Really looking forward to a series 8 Hermes next year. I’m sold On the SS and it isn’t much more than that if you ignore the cost of the band for Hermes.
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Someone explain Hermes to me, and what the benefit is of getting it over regular SS AW?
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Many people buy what they think is the maximum value for their money, but not all. And then there's the definition of "value" - what they value may be something that can be objectively measured, or may be totally emotional, or something in between. "Quality" and "luxury" have both objective and subjective aspects.
As others have noted, your description of Watch's functionality is hardly accurate. Timepiece and fitness tracking are just some of its core capabilities. It does much of what iPhone does, in a much smaller package - phone calls, text messages, calendar/reminders, notifications, music player, maps/turn-by-turn directions... I used to call my cell phones "Big-ass pocket watches," not because they were intended to be timepieces, but because once I had a cell phone in my pocket I no longer needed to wear a wristwatch to check the time. Just as iPhone is much more than a phone, Watch is much more than a timepiece (or fitness tracker). Just ask the people whose Watches automatically called emergency services after a fall.
Yes, Watch is not an heirloom item, but when I look at my father's collection of "heirloom" mechanical watches, none of them have much more than sentimental value. For example, there's his father's Gruen with an inscription honoring him for long years of service to a nonprofit. Grandpa replaced the original band more than 50 years ago with a Speidel Twist-O-Flex - a practical choice, but hardly something that showcases the watch. Although the Gruen still keeps good time and the crystal is in very good shape, unless we invest in a much nicer band I doubt we could get more than $25 for it - the inscription detracts from the value as Grandpa was not a famous/historical figure.
I have a gold Elgin pocket watch with a lovely, bas relief woodland scene on the outside of the case. Sure, it's actually gold-plated brass (how many watches have solid gold cases?) so its precious metal value is nil, and the plating has worn through in a couple of places, so condition isn't sterling. Still, you'd think it would fetch a bit more than a $300 appraisal. Overall, nearly every "heirloom" timepiece out there is likely to be appraised for a fraction of its inflation-adjusted original value. Used is used.
I have an aunt who constantly goes on about how none of her heirs are going to value any of her heirlooms. She loves her things dearly, but knows that her grandkids don't care a bit about Great Grandma's German stemware. If your heirs share your tastes and interests, then your stuff retains value. If not, most of it will sell for a fraction of its sentimental value in an estate sale, because your personal collection is not likely to be in sync with whatever is currently fashionable in the antiques and collectibles markets.
That's all a very long way of saying, it isn't about heirloom value at all. That's just one of the excuses we make when we buy something that's extravagantly impractical. All that really matters with such items is that we get sufficient personal enjoyment from it. To some, an elaborate and expensive leather band will raise the Watch from a utilitarian purchase to an object that they admire and cherish. You could just as easily spend the same money on a full day at a spa or a pair of front row orchestra seats to a Broadway play, and you might drop ten times that to lounge on a remote tropical beach. It's the experience. And when we see little value in that experience we scoff at other people's extravagance.
As I mentioned earlier, I did use the word 'essentially' and I proceeded to provide a personal opinion.
About the inability to see value in an experience and labelling it as extravagance, I could not care less about what others do with their money, and they should not bother with my opinion either. Whether they buy the cheapest microfibre cloth at the corner store or whether they check the compatibility list on the Apple Polishing Cloth meticulously lest their device is incompatible with it and order one for their use, who am I and what is it to me how they spend their money?
They can buy the costliest Apple Watch ever and be happy. The cheapest and the costliest will both get outdated at the same time. It is only a difference of case material. If that somehow helps someone's vanity, so be it. All Apple Watches look great, all work exactly the same. Some have different case materials and faces. That's all. People can pay whatever they want for those.
I am not and have never complained or resented or mocked how people use their money. Just to be clear, and maybe help unbunch some knickers.
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Couldn’t have said better myself, this is so great ?
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Another way to look at is that even the cheapest women's Hermes watch is $2,700 (and they can go much higher) so you're actually saving at least $1,500 or so by going with an Apple Watch Hermes!
Another way to look at is that even the cheapest women's Hermes watch is $2,700 (and they can go much higher) so you're actually saving at least $1,500 or so by going with an Apple Watch Hermes!
Indeed true.
By the time you buy a SS watch and an Hermes band, you've spent pretty much the same $ as if you'd purchased an Hermes watch to begin with, but you don't have the extra faces (which are gorgeous, in my opinion), or the extra year of warranty. Doesn't seem like a prudent way to "dip a toe in".
For me, it's simply about what I like best. I buy Louis Vuitton bags, but I also buy Coach bags, and I like and enjoy both. I wear inexpensive, non brand name clothing, but I wear Tiffany jewelry. The brand doesn't matter for certain things, but others I have a preference. I have a few $1200 mechanical watches that some might think are extravagant, but that's nothin' compared to a $30k Rolex. There's levels of everything...to the guy driving a 1986 Ford Escort, the BMW is extravagant....but to the guy driving the BMW, the Bently is extravagant. We all exist in different situations, and the right choice for one person isn't going to be the right choice for another.
Someone gave me one of those Apple Hermès watches as a gift but the band was defective, it was cut way too long, double the size of my wrist, so I had to take it to a leather shop and had them cut the excess off . . .
Everyone loves a good slow clap!
What can I say, I'm inspired to respond. If there are no responses to a provocative statement, then we have the sound of one hand clapping. ;-)
So just what is, "essentially?" The essence. Strip away all the distractions, disassemble and examine the component parts, and what do you have? Plenty of room for debate!
