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Apple Watch release date and price
Apple Watch launches on Friday, April 24 - you can set your friend's inferior Android Wear smartwatch to that release date - and we finally know everything about what's been hiding up Tim Cook's sleeve.
It's an iPhone-compatible smartwatch officially dubbed Apple Watch, shedding the fabled iWatch moniker, as the company is focusing on its first chic wearable over geeky tech.
To that lavish point, when pre-orders begin on April 10, the price will range from $349 (£299) for the entry-level Sport model to $17,000 (£13,500, AU$24,000) for the top-tier 18-karat gold editions.
You can read emails, summon Siri, receive calls and track fitness goals on your watch. Facebook alerts, WeChat messages and Twitter trends can also be beamed your wrist without pulling out your smartphone.
But is this enough of a benefit to sell you on a smartwatch? Does its 18-hour battery life hold up? We finally have all of those answers one month out from the Apple Watch launch.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? An iOS 8.2-friendly watch that plays nice with your iPhone
- When is it out? April 24 with pre-orders beginning on April 10
- What will it cost? Starts at $349 (£299) and ends at $10,000 (£8,000)
- Hands on: Apple Watch review
Apple Watch release date
The countdown is on for the Apple Watch release date, which has officially been set for April 24 in select countries. Pre-orders and "previews" at the Apple Store begin on April 10, two weeks prior.
It'll be available in nine countries on the final Friday for April, jiving with our Apple-always-launches-on-Fridays prediction from earlier this month.
It'll come to the US, UK, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan, with more countries due to get the Apple Watch at later date.
Apple Watch price
We finally have an answer to the question: "How much will the Apple Watch cost?" The answer: More than we were hoping to pay, even though some its specs seem to be on par with Android Wear.
Only the Sport edition "starts at $349 (£299)" and that's for the smaller 38mm version. The 42mm size is slightly more at $399 (£339), revealed Apple CEO Tim Cook this week.
The stainless steel regular "Watch" collection starts at $549 (£479) and goes up to to $1099 (£949), depending on the Apple Watch size and band configuration.
The gold Watch Edition will be in limited supply at Apple Stores and cost a whopping $10,000 (£8,000) to $17,000 (£13,500, AU$24,000), confirming prior rumors that said it'd be incredibly expensive.
Why Apple Watch costs so much?
That notorious Apple tax pushes the pricetag well beyond the original $349 given components involved. But Apple also recruited high-profile people throughout the watch and biometrics industries who have wound up on its Apple Watch team. That talent comes at a price.
Then there's a hidden cost. While a subsidized iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are cheaper upfront in the US, stores make up the difference with contract kickbacks. Not so with a smartwatch. Stores need a cut too.
For the sake of comparison, Android Wear's cheaper initial watches included the Samsung Gear Live at $200 (£170, AU$250) and LG G Watch at $230 (£160, AU$250) at launch. Apple's biggest and most stylish competition is from Motorola and its Moto 360 that's priced at $249 (£199, around AU$275).
Apple is clearly aiming for luxury given the sapphire glass-protected display, an imposing digital crown, two sizes and even the 18k gold colored edition.
- All 38 Apple Watch designs: Every band, case and face so far
What does actually Apple Watch do?
Apple's first wearable gadget beams messages, Facebook updates and simplified apps to our wrists, eliminating the all-too-common need to take out our devices to constantly check notifications.
There are more than a dozen ways to interact with the watch, from receiving glanceable notifications, to feeling "taptic" feedback, to summoning Siri, according to the developer WatchKit software.
It's going to become especially convenient to pocket the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and even bigger 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus in your jeans, or to always stow the thin, but still 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 in a bag.
Is that phone call from a telemarketer not worth your time or an emergency from a loved one? Apple Watch makes mundane notifications easy to dismiss while keeping you in the loop with important alerts.
Apple Watch apps, fitness and battery life
Apple Watch apps
Apple Watch doesn't just beams all iPhone notifications to your wrist, it lets you play with and control all sorts of apps with its touchscreen and digital crown.
Apple-made apps demoed include iMessages, Health, Calendar, Weather, Mail, Photos, Camera's shutter button, Passbook that now includes Apple Pay and even Apple Maps for navigation.
There are also a number of third-party apps already being developed even before Apple Watch's launch thanks to entruperal developers taking advantage of Apple's WatchKit software.
We've rounded up the best Apple Watch apps to help you decide whether you'll want one at launch. Many will be extensions of built-in iPhone apps, but there will also be new ones.
All of these Apple Watch apps and settings can be organized within a single iPhone companion app for the smartwatch that's coming as part of newly launched iOS 8.2.
