It could be said that Apple jumped the shark today with its Apple Live event today, in which the company revealed that the cost of the Apple Watch would start from $349 and go up to a whopping $10,000 and beyond, whilst also showcasing how the wearable will essentially perform the tasks you currently assign to your smartphone, only with a smaller screen.
The Apple Live event saw CEO Tim Cook highlight a selection of the device’s features, the majority of which were underwhelming, ranging from it being able to take phone calls, to it acting as a hotel room key and reminding you to stand up every now and again when it believes you’ve been sitting down for too long.
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The event kicked off with Cook showcasing a new technology called Digital Touch, which allows users to draw on their Watch before sending their amateur artwork to a friend, with that drawing then being animated on their watch “exactly as you drew it.” The company still continued its strong push towards health and fitness apps, with Cook explaining how the Watch will send users a weekly “health report,” highlighting their progress.
The Apple Watch is said to boast an 18-hour battery life and would run iOS 8.2, which is available to download right now for existing iOS users. There was also some discussion about the Watch being able to open garage doors which, as someone who owns a garage door, I can confidently say is a feature I haven’t exactly been clamoring for.
TEN-THOUSAND DOLLARS.
It seems that the high cost of the Apple Watch is mostly down to its design, with Apple creating a new aluminium with “proper grain structure” (whatever that means), with the prices of the device depending upon the Watch band.
Apple announced that it would cost $349 – $10,049 for the 38mm band and $399 – $10,099 for the 42mm. The higher price point is for the Apple Watch Edition, which will come in 18ct gold and will only have limited stock.
The Apple Watch is available for pre-order from April 10th, with it set for launch on April 24th.
While I previously stated that I believed the Apple Watch would be a success despite it appearing to be a little useless to those who already owned smartphones, tablets and the like, this keynote stood to prove my latter opinion correct whilst also making me second-guess whether or not people will actually buy into this tech.
Rather than reinventing the wheel when it comes to smartwatches, Apple seems to have fallen into the same trap as other companies who have tried to spearhead this fledgling market. While the Apple Watch is relatively good-looking, it doesn’t appear to be useful enough to appeal to tech lovers and is also unlikely to convince the high-end jewelry connoisseurs, especially considering that the tech will likely be outdated in at least one year’s time before Apple decide to bring out the inevitable Apple Watch 2.
Header Image: Getty Images
