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Graphite Steel vs Space Black Titanium

spinedoc77 said:
What's the consensus? Personally I like the look of the graphite a lot more than the black Ti, but I didn't think it had the DLC. I looked into it a few weeks ago, spent about an hour searching for info. From what I found Apple did initially say the graphite had DLC, but then stopped advertising it having DLC and in their latest spec sheet they only list the black Ti as having DLC. I also found quite a bit of complaints and pictures of the graphite scratching, in particular scratching with the milanese bracelet.

I'm most likely getting the silver SS, I can deal with the scratches as they polish out. I'd hate to get the graphite all scratched up. Maybe I'll get both and return one. I'm ruling out the regular Ti as well, had an AW5 Ti and it scratched super easily. The black Ti isn't my cup of tea, but with the DLC it should be indestructible.
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If I were you I would do some research on the black TI because it does scratch and the problem with it being black is it will show silver underneath
 
Bazooka-joe said:
If I were you I would do some research on the black TI because it does scratch and the problem with it being black is it will show silver underneath
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I‘d be interested to see those scratches and what caused them. So far I never managed to get a scratch in one of mine… SBTi, SBSS and SSG look like new
 
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bricktop_at said:
I‘d be interested to see those scratches and what caused them. So far I never managed to get a scratch in one of mine… SBTi, SBSS and SSG look like new
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https://www.reddit.com/r/AppleWatch/comments/d7hxui

30C81CC0-EDFA-4DF7-B784-960FB47F4F61.jpeg
 
That‘s a picture of scratches, yes, on a watch that is a display model in an Apple store. I bet there are people even trying to scratch those on purpose… and even if not, they‘re surely not treated nicely
 
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bricktop_at said:
That‘s a picture of scratches, yes, on a watch that is a display model in an Apple store. I bet there are people even trying to scratch those on purpose… and even if not, they‘re surely not treated nicely
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But it does mean that the SBTi will scratch if you are careless. There is a thread on the Macrumours forums about the series 5 titanium watches including the SBTI scratching.
 
Just chatted on my phone with a specialist who confirmed the graphite has DLC. I hope he is right.
 
sydneykb said:
Just chatted on my phone with a specialist who confirmed the graphite has DLC. I hope he is right.
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Funnily enough, my chat with apple support just resulted in them saying that neither the series 6 or the series 7 graphite steels are DLC.
 
4pp13 said:
Funnily enough, my chat with apple support just resulted in them saying that neither the series 6 or the series 7 graphite steels are DLC.
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Those so called „specialists“ have no clue what’s right or wrong. They read the tech specs and that’s it. They can’t tell us if it’s dlc coated or not. We need an official statement like a press release or updated tech specs on the page like last year. For the series 6 the tech specs read „graphite (dlc), gold (pvd)“ in some languages. See the pictures for the different advertisements:
6995914D-82D3-4DCD-B7C4-10DAE7FA35A0.png

EEC1854F-160D-40C7-AA33-AD8DD1D42C1C.png

1707CA9B-56A3-480B-8581-1EC8F4B93C3A.png
 
Not sure if that is proof that last years was DLC though. Might just have been a copypaste error from whoever made the translated page, since the english version is likely the original.
 
Nozuka said:
Not sure if that is proof that last years was DLC though. Might just have been a copypaste error from whoever made the translated page, since the english version is likely the original.
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That’s the problem. Nobody knows what’s going on.
 
It's definitely DLC. I remember distinctly that it was in the tech specs last year, it's why I was comfortable to go from my favoured Space Black to Graphite.
 
IUBall22 said:
I highly doubt the average consumer even cares
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But I care. I wear the watch on several outdoor activities and also on movie sets at work. I need a watch tough enough to not scratch too easily, but on the other hand it should look nice and match my clothes. The more I think about it, the more I like the shiny look of the graphite SS. BUT if it hasn’t a scratch preventing dlc coating, I’d pay the higher price for the SB titanium with dlc.

I ordered the graphite SS for in store pick up on launch day and I have to drive more than one hour to get there. I need to find out till then. Won’t be happy driving such a distance for a watch I wouldn’t keep if it’s not dlc.

I hate first world problems… but honestly 700-800€ is a lot of money for a short living technical device, so if I spend that much money I really bother about details like the coating.
 
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Bazooka-joe said:
If I were you I would do some research on the black TI because it does scratch and the problem with it being black is it will show silver underneath
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That's interesting that even with the "official" DLC the black Ti still scratches. The black Ti isn't my cup of tea anyway. I had a silver Ti AW5 and found that scratched VERY easily so I don't think I'd go that route again. I ordered a silver SS AW7 as I figure at least it can be buffed out.
 
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bgdrew said:
They've posted the specs for S7. Only the Ti SB is DLC.

www.apple.com

Apple Watch - Compare Models

Compare specs for the latest Apple Watch models: Apple Watch Ultra 2, Apple Watch Series 10, and Apple Watch SE.
www.apple.com

Under "Finishes."
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Wow, surprising. Looks like the SB Ti is the only one with DLC. Wonder if that means the stainless steel models at least have pvc or if they don’t have anything? Imagine it’d be a scratch magnet. (Also, calling dibs on using “scratch magnets” as a name for a hip hop production crew).
 
shr631 said:
Wow, surprising. Looks like the SB Ti is the only one with DLC. Wonder if that means the stainless steel models at least have pvc or if they don’t have anything? Imagine it’d be a scratch magnet. (Also, calling dibs on using “scratch magnets” as a name for a hip hop production crew).
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there will be a few upset people if their Hermes Edition space black watches scratch easily
 
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Pug72 said:
Looks like they are deciding not to differentiate between the steel finishes, we know the gold is PVD and that is not mentioned either.
A quick Google got me these four articles/ads that state the Graphite is DLC.
1 2 3 4

I presume these specs are from Apple so am pretty confident it is DLC. 👍
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i will never get titanium. it looks just like the aluminum models half of its price. i've never owned a titanium apple watch, so i may be missing out and speaking out of my arse. but just from the look of it, it really does.
 
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All this handwringing is really pointless. Space Black (Steel and Ti) as well as Graphite Steel all had and will still have DLC. There is zero reason for Apple to change this. And yes, even DLC can be scratched with something that is even harder, but the chance of that happening is really slim.
 
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the future said:
All this handwringing is really pointless. Space Black (Steel and Ti) as well as Graphite Steel all had and will still have DLC. There is zero reason for Apple to change this. And yes, even DLC can be scratched with something that is even harder, but the chance of that happening is really slim.
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Well it seems from what apple have provided that SS dose not have DLC.
 
The black on the sbti is a dark matte black. The black on the sssb is glossy and shiny. The stainless steel also weighs considerably more. The Ti is similar to the weight of the aluminum.
 
Its also the intensity of DLC that matters

I can tell you the graphite SS showed hairlines scratches very easily and this just days after getting it.

Wasn't the graphite Milanese loop dropped to PVD making it slightly weaker so it wouldn't scratch the DLC?

The fact there were so many complaints that it did says much about the DLC on the graphite.
 
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