Solo loop broke in half!

[bricktop_at]

Good to hear!

 

[Apple fanboy]

Just to update on this situation, after reading several other reports like this on both Apple and Macrumors I decided it was time to call Apple support again. It appeared some owners were getting easy replacements and others were being told no.

I spent around 20-30 minutes on the phone initially with a first line support agent and then a senior advisor. The latter was very patient, helpful and knowledgeable and immediately agreed this should be a straight forward replacement, no question. They went away to discuss with a colleague and to authorise this, normally I believe they would require the broken strap to be returned for analysis.

Around 5 minutes later I received a call from the same senior advisor who informed me they would be sending a replacement solo loop without the need for me to return my existing one. This time around it was a very pleasant experience on the phone to support.

So it would seem if you are not happy with the initial outcome then jump back on the phone. Push to speak with a senior advisor or member of staff who should be more accommodating.

As the advisor pointed out, this could have been a more unpleasant outcome if the watch had fallen onto a hard floor when the strap failed 😲 - this could have lead to a much more serious replacement situation, certainly food for thought. I do hope that others aren't unlucky enough for that to happen.

Anyway, I will await arrival of the replacement solo loop and give my Mother the good news 😊

Common sense won in the end.

 

[techtechtech]

Just for reference my defective Solo Loop was purchased in the UK during October 2020, it was a 40mm Deep Navy variant. I've updated the purchase date on my original post, thought it might help if it turns out to be a faulty batch or similar.

 

[techtechtech]

The replacement Solo Loop was promptly dispatched and aside from a minor UPS delay it arrived in one piece - pun intended 😂

 

[cdiazd]

I bought my solo loop on 12/2020. Today I found a tear on it. I contacted Apple and was told tears are not covered by warranty. But wait, it gets better. If I had bought the band with the watch with apple care, I would have to pay the $69 incident fee to replace a $49 accessory!!!!

The only goal of this product is to stretch significantly at least twice a day and then handle some tension. Apple advertised that it was perfectly capable of doing that. Just looking at this thread tells you that is not the case. If the band gets a tear, it is most likely from that daily stretching process, so the product failed t its only purpose. Whoever came up with the brilliant warranty policy that tears are not covered for this product must be fired on the spot. It wouldn't surprise that after bands break and people start complaining, then Apple comes up with some replacement program "for a small number" of bands affected.

I am glad you got a replacement. I will try my luck at my local Apple store to see if they are more gracious than the people in the chat support.

 

[bricktop_at]

Sorry but that looks seriously disgusting 🤢
Ich suggest you clean that up before going to an Apple store, they might draw conclusions from the way you seem to treat it.

Edit: Since you now changed the picture of the strap, disregard the comment about the disgusting look ;-)

 

[techtechtech]

I bought my solo loop on 12/2020. Today I found a tear on it. I contacted Apple and was told tears are not covered by warranty. But wait, it gets better. If I had bought the band with the watch with apple care, I would have to pay the $69 incident fee to replace a $49 accessory!!!!

The only goal of this product is to stretch significantly at least twice a day and then handle some tension. Apple advertised that it was perfectly capable of doing that. Just looking at this thread tells you that is not the case. If the band gets a tear, it is most likely from that daily stretching process, so the product failed t its only purpose. Whoever came up with the brilliant warranty policy that tears are not covered for this product must be fired on the spot. It wouldn't surprise that after bands break and people start complaining, then Apple comes up with some replacement program "for a small number" of bands affected.

I am glad you got a replacement. I will try my luck at my local Apple store to see if they are more gracious than the people in the chat support.

Sorry to hear that, I would try your luck on the phone, they should email a link for you to send some photos. With a helpful member of staff they should honour a replacement. Stick with it and let us know 👍

 

[Cotypubby]

I bought my solo loop on 12/2020. Today I found a tear on it. I contacted Apple and was told tears are not covered by warranty. But wait, it gets better. If I had bought the band with the watch with apple care, I would have to pay the $69 incident fee to replace a $49 accessory!!!!

