Apple iWatch Teardown Review!
- Thread starter mauidan
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What a well done video. I am far more impressed by the well spoken reporter than the watch itself 
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Since it's so easy to remove the band, I think there's going to be a big market for replacement bands.
not only will there be a huge market for replacement bands but because of the diagnostic port on the side of the watch they anticipate bands that will communicate with the watch for other functions much like Montblanc does
I don't know what Montblanc does. How would you plug something into that and still wear the watch???
I think the port is a JTAG test connector to test the functionality of the test post manufacturing Steve. Hard to imagine it turning into an interface for smart bands and such.
My sense is that the iWatch was released prematurely. It will probably take two generations of optimization to get power levels down to reasonable levels. That means 3 years from now or version 3.
My sense is that the iWatch was released prematurely. It will probably take two generations of optimization to get power levels down to reasonable levels. That means 3 years from now or version 3
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I understand exactly what the port is but I am reading that watch band makers are creating ways to make a band that communicates with the watch
I think the port is a JTAG test connector to test the functionality of the test post manufacturing Steve. Hard to imagine it turning into an interface for smart bands and such.
My sense is that the iWatch was released prematurely. It will probably take two generations of optimization to get power levels down to reasonable levels. That means 3 years from now or version 3
Hidden port for Apple Watch can be used to charge it, perhaps more
Summary:New information about the Apple Watch's secretive little 6 pin port suggests the watch can be charged quicker. Could third-party sensors in watch bands also use it?
By Kevin Tofel for Mobile Platforms
Tucked inside the Apple Watch is a little secret if you know where to look: There's a 6 pin port in the watch case that's normally hidden by the watch strap. The Apple Watch's port is for diagnostics but it's actually capable of more, notes 9to5 Mac.
One third-party strap maker already found you can charge the Apple Watch faster using a wired cable and the hidden port, for example.
The group behind Reserve Strap, an Apple Watch strap with embedded battery cells, is already redesigning its original product based on the port's capabilities:
We've developed and tested a completely rethought design that takes advantage of the 6 pin port underneath the band slide of the Apple Watch. This port hadn't been deciphered by anyone until now but we've been able to make significant enough observations so far to warrant shifting our development focus to this new method.
Depending on what can be done with the port, this development opens up a market for other third-party Apple Watch straps that can use it. Indeed, that approach reminds me a bit of Pebble, a competing smartwatch that works with both iOS and Android devices.
A few days after Pebble announced its new Pebble Time watch, the company said it would support third-party accessories built into straps so that Pebble could gain additional capabilities. One example is a possible watch strap with an embedded GPS radio, adding precise location data to the Pebble Time.
While Pebble is embracing the idea of third-party accessory integration, Apple has kept mum on the diagnostic port. The company hasn't called any attention to it, nor has it announced any "Made for Apple Watch" type of certification program.
With the port's existence, however, it could. And even if Apple doesn't, the Reserve Strap team looks to be moving forward by using the port anyway, hoping to add both faster charging and up to 120 percent more battery life for the Apple Watch.
Apple licenses and makes good money from any interfaces on its products. No way do I see them allowing people to just hook up to it without a license. And that would require them opening up a port that was not designed for this use. Knowing how Apple is closed on such things, there is no reason at all to expect anything good to come out of it. Sure, people will try to hack it but one firmware update and the thing could be toast.
The only reason to hold hope is if Apple itself does something. Until then, none of this will amount to anything Steve. That is my story and I sticking to it.
BTW, nothing is more scary than something try to mess with a watch that you wear on your wrist. The liability for causing damage, a short that heats up and burns your skin, etc. is too large for Apple lawyers to let such things happen without order and process.
The only reason to hold hope is if Apple itself does something. Until then, none of this will amount to anything Steve. That is my story and I sticking to it.
BTW, nothing is more scary than something try to mess with a watch that you wear on your wrist. The liability for causing damage, a short that heats up and burns your skin, etc. is too large for Apple lawyers to let such things happen without order and process.
Apple licenses and makes good money from any interfaces on its products. No way do I see them allowing people to just hook up to it without a license. And that would require them opening up a port that was not designed for this use. Knowing how Apple is closed on such things, there is no reason at all to expect anything good to come out of it. Sure, people will try to hack it but one firmware update and the thing could be toast.
