Apple announces Apple Watch

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Screw the haters, got this bad boy in the mail today. It actually had great printing quality and looked and felt surprisingly high quality.

I did have to remove three links though. The process should have been as easy as getting a small screw driver and pushing the pins through, but it was too tough for that. I then got a lightweight hammer and tried hammering the screwdriver through the pins, still didn't work. I ended up having to get a big metal heavyweight hammer, and putting it on the concrete floor in my garage and slamming the screw driver into each pin with the hammer multiple times to get each one out. Crazy thing was the thing didn't even scratch, dent, or break from any of this. I felt like Billy Mays slapping it with a hammer and it not breaking.


Also this happened too:


So yeah, screw the haters. Now I get to roll like a P.I.M.P.

Is that an acronym? Person Impersonating Massive Peacock?
 
The smartwatch market is dead in the water already. Nobody wants to wear that shit as if it's stylish. At least Google Glass is practical while also looking ridiculous.

Hah, ok. The Moto 360 would like a word.

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I've had several people ask me about it just in the last two days, while the screen was off. That said, the bulbous squre slab of metal that is the Apple Watch is rather unseemly.
 
Hah, ok. The Moto 360 would like a word.

784097287489399723.jpg


I've had several people ask me about it just in the last two days, while the screen was off. That said, the bulbous squre slab of metal that is the Apple Watch is rather unseemly.

It's nice. Just hope they increase the battery life. Recharging so much is not cool. The tech from the iPhone 6 plus seems to do the trick tho. I wonder if they have something like that going on with the Apple Watch, agu?
 
It's nice. Just hope they increase the battery life. Recharging so much is not cool. The tech from the iPhone 6 plus seems to do the trick tho. I wonder if they have something like that going on with the Apple Watch, agu?

The recharging is mildly inconvenient at times, but only due to my sleep schedule right now. If I wasn't doing 15 hour days it would be totally fine.
 
Hah, ok. The Moto 360 would like a word.

784097287489399723.jpg


I've had several people ask me about it just in the last two days, while the screen was off. That said, the bulbous squre slab of metal that is the Apple Watch is rather unseemly.
There's a reason 99.999% of all displays ever made have been rectangular. Any shape other than a rectangle for a display is fucking stupid.

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that's a pretty fucking stupid thing to say.

To be fair, it's an obvious, albeit closed minded, statement to make.

I know I cannot think of a single successful consumer product with an unsual screen shape, but that doesn't mean I can't hope!

Why knows, this may end like the Galaxy Note, and consumers will make their voices heard by buying the different model. One thing we have learned is that Apple seems more willing to adapt design to consumer demand.
 
Apple Will Be 'Lucky' to Ship Apple Watch by Valentine's Day - Mac Rumors via The Information via Business Insider
One person briefed by the Apple department involved in shipping the watch quipped that Apple would be "lucky to ship it by Valentine's Day."​
According to the report, Apple initially planned to have the watch ready to ship in time for the 2014 holiday season, but had problems finishing software development in time. Hints of a delay on the software side first surfaced shortly after the keynote, as members of the press who were invited to spend some hands-on time with the devices noted that none of the display units were running the actual operating system, Watch OS.
 
While there were 'dummy' units on display, there were staff at those stands with working watches giving demos, and a few press did get to use the actual watch themselves.
 
While there were 'dummy' units on display, there were staff at those stands with working watches giving demos, and a few press did get to use the actual watch themselves.

Yeah, I feel like I watched a hands on demo video with a rep that was the real OS.

FAKE EDIT: Found it.

the Moto 315 is ok, but the LG watch looks better.

You talking about the G Watch R? So disagree. Maybe if it didn't have all that shit on the bezel. The beauty though is that there's going to be a wide style range of AndroidWear watches so we can disagree on looks and it doesn't really matter since they all run the same thing.
 
While there were 'dummy' units on display, there were staff at those stands with working watches giving demos, and a few press did get to use the actual watch themselves.

Several people noted that these units crashed multiple times during demos, though. So the software definitely still needs some work, or at least it did at that point.

I'm assuming most of the units were running demo loops because you probably need an iPhone attached for full watch functionality.
 
if you're in Paris for fashion week, you can have a gander at the Apple Watch:

http://www.macrumors.com/2014/09/29/apple-watch-colette-boutique-paris/

*ugh*

Also, another one of those expensive watch blogs wrote a long article about their time with the AppleWatch at the iPhone event:
Apple Watch Hands-On: The Wristwatch Just Caught Up To The 21st Century
A Blog to Watch said:
The Apple Watch isn't a death blow to the original watch; in fact, it is the most watch-inspired consumer wrist gadget of all time - even more so than round-cased smartwatches, such as the Moto 360, which runs Android Wear...

