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Strange Degradation of Apple Watch back

johnalan

johnalan

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 15, 2009
913
1,098
Dublin, Ireland
Hello,

Maybe I'm just being a bit OCD, but I noticed today that on the back of my Apple Watch (sport, 2 days old) that there is some weird 'flecks' or marks in the black material that holds the sensors.

I was only able to get a reasonable picture of it using my DSLR, so it's not easy to see, and you certainly need clear daylight to see it, check these pics out:

http://i.imgur.com/RYvUVi6.jpg


You can clearly see some flecks/weird marks in the black material... interestingly they are not shown around the sensors (perfectly clear circles around them)

What do you think, is yours like this, or has the black bit on the back of my Apple Watch 'absorbed' some dirt?


Cheers,
John
 
Mine had this straight out the box - seems to be part of the material they use. Reminds me of how granite worktops often look, with flecks in the material.

Doesn't bother me as I never look at it that closely, but did think they were scratches at first.
 
cambookpro said:
Mine had this straight out the box - seems to be part of the material they use. Reminds me of how granite worktops often look, with flecks in the material.

Doesn't bother me as I never look at it that closely, but did think they were scratches at first.
Click to expand...

Must be fine then, thanks mate.
 
My non-sport one doesn't have this, might be the Composite material opposed to the Ceramic
attachment.php
 
This is going to sound odd, but for the first couple of days that I wore my stainless steel all day, after the watch was removed I noticed very tiny glittery flecks on my skin where the ceramic back had been in contact with my skin.

It looked like little traces of gold or peach colored eye shadow. I had thought about getting a picture and posting to the forum about it, but figured it would sound alarmist. Also I didn't see how I was going to manage it with my iPhone camera. I could see nothing on the watch itself. I simply washed off this "glitter".

I figured it was just a mix of sweat and skin flakes or residue from soap the somehow got stuck there. I haven't noticed it recently. Just the first 2-3 days or so. And it had been faint and easy to overlook even then.

I don't know if my story relates to what you're seeing since it's hard to see from the pic. If it's the same stuff it might stick more to the plastic composite. In my case it won't stick to ceramic but clings to skin. It could be something from the plastic wrapper that had been on the watch back perhaps?
 
Another "out there" suggestion....

Possibly something on the charging puck that gets melded to the watch due to the heat at the contact point when charging?
 
People keep asking what's so special about the ceramic back.. This is just the beginning
 
I thought it was just me. I didn't look at the back the first time I put my Sport on, but when I took it off, I thought the sensor area was covered with dust flakes. Then I thought it was my skin rubbing off on it.
 
I have this too, under scrutiny I think the composite back of the Sport looks a little scruffy and un-apple like. The back of the SS looks a lot neater.
 
The OP's image, especially fully zoomed in, makes it look like a manufacturing defect to me. Did you wipe the watch back before taking the shot? Does it perhaps have some protective foil still stuck to it?
 
It looks like differently colored granulate from the "composite", i.e plastic.
I don't believe these sprinkles of different color are a defect.
 
Mine is like that since I opened the box. It is not a defect, just a different material they use for the sport. Of course, it is my opinion.
 
seatton said:
Mine is like that since I opened the box. It is not a defect, just a different material they use for the sport. Of course, it is my opinion.
Click to expand...

Does it feel smooth? If the mottled appearance is a property of the material then there is nothing to worry about.
 
I wouldn't worry about it.

We don't know anything about the composite that Apple uses. They might not just call it "plastic" for a reason. It could be plastic filled with bits of minerals for various reasons including strength, wear resistance and thermal performance.

http://www.cptllc.us/news.php is an example of a manufacturer that uses filled composites of the sort I'm talking about. Their large castings are typically filled with gravel... I'd imagine the Watch's composite might be filled with something much finer!
 
The "flecks" are just part of the composite material they use for the sensor cover. It has a metallic flake look kind of like some car paints.

44c6715e84ca1eb4e1828ecf6812764d.jpg
 
No flecks here, but there is an "orange peel" effect if you look closely through a loop. I think it is a spray on coating to protect the device form scratches. Similar to a clear coating on a car's paint. Car paints will have this orange peel effect unless they are wet sanded smooth.


2s198g9.jpg
 
I've noticed this as well. Not worried about how it looks, other than that it might affect the function of the sensors.
 
It may as well be a manufacturing defect but with no end-user ill effects. Those sparkly particles might be a part of the composite that are supposed to be mixed with plastic on molecular level, but due to sloppy manufacturing ended up undissolved.
 
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