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Apple, The Great Disruptor!

First the portable music industry
then the mobile phone industry
then the computer industry
then the payment middleman industry
now the watch industry

still waiting on their home entertainment disruption though..

farther down you go on your list the lesser the disruption. let's hope the watch has more of an effect than the applepay
 
Maybe the smart part could be designed to be swapped out for newer ones, keeping the expensive case and winder.

I've often wondered if Apple will do this. I can't imagine anyone buying the deluxe version of the Apple watch only to have it be outdated in a couple of years. But if the inner "smart part" could be swapped for a couple of hundred dollars every few years, then maybe the investment in the outer case would be worthwhile. Apple could make subtle changes to the outer cases over time to keep the watch interesting, but there would also be no shame in having an older "classic" outer case if you could have the newest electronics in it every few years.
 
i like my mechanical watch and i will not be getting any smart watch.

the reason why i upgraded to the iPhone 6 was to get a larger screen. i fail to see the point of reading stuff off the watch. don't mind taking out my phone...

I have Android so hear me out. During Black Friday I got a LG G watch for $79 with $50 Google play credit. Figured that even if I don't like the watch I still have $50 of play credit. Fast forward 3 weeks and I can't leave home without it. This past Saturday I forgot it and throughout the day I was looking at my wrist. Once you get use to swiping away notifications, sport scores or news events it's much easier than whipping out my Note 4. And because of that my Note 4 battery life has improved greatly. And watch battery life has been a non issue because I always take it off to charge when going to bed.
The issue I see with the Apple watch is that it's expensive and I don't see it dropping in price anytime soon. It looks more luxury than being targeted to common folks. I personally would be hesitant to drop a minimum of $350 because one small blemish would tick me off.
 
This might be an instance in which not controlling the hardware design might be a good idea. As it stands, only Apple will make iWatch, so by default every other watchmaker who wants to get in this space will have to use Android. This seems short sighted to think that Apple knows how to design a better luxury watch than TAG.

It's equally shortsighted to think that TAG knows how to design a watch that rather than being a marvel of handmade complex gears & springs, is simply a tiny computer that runs an operating system that they similarly have zero experience with.
 
I can see the advantages if you're an iPhone user like us but as 90% of smartphones run Android that leaves a whole lot of market for the rest of the watch industry to exploit.

I don't think the Apple Watch will be the roaring success some people are predicting.

The "Android market" that makes them have that 90% market share aren't exactly in the "luxury" demographics of the market though. The Swiss manufacturers are going to be sorely disappointed if they think Google riding in with their demographic of cheap/free users are going to save their luxury brands from the onslaught Apple is about to unleash on them.
 
There IS a HUGE difference between a Tag and an iWatch in terms of quality, value and overall design and that it is not only a time piece but a piece of jewelry. The iWatch will have to be replaced in less than a year when the batter cannot hold a charge. My Tag has lasted years, goes in for routine service since its an Automatic an out performs. I have tried many smartwatches and I just don't see the value of them. Apple's will offer nothing more than what has come before it.
 
What I read was, Google to take on :apple:Watch.

Google has commenced a programme of taking on Apple's new watch. Google is bringing together partners in watchmaking and electronics to accelerate the development.

This Google strategy was used successfully previously when it took on the iPhone, pulling in handset manufacturers and finally making a good go of competing with it's Samsung alliance.

For it's challenge to the Apple Watch Google has pulled in Intel for the electronics and TAG Heuer for the watch and hope to emulate their Android successes. Google are yet to announce the other dozen or so watch makers they are partnering with.

Google's resources combined with an established watchmaker and established electronics company should in a few years yield some exciting results.

Huh! You read that? What I see here is crap load of fear and realization that they're about to get their assed kicked, just like many got their ass kicked in before. Apple will sell 90M phones in the 3.5 months before christmas and take 90% of smart phone profits. If Apple takes 70% of watch profits, most of the watch makers will have to go out of business. That's the fact jack.

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Agreed, but the Swiss watchmakers being scared of the iWatch is like Steinway being scared of Casio. One is a finely tuned instrument, the other is electronic junk made in China.