Forgive me for not going into every single detail of how Apple was inspired by the world of traditional watches for the Apple Watch – there are frankly too many to list. I do have confirmation that Apple dedicated a great deal of time to studying and surveying the watch industry, as well as engaging in copious amounts of research on websites dedicated to watches, including aBlogtoWatch. In an inadvertent way, a lot of our work likely helped influence how the current Apple Watch was designed, and where Apple will take the Apple Watch in the future...

Of course, the Apple Watch cannot replicate the total wrist watch wearing experience. At least not yet. Given the limitations of current battery life, the screen must be turned off most of the time, which is a huge drawback from a design perspective. There is no way around that, but when the screen is activated (often automatically as you raise it to read), it is very attractive and pleasant to read. This not only includes a wide viewing angle, but also a crisp level of detail with bright colors and a screen that should be quite legible even in direct sunlight...
*lol*

edit: be sure to read the comments. the writer replies to some.
 
I have slowly warmed up for the idea of a smart watch but they need to have way better battery life. I travel a lot and even in my work I might have to drive 500km a day so battery needs to last longer.
 
Can't wait until they announce the full range of pricing - that will bring out the very best of the Internet, I'm sure.

So have other 'smartwatch' manufacturers generally done this same kind of Paris fashion week thing or is this new territory?
 
Can't wait until they announce the full range of pricing - that will bring out the very best of the Internet, I'm sure.

So have other 'smartwatch' manufacturers generally done this same kind of Paris fashion week thing or is this new territory?

Samsung has had their smartwatches (and phones) at fashion events before. I think there was a Gear watch thing just a couple days ago at New York Fashion Week. Apple's real coup though is getting display space at Colette, that's an actual fashionable boutique. If Apple can sell then AppleWatch through jewelers and/or fashion boutiques it will be new territory. There's been Google Glass on Mr Porter's but that's an online store.
 
Pebble smartwatch already offers a week of battery life now.

right, but it's not the same type of screen - nor does it offer the same functionality - as current android wear devices or the upcoming apple watch

comparing apples to apples, we'll definitely have to wait a few generations before we get better than a few days (or a day) battery life out of these newer smartwatches.
 
Mine looks great imo. Also the pic above your quote isn't even a Moto360 lol.
I thought they were commenting on how the Moto/LGs look ugly like that. I've seen both.

Opinions and all, but I just think the apple watch is clearly a better designed/looking watch absent the square face. It's why high end watch blogs have a decent opinion in what apple has shown thus far.
 
right, but it's not the same type of screen - nor does it offer the same functionality - as current android wear devices or the upcoming apple watch

comparing apples to apples, we'll definitely have to wait a few generations before we get better than a few days (or a day) battery life out of these newer smartwatches.

OP said he was warming up to the idea of to a smartwatch, he didn't specify OS. Pebble offers lots of useful functionality and is definitely classified as a smartwatch. I pointing it out so people don't forget it's an option — it's not necessary to wait for many more gens of smartwatches.

Majority of the available AndroidWear devices already get more than a day of battery life even with the display always on. The Moto360 was specifically criticized because early reports suggested it didn't meet those standards yet after later reviews and bug fixes, the consensus is that it lasts more than a day. There will be AndroidWear devices with more efficient displays (keep an eye out for the transflective screen on the Sony Smartwatch3) which could last for a few days...
 
Can't wait until they announce the full range of pricing - that will bring out the very best of the Internet, I'm sure.

Yeah, I can't wait to watch the Internet melt down when Apple announces that the 18k gold "Edition" is going for $5000 or more. It's going to be glorious to see the reaction.
 
I thought they were commenting on how the Moto/LGs look ugly like that. I've seen both.

Opinions and all, but I just think the apple watch is clearly a better designed/looking watch absent the square face. It's why high end watch blogs have a decent opinion in what apple has shown thus far.
Definitely opinions since I completely disagree. I do think it's the best out of the square designs we've seen so far though (and I have nothing against square watches).
 
Yeah, I can't wait to watch the Internet melt down when Apple announces that the 18k gold "Edition" is going for $5000 or more. It's going to be glorious to see the reaction.

Are you going to buy one?
I thought they were commenting on how the Moto/LGs look ugly like that. I've seen both.

Opinions and all, but I just think the apple watch is clearly a better designed/looking watch absent the square face. It's why high end watch blogs have a decent opinion in what apple has shown thus far.
I don't understand this sentiment at all. The face is the most important of watch. The straps have always been interchangeable, the width and thickness is largely about comfort or wrist size but the face is where the design and beauty is.

That said, it's amusing how these watch bloggers that Apple invited to the event try to explain why they have a 'decent opinion' of the AppleWatch

Apple Watch Hands-On: The Wristwatch Just Caught Up To The 21st Century
Is The Apple Watch Beautiful?