Is a human essentially a carbon-based, sentient lifeform? Shakespeare (speaking through Hamlet), has a very different take https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_a_piece_of_work_is_a_man. And even there, we generally take that quote out of context to emphasize the glory of our species. In context we see its irony, reflecting Hamlet's disillusionment with human behavior.
I can argue that essentially, an Apple Watch is a wrist-worn, general-purpose computer. Essentially, even though Apple removed the word computer from its corporate name, it's more a computer company today than ever before; no longer satisfied with packaging other companys' CPUs into a box, but designing those SoCs itself. Having jettisoned a word (computer) that undoubtedly carried negative connotations to many potential buyers of smart phones.... A computer by any other name will sell more sweetly.
I'll argue that Apple is essentially a consumer-focused version of IBM as it existed in Steve Jobs' youth - a vertically integrated maker/marketer of closed-system computing equipment, peripherals, operating systems, applications software, service contracts/software subscriptions, etc. Others, no doubt, prefer to define Apple as a luxury consumer goods brand.
One might argue that the essential difference between heirloom mechanical watch and an Apple Watch is that those mechanical timepieces were mono-tasking, dedicated-purpose machines, while an Apple Watch, at its core, is a general-purpose computer with an integrated display and wireless communications capabilities that can be programmed to perform a wide variety of tasks.
But for the most part in this thread we've been debating "essence" as which software/hardware-delivered capabilities we find most important; it's value to us as a tool rather than its component parts.
It’s a significant premium some are willing to pay for the Hermes brand, the exclusive faces, and extra cover.
It does nothing for me personally, but each to their own.
It does nothing for me personally, but each to their own.
Hermes for me is pointless, the same aluminum.
I look for the latest and greatest in hardware and product feeling and user experience feedback.
So stainless steel or titanium body with sapphire glass is must have.
Aluminum with regular glass for me is the same burnt money like overpriced for nothing Hermes
What do you mean by "cover"?
The Hermes band really is much better quality leather than the Apple leather bands. I seriously considered getting it, but I don't have anywhere I'd wear it to, and for everyday use, the sports band, and now the solo loop, are much more practical.
Probably meant coverage, as in warranty.
I might need to check out the leather. I really do love the feel of a leather band - typically my daily band is my black or brown Apple leather. I was toying with going SS this go round, but didn’t because of the weight. I know at some point I’m gonna go back to a SS, so maybe when I do I’ll have to look more into it.
I may be misreading but the Hermès watch does not come in aluminum, and does not have “regular” glass.
Hermes leather is really beautiful. People who appreciate fine leather would say there's no comparison between Hermes leather and Apple's leather bands. Hermes is what real leather should be, and Apple leather has been so processed it feels like it's barely leather.
I thought maybe he meant both Hermès Edition and Aluminium versions are pointless to him…?
I thought so too, but that was a very confusing post!
Personally, I was most confused where they called aluminum "burnt money," considering aluminum is cheaper than steel. I know they meant something like they wouldn't pay a cent for the aluminum, but it feels like an odd way to put it.
To many people the stainless and titanium watches are overpriced and not considered due to this. You may think they are ‘must haves’ but there is a reason the aluminium is so popular, it’s because it’s priced reasonably and appealing to the wider Apple consumer.
Cover? Warranty period and AC.
I would expect the Hermes bands to be better quality considering they cost hundreds of pounds. It makes me cringe to be honest as at the end of the day it’s a smart watch, not a luxury watch and I think Apple are (rightfully so for profit) exploiting a market for people who are brand conscious. Hermes isn’t really a brand I have any interest in though so it’s lost on me.
Whether a watch is premium or not does not depend on how many functions it has. It depends on whether it appeals to the people. So your argument that smart watch cannot be luxury does not stand. And I can assure you the price of Apple’s gadgets is totally not “luxury”, to a certain extent reasonable if you consider how good the functions and performance are and the whole ecosystem support.
And dare I say the SS/Ti Apple Watch look gorgeous when comparing with the other so called smart watches, not to mention when it is paired with a nice leather band like Hermès bands (you can easily change to any band you want, as a bonus). I think you may open your eyes to the price of some truly luxury items before even judging the Apple Watch to be a luxury. Even the Hermès Edition is much cheaper than the original S0 Edition for instance.
And dare I say the SS/Ti Apple Watch look gorgeous when comparing with the other so called smart watches, not to mention when it is paired with a nice leather band like Hermès bands (you can easily change to any band you want, as a bonus). I think you may open your eyes to the price of some truly luxury items before even judging the Apple Watch to be a luxury. Even the Hermès Edition is much cheaper than the original S0 Edition for instance.
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Not sure if you were responding to me as I’m not quoted but I meant luxury in terms of smartwatches, I’m aware they are cheap compared to actual luxury timepieces and you know this from our previous conversations. You know I’m a watch enthusiast as I told you recently and have collected mechanical watches for the last couple of decades.
The SS and Ti watches do look nice, absolutely agree, but how nice and whether they are worth their cost is a subjective opinion, we are all aware of that. To me an Apple Watch is an Apple Watch. It’s a functional gadget that I enjoy using but aesthetically it’s rather bland and popular, even the more premium material watches. You may not agree with that opinion and that is totally acceptable. The Hermes AW is grossly overpriced in my opinion but then I don’t really have any interest in Hermes as a brand. Select people obviously do like it which is why Apple continue to offer it. It boils down to the individual and what they get from owning a product. If spending £600-£1800 on a smartwatch give them enjoyment and satisfaction, then that’s all that counts. There are plenty of people who enjoy the aluminium AW’s though for what they offer and have no desire to own a SS, Ti or a Hermes however. It’s the beauty of choice and we buy what we want.