Oh, right... Seriously, you hear yourself talk? Apple could build a watch 100 times more sophisticated than any watchmaker (they could buy all of them) if they spend just 1/100 of their huge stockpile of money.

If those watchmakes lose most of their profits they'll be in a very bad way and that's were they're headed now and they know it.
 
There IS a HUGE difference between a Tag and an iWatch in terms of quality, value and overall design and that it is not only a time piece but a piece of jewelry. The iWatch will have to be replaced in less than a year when the batter cannot hold a charge. My Tag has lasted years, goes in for routine service since its an Automatic an out performs. I have tried many smartwatches and I just don't see the value of them. Apple's will offer nothing more than what has come before it.
What if you can take your Apple Watch in for routine service and get not only the battery replaced, but the processor and perhaps the display, and come away with a device that actually has new functions thanks to new sensors?

To me that would be a HUGE advantage over a watch that just tells time and serves as a fashion accessory. I'm not sure I'll be able to convince you of this, but it's okay. You'll be with those people who said, "I don't need a smart phone, because all I want my phone to do is make phone calls and send an occasional text."
 
There IS a HUGE difference between a Tag and an iWatch in terms of quality, value and overall design and that it is not only a time piece but a piece of jewelry. The iWatch will have to be replaced in less than a year when the batter cannot hold a charge. My Tag has lasted years, goes in for routine service since its an Automatic an out performs. I have tried many smartwatches and I just don't see the value of them. Apple's will offer nothing more than what has come before it.

Oh, right, talk to me in 2 years when your precious are in bankruptcy, please do. There is nothing that great about those watches except really good marketing. The luxury segment has massive markups; quality is truly in the eye of the beholder more than in the item itself...
 
This might be an instance in which not controlling the hardware design might be a good idea. As it stands, only Apple will make iWatch, so by default every other watchmaker who wants to get in this space will have to use Android. This seems short sighted to think that Apple knows how to design a better luxury watch than TAG.

I think that as numerous examples have shown, creating a great user experience involves a lot more than just slapping an OS onto a device like a phone, tablet or watch and expecting it to "just work". :p
 
I have Android so hear me out. During Black Friday I got a LG G watch for $79 with $50 Google play credit. Figured that even if I don't like the watch I still have $50 of play credit. Fast forward 3 weeks and I can't leave home without it. This past Saturday I forgot it and throughout the day I was looking at my wrist. Once you get use to swiping away notifications, sport scores or news events it's much easier than whipping out my Note 4. And because of that my Note 4 battery life has improved greatly. And watch battery life has been a non issue because I always take it off to charge when going to bed.
The issue I see with the Apple watch is that it's expensive and I don't see it dropping in price anytime soon. It looks more luxury than being targeted to common folks. I personally would be hesitant to drop a minimum of $350 because one small blemish would tick me off.

So, how does that related to this. Those watch companies ARE in the luxury market and they are the one that are afraid.

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farther down you go on your list the lesser the disruption. let's hope the watch has more of an effect than the applepay

Apple pay is only 2 months old, disruption takes a bit more time than that...
 
I just don't understand the concept of a luxury smart watch...

You're combining what is essentially supposed to be timeless with technology that will quickly become outpaced. If I spent over a grand on jewelry I wouldn't like it to come with an expiration date.
 
I just don't understand the concept of a luxury smart watch...

You're combining what is essentially supposed to be timeless with technology that will quickly become outpaced. If I spent over a grand on jewelry I wouldn't like it to come with an expiration date.

So if it didn't come with an expiration date, you'd be okay with it.

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Apple pay is only 2 months old, disruption takes a bit more time than that...
You're only saying that because all the other products on the list took longer than two months to reach full disruption.:D
 
People tend for some reason to think a timeless piece of jewelry is a more substantial purchase than a computer on your wrist, but I think this paradigm is going to change very quickly. We'll find a well designed, highly functional utility is bound to beat out anything that does nothing but tell the time. It doesn't matter what market you're in. Utility is far more valuable.