The only goal of this product is to stretch significantly at least twice a day and then handle some tension. Apple advertised that it was perfectly capable of doing that. Just looking at this thread tells you that is not the case. If the band gets a tear, it is most likely from that daily stretching process, so the product failed t its only purpose. Whoever came up with the brilliant warranty policy that tears are not covered for this product must be fired on the spot. It wouldn't surprise that after bands break and people start complaining, then Apple comes up with some replacement program "for a small number" of bands affected.

I am glad you got a replacement. I will try my luck at my local Apple store to see if they are more gracious than the people in the chat support.

Your band is attached to the watch upside down. The grooved side with the size printed on it goes against your arm. If that is how you always wear it I am surprised it has never broken and pulled out of where it connects since the connection is not secure.

 

[cdiazd]

Your band is attached to the watch upside down. The grooved side with the size printed on it goes against your arm. If that is how you always wear it I am surprised it has never broken and pulled out of where it connects since the connection is not secure.

I know it is upside down, I never wear it like that. If I would, the watch screen would be against my wrist, and not visible. I put it like that for the picture intentionally because the tear is only visible from the inside, for now.

 

[andyw715]

That’s exactly why I only buy the cheap $4 bands off AliExpress. In bulk. Seriously, you should see my nightstand drawer, I’m up to around 20 or so now. I may need help…

Anyways, I don’t expect them to last longer than two to three months and if they break it’s not a big loss. Plus I can get half a truckload of bands for what Apple charges for a single one of them. And I have been genuinely surprised by the quality and build of some of these supposed knock-offs.

Unless the break also allows the watch to fall off; in the ocean, or on pavement, or down a ravine....etc

 

[mj_]

True. Let me put it this way though: I've never had one break unexpectedly. They tend to wear out and get slightly wonky on my wrist (solo loops), or the velcro patches slowly separate from the sport loops, which can be easily addressed with a drop of superglue, or the rubber pieces that make sure the bands don't wobble when inserted into the watch slot wear out resulting in, you guessed it, wobbly yet still secure attachments.

Not once has a $2 band simply snapped, broken in two, suddenly disintegrated, or fallen apart in any way.

 

[techtechtech]

Unless the break also allows the watch to fall off; in the ocean, or on pavement, or down a ravine....etc

Exactly! suddenly the cost of your solo loop suddenly went up by at least $399 😲

Seriously though this could get expensive very quickly, in my case the owner had hold of one end still and if it had hit the floor it would have landed on carpet. Had it been outside or a hard tiled floor then I wouldn't be placing any bets on a good outcome 😮

 

[cdiazd]

Sorry to hear that, I would try your luck on the phone, they should email a link for you to send some photos. With a helpful member of staff they should honour a replacement. Stick with it and let us know 👍

The visit to the store paid off! They are replacing the band under warranty at no cost, as it should be. They didn't have it in stock, so I have to go and pick it up in a couple of days. Hopefully, this one will last longer!

 

[OhioTravelTechGeek]

I know I'm not alone with this problem but my mothers 40mm Deep Navy Solo Loop broke clean in two after developing a small nick/tear/defect a few millimetres long. I have seen others posting similar images on the Apple support forum. Called Apple and they said no replacement, it was purchased in October 2020 so less than eight months old. My mother is in her 70's so no rock climbing or other activities along those lines, it is sized large if anything. I will be chasing Apple down to resolve this, not a happy bunny!

Has anyone else experienced this?

View attachment 1805762

Yes. This happened to me as well. Same color too. I didn't notice any nicks/tears/defects. This happened when I was taking my watch off. Just snapped. Purchased 6/2021 and split in 1/2022. Took back to Apple today. They did replace it, which I was thankful for.

 

[Itinj24]

I noticed a couple tiny cracks in mine before it finally gave way and split. Didn’t even bother trying to get a replacement. I would never put another one on and trust it to secure my Watch to my wrist. They can keep it and I’ll take it as a lesson not to use it anymore. May even bring back my split one and have them discard it for kicks and giggles.

 

[techtechtech]

Well, it happened again - the replacement solo loop has started showing signs of a tear after around 10 months use, it has been put to one side so as not to risk a total failure. It is pretty poor form from Apple, lack of testing, hard to say. Makes you wonder if the Amazon/eBay straps last longer or not, rubbing salt in the wound if they do!

