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[DJ88]

The way the interface will work in tandem with the haptic feedback I'm sure will be one of those things you won't get till you try it yourself. But when you do it'll be slick as fuck. The whole thing looks crazy slick. Say all you want about Apple, but the one thing they have always nailed is the feel of the user input with their new devices. No they never invent a new way to do it but they fine tune the actual feeling and connection, translating a users inputs into results on a UI, to perfection.

It's always been about picking up that new device for the first time, using it, and in seconds it feels as natural and intuitive as possible. The iPod wouldn't have been what it was without the click wheel. Touch screens always existed, but the iPhone/iPad and the UI tailor made for it are why it changed their respective industries. And now this time it'll be the digital crown and the haptic feedback. This is what Apple spends years doing when developing a new product. Making sure the relationship between the user and the software is perfect, that it just feels right, and they always nail it.

I really wish this thing wasn't $349. Just a tad bit outside what I'm willing to spend on a first gen product. I'll have to wait and actually use one in person before deciding if it's worth jumping in now or waiting till gen 2.

 

[Bjern Fita]

Not my thing but amazed that Apple would even try to crack a market where they're seen as both cheaper and less stylish than the competition (watches).

Premium phone but bargain basement watch.

Silicon Valley is a target but I'd be amazed if you saw any executive or celebrity wear it in 6 months without a financial interest.

 

[Malvolio]

In a world where watches have been reduced to fashion statements, this seems to be missing the mark.

 

[Bomber Bob]

Silicon Valley is a target but I'd be amazed if you saw any executive or celebrity wear it in 6 months without a financial interest.

I think apple knows that, and that's why I bet they are ready to invest billions in advertisement and endorsement

 

[Tal Shiar Agent]

What is this?

It's a Pip-Boy theme for the Galaxy Gear line of smart watches.

 

[Volotaire]

One thing that I was simply bewildered at, besides the awful design, was the lack of consistency in the UI. It seems the Apple design philosophy had to compromise a huge amount here.

 

[flyover]

The way the interface will work in tandem with the haptic feedback I'm sure will be one of those thing you won't get till you try it yourself. But when you do it'll be slick as fuck. The whole thing looks crazy slick. Say all you want about Apple, but the one thing they have always nailed is the feel of the user input with their new devices. No they never invent a new way to do it but they fine tune the actual feeling and connection, translating a users inputs into results on a UI, to perfection.

It's always been about picking up that new device for the first time, using it, and in seconds it feels as natural and intuitive as possible. The iPod wouldn't have been what it was without the click wheel. Touch screens always existed, but the iPhone/iPad and the UI tailor made for it are why it changed their respective industries. And now this time it'll be the digital crown and the haptic feedback. This is what Apple spends years doing when developing a new product. Making sure the relationship between the user and the software is perfect, that it just feels right, and they always nail it.

I really wish this thing wasn't $349. Just a tad bit outside what I'm willing to spend on a first gen product. I'll have to wait and actually use one in person before deciding if it's worth jumping in now or waiting till gen 2.

I agreed with this when you posted an abbreviated version in the event thread, and I agree now. The bolded part has been true of a lot of their products, and I think will be essential for this one's success.

 

[Sinecat]

I still don't get smart watches. It's less useful than a phone, but requires both hands to operate? I'd rather get my phone out of my pocket while leaving one hand free to use than to use both hands to operate a cramped interface.

I think it's for getting information at a glance. Just one quick look and you can tell if you have notifications, what time it is, the weather, appointments, etc. And then you can quickly dismiss/respond to whatever.
Perhaps its not necessary, but it can simplify these tasks.

 

[Majine]

Also, as with anything Apple, something that has been proven with every single product release in their entire history, wait for the second version.

Yep. You can tell they even made it thicker just so they can have space to improve on for years.

 

[Zoned]

I can't believe that Apple went for this design. When it comes to aesthetics, Apple is hands down one of the best manufacturers. But this thing looks ugly as fuck. Looks like child/geek stuff that you see at walmart for 50$.

 

[JohnDoe]

Also, as with anything Apple, something that has been proven with every single product release in their entire history, wait for the second version.

This was the first thing I thought. First iPhone is ugly as sin compared to newer iPhones.

 

[jakonovski]

they can simply show off their $2000 18k Apple Watch!

$2k is barely enough for the needed raw material gold at market price. $5k at least, my guess is $8k.

 

[Sinecat]

Also, as with anything Apple, something that has been proven with every single product release in their entire history, wait for the second version.

Or third, or forth, or fifth, etc. This is how technology works. You can wait for 10 years and everything will be so much more awesome.

 

[JesseEwiak]

Doubt it. Smart watches are bought by techies, not by your average 19 y/o student. I've yet to see anyone with a smart watch for that matter. Yet.

I'm sure somebody else said this in the previous 9 pages, yeah. But, who bought smartphones before the iPhone? Techies and high-powered businesspeople who actually needed them. Not Grandma's and 20-year-old college kids.

 

[whatsinaname]

Well, has your smart watch manufacturer consulted with horological experts to better understand the art of timekeeping?

 

[Buddha Beam]

Screams Gen 1 device. Maybe after a couple generations it will be more refined and I will be more interested.

This thing will sell like hot cakes either way.

Thats my take on it too. It really reminds me of the original iPad. Big, fat, kind of ugly and missing some crucial features... and like the gen 1 iPad, it'll probably be obsolete within 2 years and the successor models will put it to shame.

 

[tanooki27]

This was the first thing I thought. First iPhone is ugly as sin compared to newer iPhones.

weird cause I think the new one looks a lot like the first one.

 

[freenudemacusers]

$2k is barely enough for the needed raw material gold at market price. $5k at least, my guess is $8k.

hah I was just talking to a friend about this. he said the same thing.