Particularly rich bastards who will use it as a remote for their entertainment systems, smart homes, controlling their private jet interiors, quickly calling their drivers, etc. Smart watches are the James Bond dream. In time, we'll all cave into the Apple Watch.

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Agreed, but the Swiss watchmakers being scared of the iWatch is like Steinway being scared of Casio. One is a finely tuned instrument, the other is electronic junk made in China.

The more scared they are now, the more likely they are to survive the reckoning. It's the companies (*cough* Kodak) that deny and ignore looming threats who get swallowed.

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I just don't understand the concept of a luxury smart watch...

You're combining what is essentially supposed to be timeless with technology that will quickly become outpaced. If I spent over a grand on jewelry I wouldn't like it to come with an expiration date.

It's not for you. It's for extremely wealthy people who want to use cutting edge tech (like, almost all of them under 55), but still want something decently elite on their wrists. The people spend $20k+ on watches they'll wear for a few years.
 
Is it 2007 all over again?

Palm guy 'PC guys just can't waltz in and do great smartphones'

Nokia fans 'your ****** iPhone can not do this, this and that'

While it will be the same mistake if I say Tag Heuer can not do miniature hardware and software, somehow his public boasting of 'we just started 4 months back, we have made partnerships and acquisitions' sounds immature desperate and does not bode well. Don't say those things now when you do not have anything. Why? Moreover, such miniature hw and sw don't achieve the level of apple quality using such a modular approach of snapping things together and in such short time. I bet Apple has been at the Apple Watch for a few years.

He comes across as the typical CEO who one day is scared he may not even have a business and has a big pow-wow with his senior management team to work out a strategy and then comes out and talks to the press about it with a thumbs up (picture Balmer). Products that merges with people's lives can not be made with strategic planning and tactical decision making. Yeah, it works for selling soaps and may be Cialis :)
 
There IS a HUGE difference between a Tag and an iWatch in terms of quality, value and overall design and that it is not only a time piece but a piece of jewelry.

I would say Tag Heuer represents poor value. I'm fairly certain that the movement inside my Aquaracer 500m (ceramic) is a generic Sellita sw200. This is the same movt as the ETA 2824, which is found in many watches costing far less than TAGs. I am simplifying it a bit, as there are different grades of ETA2824. Still, I'd venture a guess that such a movt costs no more than $175.

TAG puts their logo on the rotor and calls it a "Calibre 5" and MSRP is $2300. The case is well built, and overall fit and finish is excellent. Prior to the AR500m, I had a Tag quartz and I wore that thing for over 20yrs. But $2100 for the case, bracelet, sapphire crystal??!?!?!?!

Somebody has to pay DiCaprio, Sharapova, and Ronaldo.
 
Why would I want an iWatch, when I already have an iPhone!

I am so pissed off at Apple...

Professionals have been waiting for a 4K (and now 5K) Thunderbolt display monitors for editing video for years.

And NO I DO NOT WANT an iMac with a ****** video card and a very small amount of RAM.

And the current MacPro WILL NOT support 5K displays...
so Apple needs to release a newer upgraded Mac Pro... maybe in a couple more years????

so the Professional Computer market suffers because Apple is BUSY MAKING WATCHES!

oh wait.. Apple is making ****** headphones now....
 
Wake up. Swiss high end watches are handed down to next generations. Not disposable made in China toys obsolete after one year.

It's too bad Apple is so disposable-minded about their portables, because the amount of money you'd spend on at least something like this should guarantee it being hand-me-down material.
 
This might be an instance in which not controlling the hardware design might be a good idea. As it stands, only Apple will make iWatch, so by default every other watchmaker who wants to get in this space will have to use Android. This seems short sighted to think that Apple knows how to design a better luxury watch than TAG.

I could see Apple allowing watch manufacturers to get in on the fun. Apple wants to control software and hardware, in this case hardware being the watch internals. I don't think they would be opposed to a partnership with someone like Rolex, or any of the other big players, if they could make a watch case that met certain specifications.
 
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