Apple Watch health and fitness
Not surprisingly, Apple has focused on the health and fitness category when introducing its Apple Watch, and its using models and athletes like Christy Turlington Burns to get its point across.
Apple Watch three main tracks activity metrics. Move calculates how many calories you've burned while wearing the watch, while Exercise keeps track of your most active minutes.
Stand actually measures how long you spend on your feet and it can actually ping you when you're unhealthily sitting idle for too long, just like the Jawbone Up24 can do.
Apple Watch also takes cues from the Nike FuelBand SE and other fitness trackers with health sensors and nutrition apps, a must for any serious wearable gadget these days. As you might expect, it has a custom heart rate monitor that can compete with some of the best running tech around.
Finally, Apple Watch has a Workout app that gives real-time stats for your total exercise time, distance, calories and pace. Keeping you motivated are goals, reminders and achievements.
Apple Watch battery life
The Apple Watch battery life is supposed to last all day, but don't expect a full 24 hours from this first iteration of the smartwatch.
Instead, Tim Cook has promised 18 hours of a typical day, which technically does sync with his comments that it can be "worn all day" and is something that's "simple to charge at night."
That led us to believe that the Apple Watch battery life will be approximately full one day, sort of like the Moto 360, LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live we have reviewed.
Of course, more recent Android Wear watches like the ASUS ZenWatch, Sony SmartWatch 3 and LG G Watch R actually push a day and a half to two days, partly thanks to the Android Wear software update.
Well at least the disturbing reports about Apple Watch having as little as 2.5 hours of battery life were unfounded rumors were overblown and likely based on always-on screen or prototypes.
Apple Watch magnetic charger
Apple iWatch has long been rumored to have a 400mAh battery. The battery size is still unknown quantity, so when we finally learn about the specs when we test it out in April.
We do know about the recharging method, though. The Apple Watch's back crystal houses a magnetic inductive wireless charging solution similar to the MagSafe design.
Again, Apple bucks another trend here - this time it's eschewing the popular Qi wireless charging method - in favor of its own standard.
Apple Watch design, buttons and straps
Apple Watch design
The final Apple Watch design isn't too far from the made-up renders that we saw ahead of the official announcement. It draws inspiration from iPod Nano with a rectangular-shaped screen plus one knob and a single button.
The Apple Watch is more than "iPod Nano meets the iPhone," though. The smartwatch display comes in two sizes measured by height: 38mm (1.5in) and 42mm (1.65in). Both are slightly smaller than the entire Pebble Steel watch height, which measures 46mm (1.8in).
We also now know the resolution of each screen. The 38mm Apple Watch will have a resolution of 272 x 340, while a 42mm version will have a 312 x 390 display.
The Apple Watch's screen is surrounded by casing made of custom of stainless steel, aluminum, or gold that, according to the company, stand up to the physical demands of daily wear.
Beyond the "Apple Watch" and "Apple Watch Sport" versions, a special "Apple Watch Edition" mixes in 18-karat yellow or rose gold for a premium look. It certainly goes well with that gold iPhone 6.
That brings the metal colors to six: stainless steel, silver aluminum, space black stainless steel, space gray aluminum, 18-karat yellow gold and 18-karat rose gold.
A total of 34 Apple Watch design choices is going to complicate the lives of early adopters on launch day. But the official prices are likely to help narrow that decision come April. If you want to take a look at the different design options yourself there's now an unofficial tool to do that.
You'll be pleased to know that Apple's timepiece may also be water resistant, as Tim Cook stated that he wears his in the shower, though he didn't specify exactly how waterproof it is at the launch event.
Apple Watch digital crown
The Apple Watch doesn't have a round display like the Moto 360, but the casing does feature a circular knob known as the "digital crown."
This input is unique among smartwatches, but a true classic derived from traditional watches. Apple has of course put a modern-day twist on its functionality.
The Apple Watch digital crown replaces the pinch-to-zoom touchscreen mechanic used on everything from iPhones to MacBooks, which is too impractical on such a small display, according to Apple.
Rotating it allows you to zoom into your app selection, your location on Apple Maps and a photo from a gallery. Scrolling through dates and stopwatch times is handled by this knob too.
The digital crown also acts as the Apple Watch home button. There's no Touch ID sensor here, but Apple Watch is smartly tied to your wristwatch with an anti-theft passcode required whenever it's taken off.
Apple Watch conversation button
The button below the digital crown allows you to start a conversation with friends. Pushing it brings up a their contact info photos and zooming into a specific person with the digital crown gets things started.
Beyond calling and messaging Apple Watch wearing friends, you can get their attention with a gentle tap. It vibrates the "taptic" feedback on their smartwatch.
