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Men: 38mm or 42mm?

  • 38mm

    Votes: 414 34.8%
  • 42mm

    Votes: 777 65.2%

  • Total voters
    1,191
I got to try on both the 38mm Sport and 42mm SS yesterday at the local store. What do you think about the sizes of these? My wrists are 170mm around and about 55mm wide.

This is the watch I wear today - a 34mm wide Skagen. In terms of width that sits directly between the 38mm and 42mm Apple Watches.
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Here's the 38mm Sport with white band. This is the model I have on pre-order based on my initial guess at what would be a good size.
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And this is the 42mm SS:
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I don't feel that either size looks silly and I probably came away from the store more confused than before! I have quite large hands for my wrist size so perhaps that's one reason why.

A few things I noticed when trying on some watch/band combinations:

  • The SS has a much more noticeable weight to it. In fact, the 42mm SS is approximately twice the weight of the 38mm Sport and it definitely feels that way. That makes me happy with my choice of a Sport model as I'd rather have a watch that's as unobtrusive as possible.
  • I really liked the Milanese loop band. I always found that metal bands of any type pinched and tugged my arm hairs throughout the day. No such problems with the Milanese loop. The links are extremely fine - much more refined than it appears in photos. I could see myself pairing that with the Sport watch for the odd formal occasion.
  • The leather loop is also pretty nice. More flexible than I imagined and the adjustability is great.

I wear that space skagen watch on a regular basis. I went 38mm
 
I saw someone post recently that they tried on the 38mm band on the 42mm. I was under the impression they didn't work interchangeably. Can anyone confirm that?
 
I saw someone post recently that they tried on the 38mm band on the 42mm. I was under the impression they didn't work interchangeably. Can anyone confirm that?

Doesn't work. The person at my Apple Store put a 42mm band on a 38mm case and it stuck out the sides. It was only to see the combo
 
170mm wrist, small stature guy, 42 mm:
 

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I finally went into the stores to see them yesterday (mines coming in the april 24-may8 window). I'm so glad I went with the 38mm. My wrists are 170mm about 50mm across (width of credit card).

Honestly, to me, and also after seeing a lot of pics on this forum, I think the 42mm looks like a "toy". I really want this thing to be an accessory to my everyday life, not doing full computing on it like a mini phone. Therefore I think the 38mm fits that perfectly. The screen is so good, there's no issue at all with small text or anything along those lines on the 38mm, even from very far away.
 
Greetings from Germany ;)

Finally i made my way to an applestore to compare both sizes.. I ordered the 38mm sport version in silver, and reading this thread made me a bit insecure if my choice could have been wrong.

But i can say that the 42mm looks kind of a geek toy on my wirst, so i'm happy with my decision! Even more once i changed the strap to milanese, which works for me as a pretty good combination.

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Alright guys, once again your help is needed. My wrist is 175mm, essentially the same size as the credit card if a little bigger, and I'm still stuck as to what to choose. As previously mentioned the one with the white strap is the 38. Thanks :D
 

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Just based on these photos, I would say the 38 but you're the one who has seen them in person and will be wearing it every day. Neither look terrible, so it's basically down to your preference, I guess.
 
Alright guys, once again your help is needed. My wrist is 175mm, essentially the same size as the credit card if a little bigger, and I'm still stuck as to what to choose. As previously mentioned the one with the white strap is the 38. Thanks :D

38mm definitely. 42 drowns your wrist.
 
Greetings from Germany ;)

Finally i made my way to an applestore to compare both sizes.. I ordered the 38mm sport version in silver, and reading this thread made me a bit insecure if my choice could have been wrong.

But i can say that the 42mm looks kind of a geek toy on my wirst, so i'm happy with my decision! Even more once i changed the strap to milanese, which works for me as a pretty good combination.

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Which wrist sizr do you have? Circumfence and with please #
 
Alright guys, once again your help is needed. My wrist is 175mm, essentially the same size as the credit card if a little bigger, and I'm still stuck as to what to choose. As previously mentioned the one with the white strap is the 38. Thanks :D

I would vote 42. The 38 looks too small on you. I also think there's a bit of an optical illusion going on when comparing the silver/white 38 to the gray/black 42. It makes the 42 appear even larger in comparison...

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170mm wrist, small stature guy, 42 mm:

I think that looks perfect on you! What is your wrist width (in mm, or in comparison to width of a credit card)?
 
