Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Finally! A solution to the endless poor battery life threads!!!

I don't see how this is a solution to poor battery life. It seems to be a replacement for the battery when it degrades, not just whenever the battery runs low. I don't think you can just "pop" another battery in whenever.
 
I just need confirmation if the watch can display time and track my fitness (at least damn calories) without the need of an iPhone. That would do for me.

Has this been mentioned? Thanks in advance.
 
There are other ways to draw value from something besides having it appreciate in value.
Paying money for something so that it increases value in other ways (time, effectiveness, efficiency, etc) is also an investment.

Define "investment".

(not angling for anything, I'm genuinely curious! Do you think it's going to raise in value?)
 
This is the first bit of good news to come from this :apple:Watch thing. Now they just need to do the same for the iPhone and iPad.

They do. You can go to an Apple Store and get the battery replaced just the same. You won't be able to replace the battery in the apple watch yourself. This is the same.
 
I just need confirmation if the watch can display time and track my fitness (at least damn calories) without the need of an iPhone. That would do for me.

Has this been mentioned? Thanks in advance.

From what I've heard is that it's basiclaly just a watch without the iphone. But wait for reviews...
 
I thought it had to be paired but it also said that you could do workouts indoor on the treadmill so it made me think it might have a step counter. I used to run with a small nike fob in my shoe with an old iPhone and that was fairly reliable. I wonder if they incorporated that tech into the watch. That would be nice if they did

I just need confirmation if the watch can display time and track my fitness (at least damn calories) without the need of an iPhone. That would do for me.

Has this been mentioned? Thanks in advance.
 
This is good news….nice to see this confirmed. Now that we know the watch won't be stranded at 2/3 day capacity after 3 years, with no options to fix it, I would guess this'll nudge a few more people off the fence - not disposable any more (yes the chip will be slow in a few years WRT the latest software but that is a different proposition).

As shown towards the bottom of linked page (the whole system is encased in one package and supposedly sealed) - it would be nice if that was Apple Store upgradeable - that would open the floodgates for buyers:

http://www.apple.com/watch/technology/
 
It's good that this is confirmed but it really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's been following Apple for awhile.
 
I walked into an apple store and had my old iPhone 5 battery swapped out in about half an hour. Is this not common?

----------

Who only works out for 30 minutes?
30-min for cardio workout and that's fair.
 
If you only have that mix usage amount a day then you don't really need an apple watch to check your things. Time checks are ok, notifications are just too little and app use as well to make it easier than just using my iPhone. My workouts are at its Min of 45mins in the gym and that is cardio day so that is disappointing as well.
Cost vs usability is really high on this device.
I will wait for gen 2-3 of the sports watch w the inevitable future gens price drop.
 
I think it would be great if you could also replace the cpu and other components as an upgrade option. At least that way it wont feel like i am just burning the money to buy an expensive watch that only lasts one year before having to replace it with the new version.
 
I think it would be great if you could also replace the cpu and other components as an upgrade option. At least that way it wont feel like i am just burning the money to buy an expensive watch that only lasts one year before having to replace it with the new version.

Somehow I have a feeling this will eventually be the case. As they were showing the machining of the metal cases yesterday in the videos, I couldn't help but think that the whole "guts" of the watch looks like it could be dumped out and replaced with a new insides.

I could see them allowing you to update the insides with each new release. Also they will probably change the external case to keep it fresh, but then there will still be appeal to having a "classic" outer case for those who made the early investment. The internals upgrade probably won't be cheap and maybe not even available on a Sport watch....but for those who invest in the mid and upper level watches, I really wouldn't be surprised if there is an upgrade option.
 
Great. Hopefully as battery technology improves they will be able to plug in more and more powerful cells.

As for processor upgrades, I'd say unlikely. There would be too many limitations for Apple to keep such back compatibility.

I wonder whether this will be more like Apple TV in terms of processors. You can buy an Apple TV now without worrying that it's 'fast enough' as its not a typical computer/phone. Even though its years old, Apple doesn't need to put a faster processor inside their TV box, because there are no apps that heed the extra CPU power.
 
From TechCrunch:
The other potential obsolescence issue relates to the processor. It's not clear whether Apple will offer any kind of CPU and/or RAM upgrade to existing owners. At the time of writing Apple had not responded to our request for clarification. (emphasis added)
That's probably because the folks in Cupertino haven't stopped laughing over the question. Talk about imaginative reporting! Since when have CPUs or RAM ever been upgradable in mobile devices, and for that matter, how long since they've been upgradable on most Macs?

