# Apple Watch Try On Experience



## Trent0341 (Nov 24, 2011)

I originally posted this on another forum (mac rumors) but thought it might be of some interest here for those who are curious about the watch itself as well as the try on experience.

Stats:
Wrist Circumference: 171mm
Width: 57mm
Watch Ordered: 42mm SS w/ black sports band (white ordered as well)
Order placed: 0301 EST
Email Received: 0302 (w/ 4/24 - 5/8 delivery)
Watches viewed during try on:
SS w/ stainless steel band 42mm
SS w/ brown leather loop 42mm
SS w/ black sports band 42mm

Notes: I am somewhat of a watch guy. I own five automatics and my daily wear is an Omega Speedmaster variant. I greatly appreciate the watches and their history. I consider automatics works of art. I am also an apple guy having owned every iPhone (except the 5c) on day 1. I have numerous other apple products (iPad, MBP, etc.).

The try on experience:
I set up my appointment online. I found it slightly inconvenient that you couldn't set it up through the app store. I also observed that they were only displaying appointments 3 days out. I entered the store and was promptly greeted and referred to another employee who asked what I would like to see. During the try on he did place the watches on my wrist but that was the extent of the personal contact. I read in another try on review that it had been over the top or "touchy feely". This wasn't the case for me. I imagine it simply comes down to the individual person assisting you.

The watch:
The watch itself simply plays a demo and is fairly worthless if you've read any of the reviews. I never did get a good feel for the "taptic" engine as I think it played it almost immediately in the demo loop and wasn't very strong. I found the 42mm to be a great size. Since every other watch I own is 40mm or less I was concerned about this size but it was perfect. If the width of my wrist had been 4-5mm less I would probably have gone with a 38mm. Understand that I lean towards more classic watches. A fan of Panerai sized watches I am not so your mileage may vary. If anything I found the watch just slightly to thick but not enough to dissuade me from buying it. As to be expected the fit and finish are excellent.

1[SUP]st[/SUP] Watch (SS w/ black sports band):
The band itself was very comfortable more so than my link bracelet on my Omega. I wasn't sure what to expect but found that I liked it quite a bit. The watch does not feel heavy to me at all but again my daily wear watch is significantly heavier. I wouldn't.

2[SUP]nd[/SUP] Watch (SS w/ link bracelet):
I found this bracelet to be surprisingly light compared to my Omega bracelet. It is clearly high quality and well designed but to light for my taste. I had trouble deciding which band to order and was happy that I did not go for the stainless steel. There will be plenty of people who love it (and understandably so) but I would have liked a little more weight behind it. This may be because of what I'm used to wearing.

3[SUP]rd[/SUP] Watch (SS w/ brown leather loop):
This was my least favorite band. It is not a soft band as you might think but rather fairly hard. The magnets in the band are certainly strong enough for running in or other vigorous activities. I will be curious to see how this wears as the actual leather has to be very thin. I certainly would not order this if you do any sort of manual labor. I had hoped to find a leather band from apple that I liked since I wish to possibly wear this with dress clothes occasionally but it looks like it will be aftermarkets bands for me.

The demo units:
I did play around with one of the demo units for a little while. I found the UI to not be as intuitive as the iPhone or other apple products in general. It will take some time for me to get used to the tap vs. force touch as I found that I often accidentally used force touch when I meant to tap. I imagine this will be a relatively easy adjustment.

There was also some times when I would hit the side button in an expectation that it would function in a similar manner as the one on the iPhone but this is not the case. The digital crown was very nice and functioned like a home button when pushed.

I'm not sure that I like their UI design as far as the app display screen goes. I really wish they had a label of some sort. That being said I can certainly see myself appreciating the lack of labels once I learn what each one is by site and space isn't wasted with the labels.

Overall I think most of the reviews are spot on. The fit and finish on this watch (even for the bands I didn't like) was as high of quality as anything else apple has put out (note: I did not try or even really look at the sport versions). I think that this watch has what it takes to be successful in the long run and I'm still happy with my order. I think there will be some growing pains in the UI department but that this will smooth out. I did not notice any real lag although I probably didn't try any processor intensive apps and I imagine that apple's wifi helps out in this area. There is certainly an immense amount of potential in the app category.

Bottom line: I envision this being used for my daily wear. My other watches (everything from Orient to JLC) will be used for things like date night with the wife or times I'm trying to relax vacation, days off, dinner out, etc.


