I think the problem is that when you talk to "watch guys", they're all after a very specific aesthetic and functional goal. But that market is extremely small and self selecting.
Meanwhile, the mass market watch is something very different (and nearly extinct after the cell phone display accomplished the same goals).
So let's learn from two wildly successful watch brands in the 90s:
- The information density on the Apple Watch display more comparable to something like the Timex Ironman watches than a mechanical watch. Apple also implies their watch can 'take a lickin' with their sapphire display and completely encased motherboard design.
- The ability to customize the bands and face designs is in line with Swatch in the 90s. People will likely buy several band accessories the same way Swatch's customers bought multiple Swatches.
The only thing not mass market about the Apple Watch is it's price.
I'm guessing the low end of the product line will fill out the same way the iPhone did. They will keep all the tooling and production the same, but gradually reduce the price to $100 while they work out the software kinks.
But in the end, the product will be amazingly successful because it has the DNA of amazingly successful predecessors.
Meanwhile, the mass market watch is something very different (and nearly extinct after the cell phone display accomplished the same goals).
So let's learn from two wildly successful watch brands in the 90s:
- The information density on the Apple Watch display more comparable to something like the Timex Ironman watches than a mechanical watch. Apple also implies their watch can 'take a lickin' with their sapphire display and completely encased motherboard design.
- The ability to customize the bands and face designs is in line with Swatch in the 90s. People will likely buy several band accessories the same way Swatch's customers bought multiple Swatches.
The only thing not mass market about the Apple Watch is it's price.
I'm guessing the low end of the product line will fill out the same way the iPhone did. They will keep all the tooling and production the same, but gradually reduce the price to $100 while they work out the software kinks.
But in the end, the product will be amazingly successful because it has the DNA of amazingly successful predecessors.