A Watch Guy’s Impressions of the Apple Watch

It was a huge week for Apple: it announced two new iPhone models and the eagerly anticipated Apple Watch, alongside other major announcements such as Apple Pay. While the first hands-on opinions of tech reporters were positive, we are wondering how many of those actually wear a watch. So, this leads us to the next question: How does the Apple Watch look from the perspective of a watch guy? Hodinkee has all the details.

Apple watch

Hodinkee’s Benjamin Clymer had the opportunity to attend the Apple event, and he was able to inspect the anticipated device close up. He published his thoughts about the device in a lengthy article detailing all that Apple got right and what it didn’t, from the perspective of the device as a watch, not a digital peripheral.

Overall, his first impression was positive about the Apple Watch, which also echoes an earlier report from Reuters saying that Swiss manufacturers have nothing to fear about the device. But there are a few things Apple has done better. For example, it got more details right on the watch than the vast majority of Swiss and Asian brands do with similarly priced watches.

The good:

Overall design of the object – most obviously, the way that curved screen flows perfectly into the case – is just gorgeous. As Tim Cook said during the keynote address, you can barely tell where the software stops and the hardware begins. The rounded edges are very Apple, even very Marc Newson, who, based on absolutely nothing but a gut feeling, I’m sure had something to do with the design of the Apple Watch. Why? Just look at it.

The bad:

If I had to criticize the actual form of the Apple Watch, it would be a complaint you’ve heard from me before (most recently with the Habring2 in our latest Three on Three); the Apple Watch doesn’t fit under my shirt cuff without serious effort, if at all. I believe that great design should not disrupt daily life, and a watch that doesn’t fit under a shirt sleeve is missing something. Apple is amazing and building thin, elegant machines, and I was surprised by how bulky this is, especially when the 45 minutes prior to the introduction of the Apple Watch were spent discussing how svelte the new iPhone 6 is. I understand the physical limitations and the required dock on the rear of the watch, but the Apple Watch is bulkier than I would’ve liked.

You can read the full review here.

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