Apple Watch Widens the Class Gap for Trendy Tech

So the Apple Watch has arrived, and with it a new class distinction in technology. Traditionally, owning an Apple product has been something of a status symbol, marking the owner as a person of discernment, taste and means. Now you can really show off your means with the Watch Edition in Apple-patented 18-karat gold costing up to $17,000!

While that may seem unusual for Apple, it’s par for the course for a luxury watch, and this product really does mark a transition for Apple products – from technology to jewelry, from accessory to wearable.

Thankfully, for those of us who might aspire to the Sport (from $349) or Stainless Steel (from €549) versions of the Apple Watch, the materials may differ, but the technology inside will be the same. Those prices are for the 38mm version; the 42mm version is $50 more. Watches need an iPhone to work, communicating using Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

Here’s an edited extract from Tim Cook’s launch of the Apple Watch yesterday, courtesy of The New York Times.

Adrian Weckler has an excellent 6-point Q&A in the Irish Independent this morning. He likes it:

The sceptics say that it provides no compelling service or function … This, they say, is why existing smartwatches based on Google’s Android Wear have sold in very modest numbers (under 1m last year). But fans of the product say that it could wean them off having to constantly take one’s phone out of a pocket every time a notification buzzer goes off.

Apple Watch is a communication device – working with the iPhone to deliver messages, alerts and navigation. Yesterday’s keynote demonstrated a watch-integrated Uber app and there are also apps from companies such as Salesforce.com. And of course it’s a fitness tracker. International model and campaigner Christy Turlington was introduced as an ambassador for Apple Watch. You can follow her story as she uses the device to help her train for the London Marathon on April 26.

So when can you get it? Unfortunately, there’s no word on Irish availability yet, but it’s available in the US, UK and some other countries on April 24.

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