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sirenized

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 15, 2008
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i am soliciting opinions. First I preface with I am a girl, 5'3" tall and pretty small wrists. Not terribly scrawny tho. I went to apple to look at both the 38 and 42mm sport models. I noticed a few things. The 38mm felt heavier to me. Possibly because it's more compact and the 42 is better balanced. But now I need to settle on aesthetics. Which do you prefer on my wrist. The 38mm white sport band or the 42mm SGS
 

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i am soliciting opinions. First I preface with I am a girl, 5'3" tall and pretty small wrists. Not terribly scrawny tho. I went to apple to look at both the 38 and 42mm sport models. I noticed a few things. The 38mm felt heavier to me. Possibly because it's more compact and the 42 is better balanced. But now I need to settle on aesthetics. Which do you prefer on my wrist. The 38mm white sport band or the 42mm SGS

you should go with 38, looks better on you.
 
I was set on a 42mm (I'm a guy). After trying them on I preferred and bought the 38mm. It's a personal preference but the 42mm looked big on me, I think it looks big on your wrist but that's fine if you like it. My concern with the smaller screen was that it may hurt functionality/be difficult to use and that I wouldn't have as many options for bands. Neither of those have been a problem and I'm happy with mine.

Another thing to consider, I've got the SGS, and I think the white looks really good there, but you may not have as many options for bands. That may not be a problem, it just seems like black/SG goes with pretty much anything, white maybe not so much. Just something to think about.
 
Depends how comfortable a big watch feels to you. I have tiny wrists and my old fenix 1 was way too big and uncomfortable on my wrist bone. I wear the sport band of my 38mm on the second or third hole and it's the most comfortable watch I've ever had.
 
38.

I'd be fine with the 38 myself, and my wrist is around 170-175mm (judging by how the bands fit).
 
Go with the 38mm, it looks better on your wrist. You can also go with 42mm as someone else said, it's a trend to go with a larger watch if that's what you prefer :)
 
38mm. I'm a 6'1" male with averaged sized wrists, and I still went 38mm, and so did my 5'9" wife.
 
I am a guy six feet tall and medium build. The 38mm looked to small on me. My wife is about the same height as the OP and it would look good on her or better yet more proportional. If I were you I would go 38mm.
 
38mm without a doubt. The 42 looks a little silly. Also you'll have a hard time with bands on the 42. My wife tried my 42 on and found most bands too big so they had to remain looser than necessary. The 38 is perfect for her, and I think it will be for you too. Looks classier to have the smaller anyway.
 
This isn't my pic, but here's a great illustration of size. This is one of the most iconic wristwatches, the Rolex Submariner Date, next to the 38mm Apple Watch. I own both watches, and, because the Apple Watch is dominated by the screen, they wear about the same size, and I think the 38mm Apple Watch looks better on most men, let alone most women.

MeKFrgF.jpg
 
There is another current similar thread. And as I said there, I see many women wearing large watches, so aesthetically it won't look odd. I'm a man with small wrists and have always worn large watches, I also have that Rolex pictured above and my 42 is pretty much the same length so it feels completely normal to me.

Plus there are so many advantages to the 42, ( my wife did pick the 38 ) much better battery life - with similar usage times and functions there is usually a 20% difference in remaining battery life on our watches at the end of the day. Plus much easier readability and screen manipulation I consider the 42 a no brainer unless you just hate the look. I did try to convince my wife but she did choose the 38 in the end. But I also see her struggle to read the screen, tap on the right spot, and then the battery issue is significant.
 
I'd opt for the 42mm since from what I've heard the battery seems to perform better and the size difference isn't huge.
 
Battery on either one will be at 40-50% or better by the end of the day. I frequently end the day at 60% as does my wife who has the 38. The difference is negligible between the two models. Sure, 38 has a smaller battery but also less screen to power. So it's mostly a wash.

It's been shown that this is a product that you don't have to worry about battery life for. Even with heavy usage.

I'd go with what looks better. Honestly the 38 looks way classier and better on you, and you'll have an easier time finding bands that fit you as 42 bands tend to be much bigger.

