Horological Meandering

Moreover, even Google realised that in order to boost sales of Android Watch OS driven devices to meaningful numbers they need to find a way to enable tying to Apple'e iPhone...

So, it is not nonsense but a paradigm change which is pushing forward with force (whether we like it or not).

Magnus

Aloha,

Bob

S

The Apple watch, I think, appeals to those who have not been wearing watches at all.  Those for whom the phone is good enough to tell time.  Its appeal is three fold:  first as a cool gadget, second as a demonstration of hipness; three as a convenience so that the owner can be spared the overwhelming burden of fishing the phone out of a pocket or purse.  On the other hand, it will be a pain to have the watch and keep it charged.  UGH.  One more battery to worry about.

I do think the Apple watch will motivate some innovation at the low end of watch market.  But still believe that the main source of demand for these will come from those who otherwise would not buy a watch at all.

We should put all these prognostications in a vault somewhere and examine them 10 years from now to see who got it right.

Jeff

- could (subjunctive!) be even attracted to the 'real watch' market, thus bear the potential to adding to the watch industry.

Now, since the launch of the iPhone 5 in September 2012 Apple has sold more than 400 million Apple watch-compatible devices. If only a little more than 5% of the owners buy an Apple Watch we almost have the annual output of the entire Swiss watch industry. These are huge numbers!

And this means, for any other potential players in the market, being from the smart device/computer or watch industry, there is a huge hurdle to achieve critical mass. And thus is the reason why I agree with almost all you wrote - save for your last sentence. The watch industry should streamline efforts now!

Oh, and one thing: the smart watches, particularly the Apple watch, offers something radically different to the centuries old players... ;-)

cheers,

Magnus

Oh for a simple Timex automatic!  8D

I think most of you totally underestimate the new watch concept. Apple Watch is just the start and nobody knows what we will see in five years or so.

Desk divers wear their Rolex Submariners but I have never seen a real diver who would not wear a dive computer. What if the fashion is changing and everybody who wants to be "modern" starts to wear on their wrists the modern technology. What if in five years it is considered that people wearing a mechanical watch are just relics of Stone Age? What is Apple and the future producers of "smart watches" are employing all movie stars, Formula 1 drivers, football players, etc. as their Brand Ambassadors? What if even a Reverso Smart Watch is developed?

The so called WIS are not a group big enough to keep the Swiss watch industry alive. What is i.e. in China and FE the fashion is turning 180 degrees?

I feel that many lovers of mechanical watches simply try to close the eyes from the changes of the market environment...

In Finland a story is circulating: It was actually Nokia who developed first the touch screen for mobile phones. It was introduced to the CEO of the company, a lawyer who become the CEO "by accident". This gentleman noted, that "nobody will ever use a touch screen because buttons are so much better". Where is Nokia now just some years later; where are all the Nokia phones? Nokia used to be one of the most valuable brands of the world and also one of the most profitable companies. Now it's just ruins what it used to be.

There is for sure no space for arrogance!

Best, Kari

PS. I might buy one more Apple. Around $ 1,000 is simply nothing compared to a decent watch. The savings when not buying one additional watch I might put to a perfect holiday for the whole family, a holiday apartment in Spain, a new car, or... 

The risk, if any, would be if the watch becomes, permanently and pervasively, THE place, and the only place, for wearable tech.  You're all right -- wearable tech is coming, but it will be EVERYWHERE -- in our shoes, our clothes, our glasses, perhaps implanted even, and yes, to an extent, in our watches.  So I suppose there's a risk that smart watches will displace some mechanical watches in the world at large.  But I suspect, as I indicated in my earlier post, that the awareness they will bring to the watch industry, generally, will be far better for mechanical watchmaking than most seem to think.

And if I am wrong and it kills value, I'll die happy with a much bigger collection than I would have had otherwise!

Best,

Jed

Now, I am back to mechanicals... ;-) imprinted? Most likely!

In a few years, when high resolution screens and all these circuits can be sprayed on every surface and on your skin, sentimental memories will revive a the smart watch boom, the 'good old times' when times and displays where not ubiquitary, transient and always available (contrast this to today ;-)).

Cheers,

Magnus

So now we are seeing this new Apple watch. Is it that new? Not in my opinion, it's really a miniature "I Phone" which you strap on your wrist. Given, the design is quite nice, typical streamline Apple, attractive and I am sure, well made as well. However, I don't see anything revolutionary in the watch itself. The "revolutionary" aspect is in the way it is advertising, it is just the logical continuation/reinvigoration of consumerism, a fashion item for most and a tool for sport people obsessed with their heart beat, level of cholesterol, blood pressure etc. so, their Apple Watch will let them know when to see a doctor

What is to be modern? Changing one's I Phone, Smart Phone every 6 months? So the same will happen with the Apple watch! Is this be modern? Due to my strangely wired mind, I believe that, although little by little but surely, the world is changing and humans are becoming more and more aware of the damage we do to the environment, hence, people will want better product which last and not throwaway stuff. Of course, it will take some time, it's all part of the "evolution". For now though, we have this "not that new" concept watch, ok! So what's the big deal???

In the end and as long as human is human, mechanical "time pieces" have a long, long way ahead of them. (in my opinion)

Cheers

Francois

Wrist wearables are different, it is far less intrusive than a device on your face, and it has a closer contact with your skin, which creates a host of possibilities. 

Apple is trying to sell a new way of behaviour, that's the real selling point, not a watch. How it will evolve, nobody knows, probably not even Apple. People who invented computer and cellphones could not have foreseen all the things it can do nowadays and how they have become a necessity. The same may applies to smartwatches, it may take a little time, but it wouldn't surprise me if one day they also become a necessity. 

Many of you will buy one one day, just don't know it yet. 

At one stage, I remember seeing Casio in a number of different places.  I also remember seeing the then very popular black titanium quartz on a great number of young people.  Now they are not ubiquitous.  With a smart watch, it is different.  It integrates somehow with your daily life.  Consumers who buy smart watch has specific needs.
At the quartz era, it is accuracy people were looking for.  Smart phone feeds and provides data and information.

A mobile phone has already given away a lot of our privacy.  Personally, I'd try to be smart enough not to rely on a smart device.

They're appealing to different markets in many way, I think.  But it calls into question, interestingly, why consumers buy mechanical watches in the first place.  A good many purchase Swiss watches as mere status symbols.  I know it's not a popular opinion to voice in watch enthusiast circles, but wristwatches are for many little more than baubles that denote their place in the social hierarchy.  An Apple watch could also satisfy that function.  Unsure, however, whether and to what extent Apple has sought to differentiate the entry level steel version of the watch from the aluminium.  Should they not have done so, then the watch's appeal as a status symbol will accordingly be diminished.

Agree with the comment regarding complacency though.  A lot of Swiss watch companies seem to have been content to rest on their laurels, churning out the same old designs over and over again.  I'm all for respecting tradition and tried and true brand designs, but there's been a certain staleness over a few brands' output, I feel.  It would be nice were the introduction of this Apple watch were to serve a shot in the arm for them.  Not that I'm suggesting they start installing smart LCD dials into their mechanical watches or anything, just that they raise their game a little.  As I said, they're appealing to different markets in many respects and there's no reason the two can't sit amicably side by side.