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iWatch to Come in Two Sizes With 'Fashionable Appearance', Top End to Cost 'Several Thousand' Dollars
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Makes sense
The Swatch makers also own very prestigious watch brands. One of Swatch strategy was / is to have people buy more than one watch )the colors, the style, the season) and a $50 watch was/is just an entry point. They have a lot of watches above $100 nowadays.
The ex-CEO of Burberry's, an ex YSL executive, top medical equipment engineers... All is in place to provide the full range price wise... I believe this is the right move for Apple: appeal to the masses (if I may say so) and appeal to trendsetters or people who have some dough to spend on high-end gadgets...
I would not be surprised if Apple's next move is to open "Iwatch" dedicated mini stores in all fancy malls...
I do not see the usual Apple store being the appropriate venue for such items.
The Swatch makers also own very prestigious watch brands. One of Swatch strategy was / is to have people buy more than one watch )the colors, the style, the season) and a $50 watch was/is just an entry point. They have a lot of watches above $100 nowadays.
The ex-CEO of Burberry's, an ex YSL executive, top medical equipment engineers... All is in place to provide the full range price wise... I believe this is the right move for Apple: appeal to the masses (if I may say so) and appeal to trendsetters or people who have some dough to spend on high-end gadgets...
I would not be surprised if Apple's next move is to open "Iwatch" dedicated mini stores in all fancy malls...
I do not see the usual Apple store being the appropriate venue for such items.
I'll have to watch the keynote. I just can't see how a watch could be as transformational a tool as the iPhone has been. But then, I didn't think the iPad was such a good idea either.
This is exactly the point. Apple is taking their time because they want a GREAT watch, not just another smart watch. They need to get this right, and like the iPad and iPhone before it, I trust that they will.
I clearly don't understand watch economics... I think "several thousand dollars is ridiculous for a watch" and then read "it could make sense if Apple charged that for a luxury band".
I see the point that fashion is going to be the barrier to entry in the watch market. It's obvious now that I see it-- too few people wear watches for utility any more. Google Glass has shown that wearing phone accessories doesn't help you get a date.
Still, this isn't a finely crafted mechanical device in the way a really expensive watch can be. It's a Gen 1 digital device. Maybe it's worth having the high end one just to make it clear that this isn't a modern day Swatch. Even if they don't sell, they'll extend people's perception of who might consider such a device and make it feel like less of a toy.
Another option would be to make the guts replaceable-- buy the housing and band once and replace the internals over time?
I dunno. I have a feeling of pending failure around the whole iWatch idea. Posting articles with artists concepts doesn't help.
I see the point that fashion is going to be the barrier to entry in the watch market. It's obvious now that I see it-- too few people wear watches for utility any more. Google Glass has shown that wearing phone accessories doesn't help you get a date.
Still, this isn't a finely crafted mechanical device in the way a really expensive watch can be. It's a Gen 1 digital device. Maybe it's worth having the high end one just to make it clear that this isn't a modern day Swatch. Even if they don't sell, they'll extend people's perception of who might consider such a device and make it feel like less of a toy.
Another option would be to make the guts replaceable-- buy the housing and band once and replace the internals over time?
I dunno. I have a feeling of pending failure around the whole iWatch idea. Posting articles with artists concepts doesn't help.
There are people paying even 10 grand for simple mechanical watches, I don't see why not.
There's definitely a significant market for a high-end luxury iWatch from Apple. For those of us consumers sick of seeing everyone carrying around the same phones and tablets as us, an iWatch that costs thousands of dollars could be very tempting. Let's wait and see before dismissing this idea entirely.
But fiberglass even up to an 8th of an inch thick is flexible. So is aluminum. From what I have gathered is that while sapphire is scratch resistant, it is even more brittle than gorilla glass. You may be right, who knows..
$2K is a bit much but some one just might want a solid (not plated) gold case and band. The cost of the metal's market value could be $2K very easy.
I would never pay $200. But if these things cam out at a good price and you could download apps to them I might find a few good uses for them.
(1) I REALLY want a remote control app in the watch for keynote. I want to preview next slide and I want a timer so I know how long the current slide has been up (so I don't talk to long) and the current running time or time remaining for my presentation. I can get this on an iPad now but I have to hold the thing and need my hands free.
(2) notifications of calls missed and messages with a tiny vibrater alarm. so that I know to check. but is needs a GOOD FILTER so it only tells be of the important ones.
If the iWatch is not GUARANTEED water proof. I would not buy it. Apple's normal routine is to tell you "water damage" and refuse to repave a defective product. I'd say "leaking" is a defect Apple 100% MUST make this water proof.
(3) Assuming it really is water proof to 200M I want a SCUBA diving app that works like a dive computer.
I would never pay $200. But if these things cam out at a good price and you could download apps to them I might find a few good uses for them.
(1) I REALLY want a remote control app in the watch for keynote. I want to preview next slide and I want a timer so I know how long the current slide has been up (so I don't talk to long) and the current running time or time remaining for my presentation. I can get this on an iPad now but I have to hold the thing and need my hands free.