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## watchloco (Feb 23, 2007)

Thanks for taking time on sharing your experience with the Apple Watch. I have been wanting a digital watch for a while for when I am outdoors or working out. Now with the advent of the smart watch, it might just be the "smart" move. From what I have read on other tech posts you are saying the exactly the same that the UI is still buggy and it will require some tinkering with. I hope I can see one and try it out once the hype has cooled down. Apple seems to amaze and bewilder at the same time, kuddos to them on this new venture.


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## Trent0341 (Nov 24, 2011)

watchloco said:


> From what I have read on other tech posts you are saying the exactly the same that the UI is still buggy and it will require some tinkering with.


Thanks!

My main issue with the UI is that it is not nearly as intuitive as the iPhone or previous apple products. It will take some getting used to but nothing thats not doable. Unfortunately I did not get to mess around to much with apps that would be processor intensive so I can't comment for sure. That being said, it does seem that the reviews universally mention some lag time in loading apps.


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## broehldmd (Sep 23, 2007)

I tried on the apple watch today and found myself underwhelmed by it. I ordered one on the 10th and I am considering canceling it. Currently I am sporting a doxa, rolex, blancpain, tag, oris, omega and a few others. It didn't blow me away and I can't see myself wearing it very much. The user interface isn't very intuitive and this is coming from an apple user. I just don't see how it offers me anymore than my current workout watch, which is a polar. The metal one is nicer than the aluminum one. The aluminum one honestly feels like junk. It's so light weight that it has zero wrist present and the tactile feel is cheap and the polish is so matte that it actually further cheapens it. I was so excited about getting a new toy and left so disappointed.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## MrDagon007 (Sep 24, 2012)

I tried it on yesterday. I found the stainless models quite premium in feel. The straps are all interesting though they are thin. For example the bracelet is high tech but may feel too thin and light for a WIS. i found the watch very Rado looking on bracelet! Similarly the milano is luxurious and comfy but very thin and the magnet can be a bit annoying during putting on and off. The silicon straps were amazing in my opinion. Unexpectedly my favourite was the leather loop. Elegant and the magnet closing system works like magic.
On the demo stands surprisingly for Apple the gui is at first a bit confusing. When to turn or click the crown or click the button or force tab, it will initially be puzzling.
The watch faces are nicely done.
I found it tempting. I do think that I will wait for v2 though.


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## cobrapa (Mar 15, 2012)

Thanks for the review! I think I read it on MacRumors as well.

On the flip side, I found my local Apple store to not be that crowded, and dropped by a couple times over lunch this week (Willow Grove, PA.) Yesterday one of the employees said 'we are facilitating watch try on appointments, would you like to try on the watch'? I was there with friends, and we initially said no, but then agreed a short time later. They do want your Apple ID to setup the appt. She just entered mine on the spot and started showing us watches.

I have to agree I was disappointed that the try on watches only run a demo loop. The employee tells you to double press the lower button (if you're wearing it 'right handed', on the left wrist) to start the demo, otherwise the watch just stays off. None of the buttons on these watches seems to do anything, so you really are just trying it on. I mainly wanted to see what it felt like and try on one of the milanese loops to see if it pinched hair on the arm like some have reported. I did not find that to be the case for me, and found it to be a comfortable band.

The demo units that are setup on the table to play with are a different story. They run software you can interact with. I'm surprised some people don't like the interface, but maybe it depends on the size of your fingers. I think the screen looks really good and touch and swipe on it is very responsive, but I have smaller fingers for a male. It seems to be the first watch with a really good touch interface that I have run across (I haven't seen any good ones before this, so maybe I just haven't run across them.)

Touch vs. force touch required me to actually push on the screen and hold for force touch. The ability to zoom menus and the picture interface with the scroll wheel is just neat. There's nothing else around that can do that that I am aware of.

I was a little entertained by the sales lady. She obviously had some watch training or background, as she looked at me and my friends watches we wore in to the store and complimented our link bracelets. We joked with her about our watches being worth more than the Apple Watch Sport which she laughed about.

Speaking of links, the Apple link bracelet with watch mount looks really slick. Resizing and removal without tools is a great feature. We'll have to see how robust it is for longer use. As long as the push button releases don't start to fail, the Apple watch link is going to be an amazing bracelet.

Anyway, at least at this store, I was able to walk in and play with the watch without waiting, and even do a try on without pre-scheduling it as well. This probably varies from store to store and depends on how busy they are.


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## Steven Rianto (Aug 10, 2011)

Nice review.

