why don't carrier stores stock stainless steel model?

[minivini]

i find it bizarre that AT&T stores don't even carry a model stainless steel version for display? are all the carriers like this? i remember when getting my SS S3 in 2017 a manager reluctantly let me try his personal one on because i had never seen one and was interested in ordering.

do you think more people would opt for stainless steel if they knew it was available? a lot of people never step foot in an apple store and shop at their carrier store but why don't carriers have at least 1 higher end model? same with ipad pro

i would P.O.'d if i didnt do a little research to even know about the stainless steel model and was sold the aluminum

I bought my stainless at AT&T. I had to order it, but it took a total of two days to get it. Is the V5 not going to be available via carriers, or just not stocked in their stores?
[doublepost=1568475287][/doublepost]

Circular discussion. Either way, there’s one thing that matters only in this whole thread, it’s a smart watch, it has limited support and consumers aren’t spending that type of money on a stainless model, regardless if they can see it on display or not. They don’t care. Now, maybe some see the appeal in the stainless model, the aluminum deserves the ‘shelf space’, because it also sees the most discounts, where Apple would likely never even discount the stainless model. That’s another consideration.

I think you’re over-reaching a bit, there. About a third of the people I know with Apple watches (people I know, not everyone I see) got stainless simply because of the sapphire glass, and it’s durability. If you are shopping and comparing apples to apples (pun not intentional), a smart watch close to the capability of an Apple Watch is in the ballpark with the stainless in terms of cost. I work in the outdoor retail industry as a buyer, and I had my choice of Garmin, Fitbit, Polar, etc at “buyers’ cost” (which for electronics is about a 30% discount - electronics have crap markup) and I got the Apple at retail because of the extra durable glass and overall OS ecosystem.

 

[brianric]

Regardless of the Sapphire Crystal Display.. .for the average consumer, it doesn't mean much. All that matters.. does the Stainless Steel model have the same (software) "functions" as the Aluminum model? And the answer is yes.

At the end of the day, if it's $200 or $300... it's saving money. I've been a fan of the SS model since the original, I've had the Aluminum model before.. but I like the look of the SS model. Granted, most people do... but not majority are willing to pay the price.

The big turn off for me is I cannot buy the SS model with GPS versus GPS & Celluar. That's a feature I'm never going to use and I'm not going to pay for it. Last year I upgraded my Series 2 SS for two series 4 aluminum. I have A-Fib and I monitor my heart 24/7. I'm now going to one annual upgrade, replacing the oldest watch. Aluminum works for me.