(2) notifications of calls missed and messages with a tiny vibrater alarm. so that I know to check. but is needs a GOOD FILTER so it only tells be of the important ones.
If the iWatch is not GUARANTEED water proof. I would not buy it. Apple's normal routine is to tell you "water damage" and refuse to repave a defective product. I'd say "leaking" is a defect Apple 100% MUST make this water proof.
(3) Assuming it really is water proof to 200M I want a SCUBA diving app that works like a dive computer.
You bring a good point...
A high end watch (Tag, Hublot, Rolex...) are pieces of jewelry. These are not items you replace but items that you keep. What would happen with a high end piece of electronics... Again, the business model for the Iwatch (material, features, targeted audience...) has not been decrypted yet but you raised a very good point...
A high end watch (Tag, Hublot, Rolex...) are pieces of jewelry. These are not items you replace but items that you keep. What would happen with a high end piece of electronics... Again, the business model for the Iwatch (material, features, targeted audience...) has not been decrypted yet but you raised a very good point...
After spending $2700 for a single shot of TPA and a total bill of $13,500 for one emergency room visit, I'd pay a couple of thousand dollars for a Apple smart iWatch with the right type of heart sensors to keep me out of the emergency room!
Medical equipment can easily cost that much and Apple is moving in this direction. Heart monitoring etc like this can save your life; it's not just for fitness gimmicks, and how much would you pay to save your life as a heart patient?
The author of this prediction certainly doesn't understand much about the watch market for pieces that cost from $2,000 to $20,000. I'm a lifetime watch collector (my father was a repairman), and I can assure you, very few people are interested in any digital, quartz, or electronic devices in this price range. Yes, at the low end there is some interest in quartz if it's a fashion watch, but most purchasers willing to spend this are absolutely keyed in on mechanical pieces.
I could see Apple making a $300 watch and then partnering with a manufacturer of larger watches for a limited, high-end version - if the display is round for example, the Bell&Ross BR-01 46mm case comes to mind, and a few to several grand for a B&R 01 with Apple provided content seems possible (but - marketed more as a Fashion B&R piece than an Apple product).
I've been a bit bummed about the news lately, as a watch fan and a home theater fan, it's hard to get excited about the watch and the TV as I can't see replacing the products I own and love with Apple branded stuffs.
I could see Apple making a $300 watch and then partnering with a manufacturer of larger watches for a limited, high-end version - if the display is round for example, the Bell&Ross BR-01 46mm case comes to mind, and a few to several grand for a B&R 01 with Apple provided content seems possible (but - marketed more as a Fashion B&R piece than an Apple product).
I've been a bit bummed about the news lately, as a watch fan and a home theater fan, it's hard to get excited about the watch and the TV as I can't see replacing the products I own and love with Apple branded stuffs.
It appears that all the comments before me made the obvious point that no one will pay that much for a frigging watch. So all I'll say is that I laughed, and laughed hard, when I saw this.
Oh dear God, several thousand! Yeah that has fail written all over it. It's made by Apple and everyone else will have one, to cost several thousand it would need to be stupidly revolutionary!
A watch that costs more then a Mac Pro..
meh I like the Omega Dark Side of The Moon and that's several thousand, but it's also a piece of mechanical art and will last a hell of a lot longer then an iWatch.
Here son, as your fathers passed away have his mechanical masterpiece automatic Swiss watch.. wow thanks!
Here son, as your fathers passed away have his iWatch, it cost thousands you know..... Nah it's alright I have one already that is several versions more advanced..
But thinking about it even more... if Apple seriously do make one version that costs thousands, I will literally fall of my chair laughing very very very hard... because the competition they will face will destroy them! And none of the competition are smart watches!
A watch that costs more then a Mac Pro..
meh I like the Omega Dark Side of The Moon and that's several thousand, but it's also a piece of mechanical art and will last a hell of a lot longer then an iWatch.
Here son, as your fathers passed away have his mechanical masterpiece automatic Swiss watch.. wow thanks!
Here son, as your fathers passed away have his iWatch, it cost thousands you know..... Nah it's alright I have one already that is several versions more advanced..
But thinking about it even more... if Apple seriously do make one version that costs thousands, I will literally fall of my chair laughing very very very hard... because the competition they will face will destroy them! And none of the competition are smart watches!
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I hope they do a great fitness band without the display as well. I already own nice watches that I wear every day.
I think they can make a nice band with a display, a nice curved one covered by sapphire. If it looked like the Nike Fuelband then you could wear it along with a normal watch.
Rolex and other too-quality watches cost thousands of dollars (U.S ), so it would not be out of the question for a high-end watch from Apple to be quite expensive.
A phone isn't several thousand dollars. And not 6 months, but maybe every couple of years or so.
You're making it out as if it's the band that is the cost prohibitive part of high end watches. They can certainly get up there in cost, but it's the watch face that carries the premium.
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As already mentioned, those are crafted timepieces that are meant to last practically forever. The Applewatch will be a computerized device that will become obsolete in a much shorter timeframe.
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