Traditional analog watches have been doing more-or-less the same things for so long, pretty much the only way consumers decide between one watch and another is aesthetic beauty. This includes the overall quality of execution and the extent to which any and all details have been refined. Watch design has become so good, that it has remained a huge industry for a long while after people actually needed wrist watches to tell the time. The luxury watch industry is based on offering emotionally-charged, good-looking watches that serve as lifestyle statements and status symbols for the people who wear them. We often consider finely made watches to be jewelry for men.

Given that, it isn't difficult to see why watch lovers are so intimately concerned with how beautiful a watch is – likely much more than technology users are concerned with the physical design of their products (as compared to their concern for functionality or performance). Apple has for long been the poster child of "attractive tech," a label that may ultimately remain intact, or discarded by consumers when the Apple Watch is released for sale. So, what do I think, is the Apple watch beautiful?

Compared to the way that some of my favorite mechanical watches are beautiful? No. The Apple Watch's beauty, for me, lies in how well it does what it was designed to do, and how nice of a package Apple was able to design for it. The watch industry has long since proven that rectangular watches are difficult to get right, and further shown that minimalist designs are tricky when it comes to making them classics. The first generation Apple Watch is most certainly a watch, but it won't become a wrist watch design icon on its own. Yet, I find that doesn't bother me, because I am interested in it for enough other reasons.
 
One thing I dont get is why there's hardly any square watch face designs on a square shaped watch. It's weird how all the promo pics are of circle/digital faces.

Can someone Photoshop a watch face like this on the Apple Watch?

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right, but it's not the same type of screen - nor does it offer the same functionality - as current android wear devices or the upcoming apple watch

comparing apples to apples, we'll definitely have to wait a few generations before we get better than a few days (or a day) battery life out of these newer smartwatches.

I've been listening to a couple Apple-centric podcasts and the chatter about the watch is interesting.

They liken it to the original iPhone - not so great on battery life, needing to charge often, a device that needs something else to function (in the OG iPhone's case, iTunes for activation and syncing and for the watch an iPhone for a good part of its functions). But that once they're up and running the iteration with regard to battery life and device independence will get better.

And they point out that it's likely Apple itself doesn't even know what the true battery life will be as they're still working on the software and optimizing.
 
OP said he was warming up to the idea of to a smartwatch, he didn't specify OS. Pebble offers lots of useful functionality and is definitely classified as a smartwatch. I pointing it out so people don't forget it's an option — it's not necessary to wait for many more gens of smartwatches.
.

Well, I guess I understand where you're coming from. If someone were willing to make a different set of compromises, they can get longer battery life now. If they want a nicer screen with touch, then they get short battery life now.

both designs will probably converge in the future. the B&W screen will get color and touch. The color touch screens will get better battery.

I've been listening to a couple Apple-centric podcasts and the chatter about the watch is interesting.

They liken it to the original iPhone - not so great on battery life, needing to charge often, a device that needs something else to function (in the OG iPhone's case, iTunes for activation and syncing and for the watch an iPhone for a good part of its functions). But that once they're up and running the iteration with regard to battery life and device independence will get better.

And they point out that it's likely Apple itself doesn't even know what the true battery life will be as they're still working on the software and optimizing.

On one hand, comparing to the OG iphone makes some sense. first version will be limited (EDGE data, so-so battery) and later versions got much more capable.

but on the other hand, the iPhone was clearly a device that did things so much better than the competition that it was worth dealing with its limitations at the time, It was clearly the future of mobile computing. I don't think we saw that same revolution with the watch reveal.

On that note, I've seen that a decent amount of the Apple blog chatter around the watch seems to be nearly bending over backwards to suppose there's a lot more going on with the watch than what we saw; that the software will be a lot more complex; that apple didn't want to show all its cards.

Another line of thinking is that this version will be super limited but that it'll be the central hub of all our network connectivity in 5 years and that the cellphone will change to a tablet and use the watch for all calls and data.

i don't know where all of this talk that the apple watch will be some standalone powerhouse is coming from. seems ambitious to ask that the device with the smallest battery and least refined interface be the key network-connected device on our body.

I'm not convinced that any of this analysis is really more than wishful thinking that the apple watch will differentiate itself - by more than just looks - over the current crop of smartwatches.

The only comments online that I saw that I totally agree with are Gruber's comments that the tech press (and all the commentators) are gonna shit themselves when Apple announces pricing of the higher end stuff.

but even that comment is more of a diversion. it allowed Gruber to talk about the watch without actually talking about the watch.
 
The smartwatch market is dead in the water already. Nobody wants to wear that shit as if it's stylish. At least Google Glass is practical while also looking ridiculous.

