The quality of the leather or materials is certainly something that can be tangibly distinguished. But I was re-reading this article about Ive and Newson at the Conde Nast International Luxury Conference, and this caught my eye:The leather is a lot softer. And it's handmade, not machined together.
So Apple is really marketing their bands on the level of Hermes, and from what the designers have said think theirs are every bit as good as "the most prestigious names in fashion". Yet their bands cost $150-$250 compared to Hermes $700-$1000. So based on this then, it seems like the Hermes watch is really about the name, and not necessarily the quality or construction.
That's based on the Hermes watch price of $1100-1500, less the cost of the basic stainless Watch itself $549-599, and further reducing it by the cost of the $49 Sport band. So in the case of the cuff, almost $1,000 at $951. The cheapest single tour band would be $600, and the double tour at $750.I don't think any of their bands come out to be as high as $1000
Curious, how were you able to do that? Did they open several boxes and allow you to chose? Or did they open several separate bands boxes and you swapped with that one?I had to go through a handful of them to find one without a lot of imperfections and marks before settling on one.
Curious, how were you able to do that? Did they open several boxes and allow you to chose? Or did they open several separate bands boxes and you swapped with that one?
This was for the iPhone 6S Plus Leather Case and since this year's cases came in cardboard boxes I asked the employee if I could take a look to make sure it was OK. The first black leather case had a ton of scuff marks and the Rose Gray case didn't match the color on the website and had a ton of wrinkles on the leather. The black leather I winded up with still had a tiny scratch but it wasn't that noticeable so I went with that one.
But if I was buying an Apple Watch Leather Band made by Apple I would definitely see if I could check it out before purchasing.
It doesn't matter how Apple is marketing their regular bands. There is no comparison between the Classic or Modern Buck and the Hermes band. The Hermes band is of much better quality.So Apple is really marketing their bands on the level of Hermes, and from what the designers have said think theirs are every bit as good as "the most prestigious names in fashion". Yet their bands cost $150-$250 compared to Hermes $700-$1000. So based on this then, it seems like the Hermes watch is really about the name, and not necessarily the quality or construction.
Real leather is supposed to have these natural marks. I think you were just being anal retentive, as it'd acquire those marks anyway with use. Surprised you even got the AW Hermes.
I went to local Dallas Hermes location to ask if I could buy double tour band. First the salesman told me it wouldn't fit because the Apple watch connections were not compatible. I showed them how the adapters came apart and explained how the band is connected. Afer that education, they were very helpful in showing me the double tour band. The size necessary for a 38mm is 19mm or 20mm/17mm ( which means it is 19/20mm at adapter end & 17mm at bucke end). The price? Double tour band is $400 (does not include the buckle). The Hermes buckle is $110. BTW - my favorite Hermes watch face, using it now, is espace.
View attachment 593657
JayLenochiniMac said:
"So those are regular Hermes bands which you must swap out for the Apple adapters?"
If I understand your question correctly, then yes. You put the adapters on the Hermes band to attach to your Apple Watch. The double tour (minus the buckle) look like this:
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Where can you find just the Hermes leather bands? I checked their website and it only has bands with their watches. I saw no bands that were solo, and for sure non that looked liked the ones on the Apple Watch.Yeah, it's no secret that Hermes is willing sell spare bands to existing Hermes owners. What members wanted to know is if we're able to get the official AW Hermes bands separately and so far, it doesn't appear to be the case. The only way to do it is use the workaround in your post, which is getting the regular Hermes bands and attaching Apple's adapters to them.
Where can you find just the Hermes leather bands? I checked their website and it only has bands with their watches. I saw no bands that were solo, and for sure non that looked liked the ones on the Apple Watch.
i had never been in a Hermes store before walking in the other day. As I said in my earlier post, after I explained how the band attaches to the adapter, there appeared to be no hesitation in showing the double tour band to me. I did not purchase one, but the salesman showed me both the etain and the fauve Barenia double tour bands. He said that bands could be purchased. Of course....at a price (see earlier post)!
$1100 to join the club is a steal if that's the case. I see that they have spun off the $400 scarves to a different website.Yeah, you're an AW Hermes owner. They're more reluctant to sell to non-owners, based on what I've read.
So $510 for the Double Tour band and buckle under the table. Add $550 for the cheapest Apple Watch SS and it is $1060 vs $1250 for the real deal.
But with no Hermes face though. That's like putting rims from a high-end model on the base model, but it's still the lowly base model.
So it's not enough to simply want a higher quality band than what Apple offers? Is it enough just to have access to the Hermes face buried within the OS, if the customer decided they would rather use their delightful new Tapping Mickey face with their $750 Hermes band? By etching "Hermes" logo on the base model stainless Watch case, is Apple merely putting high end rims on their base model?