Sure, if you have a $17,000 piece of jewelry, it's not unreasonable to think, "Hmmm. Why not pay Apple to replace the guts, as if the main system board had failed?" And even if Apple wouldn't do it, so long as the internals of the Sport and Edition are the same, perhaps they could buy a 2nd Gen Sport and have an independent shop swap out the innards. But that also comes with the assumption that there won't be dimensional changes to the watch case and components from generation to generation (ever try to put an iPhone 5 logic board into an iPhone 4?).

I think a better question would have been, "Will the wrist bands for the 1st Gen Apple Watch fit subsequent generations of watches?" If I'm going to shell out an extra $149 for that Milanese Loop band, or $449 for the Link Bracelet, or (gasp) $7,000 for the Modern Buckle, I'd like to hope I can migrate it to my next AP.

My guess about the cost of battery replacement is that it'll be similar to the cost of an iPhone battery replacement. For devices of that size, the cost of labor far outstrips the cost of replacement parts, so comments like, "But the battery is so tiny" won't hold much water.
 
It should be upgradable!

Assuming you buy a gold watch (not my thing), they should have some type of upgrade path? Who will buy a Watch of 10K USD when it will become obsolete in 2-3 years?

I can't imagine Apple didn't think about this :confused:
 
Define "investment".

(not angling for anything, I'm genuinely curious! Do you think it's going to raise in value?)

$500+ is a lot of money for a lot of people, especially for something that is designed to work with an existing $800+ something. The investment would be in one's self... raising the quality of life.

----------

Assuming you buy a gold watch (not my thing), they should have some type of upgrade path? Who will buy a Watch of 10K USD when it will become obsolete in 2-3 years?

I can't imagine Apple didn't think about this :confused:

Didn't think about what? The battery is replaceable, so clearly they did think about it. Unless you mean make it user-serviceable? I doubt it has a traditional watch battery.
 
Wow.. great news!

This makes me feel a lot better about the investment.
Wrong word.

An investment isnt guaranteed to drop in value immediately after opening the box, and plummet continuously year after year.
 
Didn't think about what? The battery is replaceable, so clearly they did think about it. Unless you mean make it user-serviceable? I doubt it has a traditional watch battery.

The (rechargeable) battery seems kind of obvious, but i meant, what about other parts (new bluetooth stds, more memory, faster cpu, new wifi... etc.)?

I think, or would assume, that a 10K watch has a bit longer lifespan then a few years? What when we reach iOS 10? Not backwards compatible? Thats already going on now, the iPhone 4 is not working with the Apple Watch. That was released less then 5 years ago. Now assume you have a 10K watch, or 5K... I don't think users are willing to keep buying watches (in that price range) every few years. Which makes me curious about Apple's Strategy...

I love watches, and im pretty sure i will get a (low-end) Apple Watch. But i find it hard to understand how the high-end (Apple) watches can compete with the true high-end Watches (Omega, Rolex, IWC, Breitling, Etc...)

Bottom line, if i would by a 10K watch i expect to use it for > 15 years. While a normal (mechanical) watch is subject to maintenance (which is $$$), maybe the inside of the Apple Watch is upgradable as well. The electronics inside don't seem to be the most expensive part, while a golden case is...
 
I just need confirmation if the watch can display time and track my fitness (at least damn calories) without the need of an iPhone. That would do for me.

Has this been mentioned? Thanks in advance.

It hasn't been mentioned officially anywhere that I know of, but I am confident in the fact that all the Apple Watch needs to track your calories burned is the data gathered by it's accelerometer paired with the *heart-rate sensor. Those should operate without the need of the iPhone while also utilizing bluetooth 4.0 to blast music into your wireless headphones while you workout.
In a perfect world, that heart rate sensor will give accurate readings even during the most strenuous of exercise. Until I see the results/reviews however, I will be leaning towards the sensor being just as inaccurate as other wrist-strapped HR sensors. :cool:
 
Big mistake. Apple missed profit on this one. Could sell new watch after new watch for all ya fans out there.

----------

Wrong word.

An investment isnt guaranteed to drop in value immediately after opening the box, and plummet continuously year after year.
That is right! What kind of investment is apple watch? It is worse than classical watch from rolex or whatever. Can anyone remeber first dslr cameras? How many of these are investment pieces? How about first batch of ipods? They all binned now. Digital junk.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.