The only reason to hold hope is if Apple itself does something. Until then, none of this will amount to anything Steve. That is my story and I sticking to it.
BTW, nothing is more scary than something try to mess with a watch that you wear on your wrist. The liability for causing damage, a short that heats up and burns your skin, etc. is too large for Apple lawyers to let such things happen without order and process.
makes perfect sense what you say and I am sure your guess is far more educated than mine but for now we will wait and see. I ordered my watch a few hours after the pre orders started and it won't ship until July. What I find interesting is that I have read no where, where it states how many Apple watches have been sold
my Son who purchased the Apple watch last week and was enjoying it then, today wore his Rolex again and told me he was selling the Apple watch. he said that he found it did not do what his Rolex did as well as the Rolex did (tell the time without a 1/2 second lag), and to do anything else with the watch required 2 hands, whereas his phone only required one hand mostly.
so the net affect was more hassle (with the Apple watch) not less.
plus he will make a small profit on the sale.
the balancing attributes of the Apple watch simply did not add enough value. he did say that maybe with a maturation of the product over time the value equation for him could change. he's about as techie as people get (he's our company network engineer), so it's interesting for him to jump ship so soon. with him it's never about knowing how to use something, it's about whether it actually fulfills the intended function.
so the net affect was more hassle (with the Apple watch) not less.
plus he will make a small profit on the sale.
the balancing attributes of the Apple watch simply did not add enough value. he did say that maybe with a maturation of the product over time the value equation for him could change. he's about as techie as people get (he's our company network engineer), so it's interesting for him to jump ship so soon. with him it's never about knowing how to use something, it's about whether it actually fulfills the intended function.
I would hazard a guess Mike that the Apple Watch keeps better time than a Rolex.
agree.
I did not say the Rolex was more accurate. only that the Rolex did what it did better than the Apple did it.
telling exact time is not what the Rolex does best, telling approximately the right time but quickly and with class is what it does best. granted, there are higher class time pieces.
a $20 Casio or Timex comes to mind
if I had never given him a Rolex we would likely use one of those.
It is a tricky business when a product replaces something else and simultaneously does less and more. Huge orders of magnitude worse battery life and doing something to get the time. And then adding a lot of other functionality.
Neither the iPod of iPhone did that. Both did what the original devices did and then piled on a lot of other things and hence the amazing success.
Neither the iPod of iPhone did that. Both did what the original devices did and then piled on a lot of other things and hence the amazing success.
I have owned a Rolex for a very long time. To me, it is not a watch. It is a piece of jewelry that also happens to have hands on it as well as indications for numbers and that within +/- 5 minutes usually gives a reasonable approximation of the current time.
And Mike's son's reasonably short term response to the watch is EXACTLY why I don't anticipate owning one. If I have to have an iPhone with me to make use of most of the iWatch functions, why bother.
The replaceable band has interesting potential. I have a good friend who is in the high end watch accessories business (replacement jeweled dials, replacement and jeweled bands, diamond bezels, etc).
And Mike's son's reasonably short term response to the watch is EXACTLY why I don't anticipate owning one. If I have to have an iPhone with me to make use of most of the iWatch functions, why bother.
The replaceable band has interesting potential. I have a good friend who is in the high end watch accessories business (replacement jeweled dials, replacement and jeweled bands, diamond bezels, etc).
I agree... We are at the infancy of electronics wearables. The watch form factor seems to be what the industry think is the best so far. TO be frank i just don't see the (pun intended) the Google GLass -type as having any leg ... err.. traction. The ide of a watch that needs to be recharged constantly to be able to just tell the time is amusing and a little nonsensical.
I am however a watch fan and know very well what they are: Jewelry, functions are secondary in most cases ... Complications? A rationale for the status bestowed (in our mind or at least in mine). FWIW my Breitling B1 is as good as anything out there in term of accuracy .. It is a (gasp!
) Quartz watch with sports two digital readouts... It does also have handles No longer made
B1
I would have lusted for the B50 but at 46 mm it is waaaay too large for my wrist ... Not a smartwatch but it is ... rechargeable
B50
I didn't buy the watch to tell time but rather to make full use of the health apps. I have a 6+ and I work out every day at my club. I have to place my iPhone inside the side of my workout shorts and it is awkward and a bit uncomfortable. Now I can place my phone in the cup of each machine and with my watch on can work out comfortably and get more accurate results. Telling the time was secondary to me.
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