratch. however, these scratches are masked by the darker colour of the space black (I have used space black before). the graphite on the other hand, with more reflective surface might not mask the scratches as effectively as the space black. but I repeat, this is just my guess. I do not have any evidence. Most of the black titanium models I have seen so far at the apple stores are scratched. May be people were scratch testing them, I don’t know.
There's plenty of real world examples that prove that the DLC coating on both the Titanium version, as well as the shiny Space Black SS version, are very resistant to scratching. To call them scratch proof is not right because the right material call/will scratch them, but they're basically as close as you can get without your watch being made from an actual diamond.
I expect the S6 Graphite to perform the same way my S5 Space Black did, which is to say it looked brand new from the day I got it until the day the new one showed up. There's no reason for me to believe otherwise.
I did a scratch test using a butter knife and the graphite scratches easier then the black ti. It wiped right off on the ti but it’s perm on the graphite. Hard to see but its there. I decided to keep the ti this time around. If we get proof the graphite holds up well I may try it next year.
I think the issue is, even though both colors are DLC, titanium scratches easier than stainless steel, so...Space Black watch will scratch more. https://www.gearpatrol.com/watches/a353466/titanium-watches-explained/
Not really sure I'd take a 2017 article unrelated to Apple watches as a basis for determining the scratch resistance of the diamond-like carbon coating. Seems like you'd first have to breech the coating for the rest to matter.
... but you do you.