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ApplePersonFreak

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 23, 2016
1,062
520
I've been seeing sales for the OEM bands lately and obviously they are the best to get because it's the original band.. but even with the sale they're still expensive. I've seen $8 sport bands on Amazon get amazing reviews but the question is, what's the quality like? Ideally I'd want to switch bands often and have a variety of colors and with the OEM bands you can't do that cause it's so expensive so this is the best alternative for me. Just wondering if anyone's had good experiences with the cheap sport bands on amazon. Thanks!
 

jermy4

macrumors 6502a
Jun 27, 2010
564
406
The fantek ones are pretty decent just not as high quality as the originals. They are so cheap there isn't much risk in buying one and seeing if you like it before you buy a bunch of OEM bands. Depending on what colors you want too, there are lightly used OEM bands on eBay for considerably less than what apple charges. The colors that come with the watches out of the box seem to be the most common on eBay ... I bet a lot of folks don't like the color of band that their watch came with.
 

A_chiz

macrumors newbie
Jan 1, 2017
3
0
I have 4 MoKo bands that I bought off Amazon and so far I am very happy with them and for the price you can't beat them...
 

A_chiz

macrumors newbie
Jan 1, 2017
3
0
The fit and finish are good. The colours closely match the watch face colours, overall I'm quite happy with them.
 

fyun89

macrumors 6502
Oct 3, 2014
436
444
I'm afraid I might have skin rash or irritation from using "non-brand" straps. I dont particularly have a sensitive skin, but since my AW is on me all day long, I want to be safe.. So, I try to stay away from Amazon and look for American brand like Pad and Quil.
 

Disneymom2003

macrumors regular
Dec 28, 2015
132
74
Just my opinion. I have bought the knock offs. They are not the same quality. I will not buy them again. If I want a band I will buy . Yes they cost more, but for ME it is worth it. There is no comparison. I wanted to like the cheaper ones..... believe me. I am cheap. But I also want bands that I love.
 
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ssledoux

macrumors 601
Sep 16, 2006
4,366
4,222
Down south
I bought a knockoff when I had my Apple Watch and I wasn't impressed. They look good, but I just didn't like the feel of them as much as Apple's. They seemed more "sticky" for lack of a better word, and seemed to pick up more dirt. This time I'm just gonna buy my favorite colors from ebay and hope to get my hands on gently used ones for about half the original price.
 
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ApplePersonFreak

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 23, 2016
1,062
520
I bought a knockoff when I had my Apple Watch and I wasn't impressed. They look good, but I just didn't like the feel of them as much as Apple's. They seemed more "sticky" for lack of a better word, and seemed to pick up more dirt. This time I'm just gonna buy my favorite colors from ebay and hope to get my hands on gently used ones for about half the original price.

Do you buy the originals from eBay?
 

pcall1128

macrumors 6502a
Apr 13, 2015
584
697
Pennsylvania
there's just something great about Apples design...and sure you can get an imitation for practically a fraction of the price but its going to be lacking. I guess it just comes down to whats important to you.
 
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ApplePersonFreak

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 23, 2016
1,062
520
there's just something great about Apples design...and sure you can get an imitation for practically a fraction of the price but its going to be lacking. I guess it just comes down to whats important to you.

True. Walmart has the black sport band for $27.. tempted to get it.
 

Ixidor

macrumors regular
Mar 22, 2016
161
116
I started with the mentality that Apple bands weren't worth the cost. My logic went that with the cost of 1 Apple band, I could buy many third party knock-off bands.

The problem though, is that there will always be a compromise when you buy a knock-off band. At first, I thought that I could live with it. Since I wear my Apple Watch daily, these little annoyances add up and are noticeable. So I bought more third party bands.

In the end, I decided to save up and bought official Apple bands instead. The quality impressed me to the extent that I rather own a small number of official Apple bands that I thoroughly enjoy than to own a wide library of knock-off third party bands that I have to tolerate.

The only knock-off bands I still use are the JeTech Milanese loops. These ones still fall short of Apple's (obviously), but the compromises didn't bother me too much.

If you want to go this route, then try it out and see if you can tolerate it long term.

Note that what I've said applies only to knock-off bands. Original third party bands with their own custom designs obviously have far better quality.
 
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BSG75

macrumors 6502
Jul 21, 2015
354
238
Tennessee
We bought a third-party sport band for my daughter's watch from Amazon. It ripped in two months and she's very easy on her watch. Paid the Apple Tax for the OEM replacement. Should have done that in the first place.
 

bluespark

macrumors 68040
Jul 11, 2009
3,154
4,108
Chicago
Genuine Apple by a mile. Silicone is not equal to fluoroelastomer. Also, Apple's colors are brilliant and seasonal, its fit and finish are impeccable, and it deserves a premium for having designed the damn things.
 
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