 

[Sgt.Pepper]

The Verge has reached its final form

Fanboyism off the charts?

 

[FinalStageBoss]

Hideous.

Switzerland must be shaking in their boots.

 

[DarkFlow]

Bboy AJ is far from an Apple fanatic.

He has been lately, for some unknown reason.

 

[The Albatross]

Looks horrible. Thick and ugly. I'm surprised Apple would release something that looks like this instead of waiting until the technology can catch up with their (usual) design goals.

The screen technology seems awesome, with the ability to sense pressure. Otherwise, I am very unimpressed... But I have never been into smart watches in general.

 

[VoxPop]

Super disappointed. The square screen along with shitty typography/UI makes it look very Android-ish. Will wait for the generation they go with a circular screen.

 

[freenudemacusers]

He has been lately, for some unknown reason.

dat apple magijk

 

[SRG01]

I am honestly stunned at how Apple managed to make a smartwatch that looks like the Galaxy Gear. Where on earth was their industrial design team?

 

[jstripes]

Or third, or forth, or fifth, etc. This is how technology works. You can wait for 10 years and everything will be so much more awesome.

Nah, Apple is a very specific case.

Their first stab at something is always interesting but somewhat lacking.

 

[Always-honest]

Okay,.. Well i'll keep an eye on it but i'm not a watch guy.
I'm interested in a new iphone though.

I do have to say that i don't like the design. Maybe it looks better in real life..
I guess it's designed in a way that people can make it as personal as possible.

 

[REV 09]

The problem with these devices is that I really like my real watches and would never where a digital watch instead.

 

[HeisenbergLannister]

$349 when the Samsung smartwatch flopped at $200.

You can buy an iPad mini for that price.

Interested in seeing exactly how well this does at that price point.

 

[asdad123]

I am honestly stunned at how Apple managed to make a smartwatch that looks like the Galaxy Gear. Where on earth was their industrial design team?

Hanging out in Switzerland.

 

[jakonovski]

I am honestly stunned at how Apple managed to make a smartwatch that looks like the Galaxy Gear. Where on earth was their industrial design team?

Seoul?

 

[whatever77]

When I first saw it on Ars it was so awful I thought it was an Ars render. This is basically Sony Smart watch level of bad.

 

[DJ88]

I agreed with this when you posted an abbreviated version in the event thread, and I agree now. The bolded part has been true of a lot of their products, and I think will be essential for this one's success.

For sure. They're impossible things to truly convey through words and media. I think once people actually start using it for themselves it'll catch on like wildfire like past Apple products.

 

[Radec]

This might be something the ladies would wear tho

 

[Guess Who]

This might be something the ladies would wear tho

Ugly as sin, Samsung tier, Apple is doomed, etc.

 

[SeanR1221]

Definitely interested. Dunno about day 1 though. I'd wanna play with it first.

 

[SneakyStephan]

I don't get who all these 'smart' watches are for.
Anyone who still wears a watch right now is using one either without batteries or with a battery life measured in decades not days or weeks.

A real watch does not go outdated within a year and stays 'classy' for decades.

 

[Maiar_m]

I like the idea of an analog crown though. And the home screen as well. That's about it.

I don't get who all these 'smart' watches are for.
Anyone who still wears a watch right now is using one either without batteries or with a battery life measured in decades not days or weeks.

A real watch does not go outdated within a year and stays 'classy' for decades.

Which is why people like the idea of a round smartwatch that looks like a watch, has real good battery life and still brings smart features to the deal. There's a reason why things such as this :

https://www.behance.net/gallery/smartwatch-concept/14929833 always made a lot of people swoon.

 

[MoogleWizard]

I like Apple but this is one of their ugliest designs in years. It looks like it was designed for children. Looks cheap and tacky.

 

[LuchaShaq]

This thing looks somehow worse than even the Samsung gear.

Would be a joke at even one third the price.

What a bummer.


Will still sell great because of branding.

Hopefully it's actually interesting by its fourth or fifth iteration.

 

[jey_16]

its remarkable how much it looks like a galaxy gear....i would be surprised if Samsung don't sue Apple

 

[Sandfox]

I don't really understand the appeal of this, or why people would pay $350+ for it.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

Some of these combos are pretty slick looking. But most still turn me off. They did hit the customization aspect, though, which is necessary.

 

[flyover]

I don't get what all these 'smart' watches are for.
Anyone who still wears a watch right now is using one either without batteries or with a battery life measured in decades not days or weeks.

A real watch does not go outdated within a year and stays 'classy' for decades.

I think it's hardly meant to be a watch (despite its name). It's something else. People who care about watches, will -- and should -- continue wearing nice looking watches.

 

[Kinyou]

A bit surprised that it requires an iPhone. Kind of makes it harder to get new customers. But perhaps they weren't aiming for those anyway considering the high price

 

[sometimes i game]

I feel like I'd rather take the .5 seconds to pull my phone out of my pocket and have an uncompromised experience vs flinging around a grid of randomly sized orbs and using a dial to get to sliced and diced bits and pieces of info.

 

[Dead]

The watch edition looks sexy imo

Is there a link with pictures of the various straps?

 

[Mechanized]

I think it's neat but the crowd losing their shit over it was ridiculous.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

A bit surprised that it requires an iPhone. Kind of makes it harder to get new customers. But perhaps they weren't aiming for those anyway considering the high price

They sell enough iPhones that I don't think that's a big concern.

 

[Quotient]

I am just not excited about the smart watch (the price didn't help either). Maybe i'll change my mind once i see and experience one in person but it is most likely a device to buy once the 2nd or 3rd generation are out.

I'd be curious to see if carriers will offer up subsidized Apple Watch's with iphone contacts.