What's intriguing about this taptic feedback system is that it's said to be more precise and subtle than a vibration everyone can hear. Want to ditch a party? Your friends' secret sign may be three taps on the Apple Watch before bailing. It's an interesting way to get someone's attention.
The Apple Watch goes all Drawesome on us with a bizarre sketch function for light messaging on the wrist. Snapchat became big, why not Swipechat? You can also share your heartbeat with someone in real time, though we're not sure why you would want to.
Apple Watch bands
The variety of Apple Watch bands played better than U2 at the press conference, giving consumers a way to personalize their smartwatch.
Standard straps include Leather Loop that conceals magnets for easy fastening, the leather Modern Buckle and the leather Classic Buckle. There's also a gym-friendly elastomer Sport Band.
Higher-end metal straps include the Milanese Loop with flexible magnetic stainless steel mesh and the stainless steel Link Bracelet.
The ability to swap the straps without having to use tooling or visit or jeweler is one of our favorite features in the Apple Watch vs Moto 360 comparison.
Apple Watch faces, compatibility and competition
Apple Watch faces
Apple is promising customizable watch faces with "millions of different appearances." It brings everything to its timepieces, from time lapse backgrounds to classic Mickey Mouse arms as dials.
However, just to be clear, the smartwatch comes with a base of 11 watch faces, according to the official Apple Watch press release. Most allow you to change the colors, design elements and add functionality.
Changing the watch face works exactly like Android Wear's changes. A simply force touch on the home screen brings up a sliding right-to-left gallery of new watch faces.
The Apple Watch face gallery shows off an Astronomy design with an interactive, real-time 3D model of the earth, moon and planets. Likewise, the Solar acts as a contemporary sundial.
If you want a moving background, there's the Motion watch face, or a still image, there's the Photo face. Utility, Chronograph, Color, Modular and Simple exhibit more contemporary designs.
Apple Watch has a number of competitors that run on Android Wear, and since their upgrade to Android 5.0 Lollipop, you can now download a large range of watch faces there already.
Google seeded Watch Face API to developers and a number of striking designs are already available to download. We're guessing that Google will be a bit more relaxed about custom watch faces vs Apple.
This could mean that we'll see the usual quality versus quantity debate when it comes to comparing watch faces on Apple Watch and Android Wear devices.
By the time the Apple Watch launches in April, there will be a variety of faces already available for Android Wear, so Apple might have a fight on its hands when it comes to watch face customization.
Compatibility
Apple Watch compatibility follows the company's strict iPhone 5 or later policy that's reflective of its recent Apple CarPlay initiative. It's lightning or nothing.
Even though the battery-saving Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy technology made its debut in the iPhone 4S, it's time for an upgrade. It may also be time to find space to step up to iOS 8.2.
Just don't expect any Android phone, new or old, to work with the Apple Watch. Android Wear can't connect to Apple's devices, and we don't expect Apple to return the favor.
The competition
We plan to strap the Apple Watch to our non-dominant wrist, but its got a lot of competition to stay buckled in due to all of the Android Wear and Samsung smartwatches.
In fact, since MWC 2015, there are even more Apple Watch competitors that are compatible with new, sleeker phones like the Samsung Galaxy S6 and HTC One M9.
LG Watch Urbane
The LG Watch Urbane is one such competitor which could give Apple a run for its money. Unlike the Apple Watch (and many other smartwatches) the Watch Urbane comes with an attractive round face that gives it a classy, traditional look.
A reboot of the G Watch R, the Urbane swaps out the chunky plastic body for a slightly more slender all metal affair, making it clear LG is going after Apple with its latest wearable.
The screen also looks gorgeous thanks to the P-OLED technology, and on the back of the watch is a heart rate monitor for health apps.
Unlike the Apple Watch the LG Watch Urbane only comes in one size so if you're not a fan of the design then there's little you can do about it.
At £299.99 (around $400, AU$550), the LG Watch Urbane is one of the most expensive smartwatches on the market, but it could still be cheaper than the Apple Watch.
Moto 360
The Moto 360 is another stylish smartwatch with a circular design, and it's one of the best wearables on the market today. Although the LCD screen won't be quite as accomplished as the Apple Watch's display, we feel the round design gives the Moto 360 the edge in the looks department.
It's also around $100 cheaper than the lowest priced Apple Watch will be, and again there's a good chance that it will get even cheaper by the time the Apple Watch makes it way into the world.
The Apple Watch beats the Moto 360 in customization options with the large variety of bands that will be available. Both the Apple Watch and the Moto 360 also allow you to change the style of the watch face, with the recent update to Android 5.0 Lollipop allowing a huge range of new designs to be available to Moto 360.
- Check out who won when we pitted the Apple Watch vs Moto 360
TechRadar is going to keep updating this feature explainer leading up to the April 24 release date.
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