I iniitially ordered a 38MM on 4/10, but then yesterday I cancelled that and order a 42MM Sport. I'll have to wait until June now, but I'm okay with that because I won't regret my purchase.
 
What do you guys recommend for a 173mm wrist? Im not really sure.

You really need to try it for yourself, honestly. It's all about how it feels on you. I thought the 38mm would be my perfect choice, but I actually prefer the 42mm even though my wrist is real small, probably around 155mm.

Every time I see the 38mm it just looks way too small, but again, that's just one man's opinion.
 
You really need to try it for yourself, honestly. It's all about how it feels on you. I thought the 38mm would be my perfect choice, but I actually prefer the 42mm even though my wrist is real small, probably around 155mm.

Every time I see the 38mm it just looks way too small, but again, that's just one man's opinion.


In the same boat. About the same wrist size, the 38mm looked good, but just thought it was a bit small. The 42mm does cover my wrist, but it's not ungodly.

What looks good is in the eye of the beholder, that's why there are millions of watches out there in different sizes, colors, etc. What looks nice to you may look ugly to others and vice versa.

You're gonna be spending $400-1000 on this thing most likely. I wouldn't go by the whims of online forum posters. See it yourself, take someone you trust.
 
You really need to try it for yourself, honestly. It's all about how it feels on you. I thought the 38mm would be my perfect choice, but I actually prefer the 42mm even though my wrist is real small, probably around 155mm.

Every time I see the 38mm it just looks way too small, but again, that's just one man's opinion.

In the same boat. About the same wrist size, the 38mm looked good, but just thought it was a bit small. The 42mm does cover my wrist, but it's not ungodly.

What looks good is in the eye of the beholder, that's why there are millions of watches out there in different sizes, colors, etc. What looks nice to you may look ugly to others and vice versa.

You're gonna be spending $400-1000 on this thing most likely. I wouldn't go by the whims of online forum posters. See it yourself, take someone you trust.

I was never a fan of large watches. I think I'm going to stick with my order of the 38mm. I want something that is more discrete also, so smaller is probably a bit less flashy.
 
Here's my contribution to this thread.
I think the 38mm fits just fine!
 

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I ordered 38mm SS Classic Black Buckle. I'm a small guy (only 5ft 2"!), have 150mm wrists & generally prefer small watches (larger watches look too big on me). However, comments across this forum about the 38mm being tiny were making me paranoid & even had little me thinking that I may have made a mistake & should have ordered 42mm.

Anyway, I made a quick visit to the Trafford Centre store during my lunch hour today, to see the watches in the flesh. Immediately, when I saw the watches on display, I knew 38mm was for me. 38mm did not look too small - it looked like a well proportioned watch. The 42mm is equally nice & no doubt a better choice for men with larger wrists, but my overall thinking is that 38mm is discreet & looks more like a 'watch', whilst the 42mm has a 'Smartwatch' look.

Although I had not made an appointment, the staff were great & booked me in for an immediate 'try on'. I tried the 38mm leather classic buckle (which is what I have on order) - it looked smart/classy & fitted perfectly. Also tried the Link Bracelet, which looked amazing on display, but when on my wrist, strangely, did not look quite as good as the leather strap...even the Apple rep commented that he thought that the leather strap looked really nice on me!

I will therefore save myself some money & not order the Link Bracelet. The leather will be ideal for work/formal occasions & I will order a Black sports strap for casual wear. Unfortunately, did not get chance to take any photos, as it was a spare of the moment decision to visit the store & I needed to get back to work!

Can only recommend that anyone thinking of buying or having second thoughts about their pre-order, visits a local store to try out the watch - it really is the best way to decide what is best for YOU

Enjoy your watch, whatever size/strap you decide on :)
 
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I was also on the fence as my wrists are 155mm around and the width is 55mm.

I pre-ordered both a 38mm sport and a 42mm sport watch. The next day, my wife and I went to the Apple Store for a try-on appointment. I'm 6'2", but quite skinny. However, my hands are quite big (really long fingers). The 38mm looked ok, but definitely looked small.

The second I put on the 42mm, my wife, myself and the Apple Store employee said the 42mm was the way to go.

Came back, cancelled my 38mm order, and am awaiting my 42mm Silver Sport Apple Watch between May 13th-May 27th.

Congrats to all who have ordered, and, no matter which model and size, enjoy it!
 
Just got back from apple store, tried on both 38 and 42, they both look good on my wrist ( 150 mm, 45 mm wide). 38 mm fit better so I choose 38 mm. My current watches are 38mm and 40mm.
 
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