Sort of disappointed because of the light link Apple watch ss bracelet because i loved my heavy polished &brushed SS Seiko SPB007 bracelet.
Wondering if the modern buckle is good enough? i might buy the 38mm just because of the modern buckle. (+-165mm wrist size)
Loved the milanese style but the magnetic head seems too problematic.

Still waiting for any news when will the apple watch released in my country.... *crossing fingers


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## Blitzzz (Dec 26, 2007)

Does anyone know what the strap widths are? I know they are adapter integrated but wondering if the straps themselves are 20/22/24mm? Do they taper?


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## watchvaultnyc (Jun 5, 2014)

Great review. I have a Moto 360 which is my "work" watch and a couple of automatics and quartz watches. I really can't get over the fact that the more expensive the apple watch gets, the more it looks like an 80's era LCD watch. It looks best on the cheapest "Sport" version. 

Like everything, need to use it to accurately judge. I'm currently on a 3-week road trip across both coasts, and I would never, ever consider taking my Moto 360 with with me, due to the additional hassle of having to charge it on the road.


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## zetaplus93 (Jul 22, 2013)

Blitzzz said:


> Does anyone know what the strap widths are? I know they are adapter integrated but wondering if the straps themselves are 20/22/24mm? Do they taper?


Good question. In the 38mm, the leather straps seem to be 20mm, and if memory serves correctly, it appears to taper slightly to 18mm.

BTW, there are 3rd party adapters in the works so you can use your existing straps. One is called Click and it just successfully funded ok Kickstarter.


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## MrDagon007 (Sep 24, 2012)

Once you've examined the innovative Apple straps, using an adaptor for traditional straps suddenly seems like a step back, plus I have not yet seen one convincing example.


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## broehldmd (Sep 23, 2007)

MrDagon007 said:


> Once you've examined the innovative Apple straps, using an adaptor for traditional straps suddenly seems like a step back, plus I have not yet seen one convincing example.


Innovative? Like pushing a button and sliding out straps/bracelets ala cartier roadsters. And cartier has done it a lot more elegant in my opinion. The link bracelet looks like an 80's throw back to digit watches and looks and feels cheap. The silicon rubber strap that feels like the same material that I use in my kitchen for grabbing pots, The silly magnetic closure system on the modern buckle and the Milanese bracelet? It's a magnet and certainly doesn't feel highend like many nice deployment buckles. The awful looking pressed leather that feels thin and so cheap. You can look at the pebble patterns and tell they are pressed which spells cheap. In my opinion they are the worst aspect about the watch. Being into luxury watches and owning many many different brands has taught me how to really evaluate quality. I suspect many others feel the same way which is why they want a real viable option for a quality strap system. Nothing really absolutely wrong with apples offerings but I would hardly call them innovative or highend. Some people want just want more so aftermarket strap systems like click will find an audience.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## BarracksSi (Feb 13, 2013)

Wow.


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## BarracksSi (Feb 13, 2013)

42mm with my SKX:








Different backs on the steel and aluminum models:








The one with the weather screen is 42mm:








and this one is the 38mm:


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## MrDagon007 (Sep 24, 2012)

The Seiko is a nice classic, however were you tempted enough to order the Apple watch?
Btw when I saw it for the first time live It reminded me a lot of certain nice Rados like this one:


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## BarracksSi (Feb 13, 2013)

MrDagon007 said:


> The Seiko is a nice classic, however were you tempted enough to order the Apple watch?


I can't decide which straps I'd get, but if all goes well, my wife and I will each have our own later this year.


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## BarracksSi (Feb 13, 2013)

Some things to note:

I've never measured my wrist, but I'm guessing that it's 170-175 mm, because the large size Leather Loop is so long that its magnetic tip sat right at the "lug" when I tried it on.

I could wear either the S/M or M/L Sport band; I'm right at the two smallest settings on the M/L. Also, it's best to put it on by doing the snap/peg first, then tucking the end into the hole.

The mesh loop's free end does not slide out of the lug attachment. It's pretty long, too, but not as long as the leather loop.

The Modern Buckle is really slick, but be careful when taking it on and off. I came closer to dropping the watch with that buckle than any of the others.

At least at the NYC 5th Ave store, the rep said that they weren't allowed to demonstrate the link bracelet's removable links for fear of the pieces walking away. A different, smaller store may have a different policy. They did let me remove every band or bracelet, though, just to see how well the quick-change mechanism worked.


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