My wife can't really use the original Milanese loop (on the 42) cause it's just too big for her. She was barely able to strap on the sports and was pretty much at its limit and it was still a tad loose. So be sure you try out more bands if you haven't already so you don't regret your choice later.

And don't use the battery life complication so you don't worry. I plan to remove mine as soon as 3rd party complications are available because it's just not necessary and a waste of space.
 
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Watches of similar size can wear very differently, depending on proportions. I have a 39mm Omega Aqua Terra and a 40mm Submariner, and the Aqua Terra has a larger dial, which makes it look a little larger on the wrist, despite being a smaller watch.

The same holds true with Apple Watch. The dimensions are one thing, but, since so much of the watch is made up of the "face," it reads large. To me, one of the best things about the Apple Watch vs the other smartwatches is the 38mm option, as it's the only one that doesn't immediately conjur a big computer screen on the wrist at first glance.
 
This isn't my pic, but here's a great illustration of size. This is one of the most iconic wristwatches, the Rolex Submariner Date, next to the 38mm Apple Watch. I own both watches, and, because the Apple Watch is dominated by the screen, they wear about the same size, and I think the 38mm Apple Watch looks better on most men, let alone most women.

MeKFrgF.jpg

That person has tiny wrist if that's a 38mm. The 38mm doesn't look better on most men, as most men have wrists larger than that. Not even comparable to the Rolex next to it in terms of overall size.

In any case, what many members are missing is that the OP is a girl and hence can get away with big ass watches as that's the trend among women. On the other hand, a too large of a watch on men with tiny frames looks silly.
 
That person has tiny wrist if that's a 38mm. The 38mm doesn't look better on most men, as most men have wrists larger than that. Not even comparable to the Rolex next to it in terms of overall size.

In any case, what many members are missing is that the OP is a girl and hence can get away with big ass watches as that's the trend among women. On the other hand, a too large of a watch on men with tiny frames looks silly.


I own both a Rolex Sub and the 38mm Apple Watch, and, yes, they do wear about the same size, because the screen of the Apple Watch is proportionally larger, which was my point. Part of the appeal of a Sub is that it is a "classic" size for a diver's watch, when compared to the grossly oversized watches that have been en vogue of late. I'm a 6'1" male with a 7" wrist, and, yes, I do think the 38mm watch looks better on most men. On women, even more so.
 
I own both a Rolex Sub and the 38mm Apple Watch, and, yes, they do wear about the same size, because the screen of the Apple Watch is proportionally larger, which was my point. Part of the appeal of a Sub is that it is a "classic" size for a diver's watch, when compared to the grossly oversized watches that have been en vogue of late. I'm a 6'1" male with a 7" wrist, and, yes, I do think the 38mm watch looks better on most men. On women, even more so.

They may "wear" the same, but the Rolex appears larger and I'd argue that the 42mm is more comparable in this respect. In fact, the 42mm appears significantly smaller than many larger watches out there.
 
They may "wear" the same, but the Rolex appears larger and I'd argue that the 42mm is more comparable in this respect. In fact, the 42mm appears significantly smaller than many larger watches out there.

The 38mm Apple Watch may be slightly smaller in dimension than a Sub, but it both appears and wears as large or larger on wrist, because of the large screen. Keep in mind, too, that the Sub is on the big side, for a Rolex. Many Rolex watches are only 36-39mm, as opposed to the Sub's 40mm. Here is my Sub and 38mm Watch on my 7" wrist.

Submariner Apple Watch.jpg
 
The 38mm Apple Watch may be slightly smaller in dimension than a Sub, but it both appears and wears as large or larger on wrist, because of the large screen. Keep in mind, too, that the Sub is on the big side, for a Rolex. Many Rolex watches are only 36-39mm, as opposed to the Sub's 40mm. Here is my Sub and 38mm Watch on my 7" wrist.

View attachment 579798

Based on that photo, I'd still argue that the Rolex appears larger. As you pointed out, it's slightly larger in dimension.
 
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