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Let’s talk size - 44mm too much or all good?

iBought

iBought

macrumors regular
Original poster
Dec 2, 2010
139
45
I have not owned an Apple Watch, but my wrist is 7 inches and I wear a dive watch that is 42mm. It looks good, but is as big as I would be comfortable going. Safe to say a 44mm Apple Watch is the way to go? I ask since in the world of regular watches, that would be too big for me and probably look like overkill.

Besides looks, the functionality of a sports watch for me is key. I dont need something large and cumbersome while I exercise or play sports.

I find it rather interesting that apple just made both sizes bigger and basically phased out the 38mm watch. I guess that just says that this is a different game and having a large smart watch is not the same as a traditional. For example I dont know too many girls who would wear a 40mm traditional watch, but they will have to do that with Apples.

Anyway, I dont own the watch yet and have never been able to size out a 44mm so I am interested in the thoughts of you all who have more experience with them.

Any current owners thinking 44 may be too much for them?
 
The 42 isn’t really small on me. My daughter has the 38 and it seems tiny on me.

Really, though, if you’re close to a store that sells them, that’s probably going to be your best bet for gauging what suits you. 4 mm makes a much bigger difference than I would have thought.
 
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Deguello said:
The 42 isn’t really small on me. My daughter has the 38 and it seems tiny on me.

Really, though, if you’re close to a store that sells them, that’s probably going to be your best bet for gauging what suits you. 4 mm makes a much bigger difference than I would have thought.
Click to expand...

For sure. I matched my 42mm dive watch to the apple store real world size picture and the dive watch is a little bigger. I would prefer the 44 and i think ill go in that direction.

Outside of looks, is there anyone hampered by the larger watch face day to day when they exercise? I guess thats my only question. Its probably not an issue.
 
Even after seeing the leaked publicity photo I was surprised by the new shape: more rounded corners for the whole body of the watch, not just the display. This seems to take it away from the "mini iPhone" shape and give it a more distinctive look. I suspect it will grow on me.

As far as size goes, it looks like 44mm is the same as 42mm when measured diagonally, but taller and wider owing to the curve of the case.
 
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I'm 6'2" with a 7 inch wrist, and I've always worn the 38mm model, because it wore closest to my 40mm Submariner. I wish they didn't increase the size, but it appears to not be all that much larger, and the thinness is a good thing.

Sub vs. 38mm

fullsizerender-jpg.580947
 
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I wear a MK9012 automatic watch today that has a case size of 45mm. I will have no issues getting a 44mm.
 
douglasf13 said:
I'm 6'2" with a 7 inch wrist, and I've always worn the 38mm model, because it wore closest to my 40mm Submariner. I wish they didn't increase the size, but it appears to not be all that much larger, and the thinness is a good thing.

Sub vs. 38mm

fullsizerender-jpg.580947
Click to expand...

Yeah the submariner is almost considered a smaller dive watch nowadays, which is wild. But if you are that tall with that wristsize, it sounds like you are pretty lean. The 40mm is going to work for you well i think.
[doublepost=1536803256][/doublepost]Id suggest to all interested to get the apple store app. It has a link called “actual size” and that really helps.

What it looks like to me when i open that - basic rule of thumb is your smart watch can be 2mm bigger than your normal watch size. This is the conclusion i draw.

I say this because next to my 42mm, the 44mm apple watch actually looks a hair smaller. The 40mm looks a bit small to me. I know the way they measure is different so that is probably some of it. Anyway, this thread has been a nice help as well.
 
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I looked at the 44mm vs 40mm on the app right now, the 44mm looks gigantic on there compared to my S3 42mm. I know the difference is small, around 1.5 mm? For some reason it looks MUCH larger
 
I always thought the 42 mm was the ‘perfect’ size, but I’m glad that Apple increased the size this year to make a little bit bigger, which I would appreciate the 30% larger display space. Personally, I welcome the change and look forward to it.
 
Currently own the 42 and always felt it was a bit large for me. I think if I purchase I'll go for the 40.
 
iBought said:
Yeah the submariner is almost considered a smaller dive watch nowadays, which is wild. But if you are that tall with that wristsize, it sounds like you are pretty lean. The 40mm is going to work for you well i think.
[doublepost=1536803256][/doublepost]Id suggest to all interested to get the apple store app. It has a link called “actual size” and that really helps.

What it looks like to me when i open that - basic rule of thumb is your smart watch can be 2mm bigger than your normal watch size. This is the conclusion i draw.

I say this because next to my 42mm, the 44mm apple watch actually looks a hair smaller. The 40mm looks a bit small to me. I know the way they measure is different so that is probably some of it. Anyway, this thread has been a nice help as well.
Click to expand...

The Sub was a little on the small size last decade, but the current trend in high end mechanical watches the last few years has been tending smaller, overall. Lots of sub-42mm dive watches these days, including the hot new Tudor BB58.
 
iBought said:
I have not owned an Apple Watch, but my wrist is 7 inches and I wear a dive watch that is 42mm. It looks good, but is as big as I would be comfortable going. Safe to say a 44mm Apple Watch is the way to go? I ask since in the world of regular watches, that would be too big for me and probably look like overkill.

Besides looks, the functionality of a sports watch for me is key. I dont need something large and cumbersome while I exercise or play sports.

I find it rather interesting that apple just made both sizes bigger and basically phased out the 38mm watch. I guess that just says that this is a different game and having a large smart watch is not the same as a traditional. For example I dont know too many girls who would wear a 40mm traditional watch, but they will have to do that with Apples.

Anyway, I dont own the watch yet and have never been able to size out a 44mm so I am interested in the thoughts of you all who have more experience with them.

Any current owners thinking 44 may be too much for them?
Click to expand...

Seems to me that the easiest solution for you would be to go to an Apple store once the new watches come out and try them on. That’s the only way you will be able to tell what works best for you.
 
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I think the new 2mm bump at the smaller end (38mm to 40mm) makes the smaller version more viable for some guys.

I personally think I'll be getting the 44mm though, after confirming at the store.

When I first went to try on a 38mm and 42mm apple watch, I thought the 38mm would be my ideal choice, knowing that I have smaller wrists; but it ended up looking tiny. Maybe my wrists are not so small after all.
 
tgara said:
Seems to me that the easiest solution for you would be to go to an Apple store once the new watches come out and try them on. That’s the only way you will be able to tell what works best for you.
Click to expand...

Well like i said later in here - i found out later that the apple shop app has the real size in a submenu and i pulled those up and was able to determine that the 44 is equal to my 42 size watch. So im going with the 44.
 
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tgara said:
Seems to me that the easiest solution for you would be to go to an Apple store once the new watches come out and try them on. That’s the only way you will be able to tell what works best for you.
Click to expand...

I Agree with that. The only downside, is depending on your location and how busy the store is, it’s absolutely convoluted with customer standing around the watch table, especially with a new device like this, it’s almost impossible to get hands-on with it at times.
 
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