Practical to a select few, which is probably going to be how smartwatches work out in the end: Useless for most and a godsend for select portions of the population.

If you don't believe me, check the Android Wear thread, where you will already find service employees happy about being able to check their notifications discreetly without catching hell from their bosses.

One thing I dont get is why there's hardly any square watch face designs on a square shaped watch. It's weird how all the promo pics are of circle/digital faces.

Less software-side work to do when the 2nd gen comes out sporting a round face in two years. :)

Would be a wonderful watch face for Apple.

It's going to be interesting to see who bites on digital watchfaces and who doesn't. I'm guessing a lot of traditional watchmaking companies will be too terrified of the idea that a $5 download might eat into sales of the $$$$ real deal. But who knows, maybe the crack dealer model of giving new customers a cheap taste makes them fiend for the real deal...
 
I've been listening to a couple Apple-centric podcasts and the chatter about the watch is interesting.
Did any of them say they are going to buy the gold one? I've only listened to the accidental podcast and one episode of stratechery

Yeah, I can't wait to watch the Internet melt down when Apple announces that the 18k gold "Edition" is going for $5000 or more. It's going to be glorious to see the reaction.

The only comments online that I saw that I totally agree with are Gruber's comments that the tech press (and all the commentators) are gonna shit themselves when Apple announces pricing of the higher end stuff.

but even that comment is more of a diversion. it allowed Gruber to talk about the watch without actually talking about the watch.

Unless you mean shit themselves 'from laughing so much' I don't think the tech press is going to have the reaction to the 18k gold watch that Gruber suggests. As much as Gruber tried to differentiate the Apple Watch Edition from the Vertu gold phones, the fact remains that the tech press is already familiar with the prices of gold electronics. They write about these gold devices from time to time but nobody cares about the prices — sophisticated tech users (i.e. Apple and Android fanboys) never buy them and the people who do, the people with 'more money than sense', don't care about the prices as they can afford to buy a new gold phone or new gold AppleWatch every year if they wanted.

The real question is the price of Apple Watch (the sapphire/steel/ceramic back) version. That's the 'real' AppleWatch imo — the gold one is a concession to fashion while the Apple Watch Sport** is the shitty version to make the middle normal one look like good value. The shitty plastic version looks like a kid's toy (I would even confuse it with samsung watch) below most of the AndroidWear devices imo. The sapphire/steel/ceramic back are the premium materials I expect from an Apple device. $350 for an AppleWatch is already a premium pricing in comparison to other smartwatches — AndroidWear starts at about $200. $350 can also get you a 'real' watch with sapphire/steel/leather strap. If Apple is following their usual tech industry pricing then the AppleWatch (the sapphire/steel/ceramic back) should be a $100/$200 more than the entry level version. However Gruber is predicting $1,000 or more. Now that would definitely cause a shock in the tech press.

**I don't get the Apple Watch Sport. Is the 'Sport' label supposed to make people feel better about buying the shitty version? What does that say about the performance capabilities of the other versions? Will Apple cover the warranty of an Apple Watch Edition if fails during exercise? Does Apple expect people to buy more than one AppleWatch (would it even be possible to pair more than one watch to an iPhone and sync between them)?
 
I mean, I want to get one but tree fiddy? Fuuuuuuck, lol. Not sure how I'm gonna justify it.

Would be perfect for the gym instead of lugging my 6+ in.

Hmm...
 
Did any of them say they are going to buy the gold one? I've only listened to the accidental podcast and one episode of stratechery

Nope not a single person.

**I don't get the Apple Watch Sport. Is the 'Sport' label supposed to make people feel better about buying the shitty version? What does that say about the performance capabilities of the other versions? Will Apple cover the warranty of an Apple Watch Edition if fails during exercise? Does Apple expect people to buy more than one AppleWatch (would it even be possible to pair more than one watch to an iPhone and sync between them)?

What shitty verison? No difference in the performance of the device itself, just the casing and materials around it.

Probably would've been better to call the aluminum version the Apple watch, then have the two higher tiers be the ones with special names.
 
http://instagram.com/p/tkdOeJESlM/?modal=true

It looks pretty good on her wrist. If anything the apple watch I think will appeal more to females than the other smart watches out there

I'm just wondering what the smaller model will mean for battery life.

I'm excited about this watch and at least this thread has intelligent conversations.

MacRumors is terrible smh..

Smartwatches and Apple products are favorite targets of naysayers, so I'm not exactly surprised combining the two has lead to a torrent of shitty discussion.

I don't think I've ever seen quite this much vehement opposition to a product category, as far as smartwatches in general...with some of these people, you'd think a smartwatch burnt down their home and murdered their family.
 
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