My advice would be to pass on these unless you are happy to replace at some stage. The original straps included with the watch have never been a problem, seems like these solo loops have some more development required before they are ready for primetime.

Will try and post some images for reference when time permits.

 

[Zmmyt]

my wife’s gave in a few month after purchase and mine, close to two years now, is starting to rip. definitely not a good product.

 

[the future]

It’s a brilliant product. It is insanely comfortable. There are so many sizes that it’s basically tailor-made just for your wrist.

But yes, if you wear one and the same Solo Loop strap all the time, for months/years on end, stretching it hundreds/thousands of times, you should expect that you‘ll have to replace it eventually. Or maybe you can invent a material that can be stretched infinite times without ever experiencing any wear; then you can become very rich indeed.

 

[perezr10]

The original sport bands from 2015 never needed to be replaced. The braided solo loops don’t break but they suffer from stretching.

 

[techtechtech]

It’s a brilliant product. It is insanely comfortable. There are so many sizes that it’s basically tailor-made just for your wrist.

But yes, if you wear one and the same Solo Loop strap all the time, for months/years on end, stretching it hundreds/thousands of times, you should expect that you‘ll have to replace it eventually. Or maybe you can invent a material that can be stretched infinite times without ever experiencing any wear; then you can become very rich indeed.

Let's be clear here, this particular product was around 9-10 months old, the previous one was 6 months old, that equates to stretching it between 360-600 times, assuming you don't take it off more than once a day. We can assume Apple did some testing of this product, we can also hope it should at least last the warranty period.

If Apple cannot produce this strap at a suitable quality, then it should not be released to market, end of story. Paying £50 for a rubber watch strap that breaks after 6-10 months is stretching it even for Apple, see what I did there

 

[the future]

Let's be clear here, this particular product was around 9-10 months old, the previous one was 6 months old, that equates to stretching it between 360-600 times, assuming you don't take it off more than once a day. We can assume Apple did some testing of this product, we can also hope it should at least last the warranty period.

Yeah, let‘s be clear here, there are probably hundreds of thousands of Solo Loops out there and very few reports of them „breaking in half“. Maybe you‘re just especially rough with your stuff or had very bad luck. Either way, the product is just fine.

 

[techtechtech]

Yeah, let‘s be clear here, there are probably hundreds of thousands of Solo Loops out there and very few reports of them „breaking in half“. Maybe you‘re just especially rough with your stuff or had very bad luck. Either way, the product is just fine.

You think it is just bad luck that two out of three Solo Loops broke so far. It amazes me how blinkered some people can be when it comes to their favoured brand, I tell it how it is, if you choose to ignore an honest report about an Apple product then that is of course your choice, but please do not make assumptions about how I treat my possessions.

Maybe not everyone thinks that a £50 rubber watch strap that breaks in two after 6 months light use is just fine, I am one of those. I will bet that in the next 6 months strap number three will most likely fail, I see no reason why it shouldn't.

I hope the other Solo Loop owners who suffer the same fate manage to get a replacement, keep pushing Apple if they refuse and best of luck. In the meantime I will continue to use my standard strap which has been working fine on all my previous Apple watches without issue

 

[techtechtech]

my wife’s gave in a few month after purchase and mine, close to two years now, is starting to rip. definitely not a good product.

Sorry to hear that, hope your wife can get a replacement under warranty, yours lasted better than mine but still poor for what should be a good quality product. As has been mentioned on this thread already, if you were unlucky and the Solo Loop failed causing the watch to fall on to hard flooring, the failure could cost a lot more than just a strap.

 

[the future]

You think it is just bad luck that two out of three Solo Loops broke so far. It amazes me how blinkered some people can be when it comes to their favoured brand

And you choose to ignore the fact that there are so few reports out there of Solo Loops breaking despite so many of them being sold. Talk about „blinkered“ …

 

[Zmmyt]

Sorry to hear that, hope your wife can get a replacement under warranty, yours lasted better than mine but still poor for what should be a good quality product. As has been mentioned on this thread already, if you were unlucky and the Solo Loop failed causing the watch to fall on to hard flooring, the failure could cost a lot more than just a strap.

she had it replaced under warranty.