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Apple Stores preparing new Reserve and Pickup system for Watch launch on April 24

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Apple is preparing a new Reserve and Pickup system at its retail stores that will roll out in time for the Watch launch on April 24th, according to sources. The Reserve and Pickup system for the Apple Watch will differ from the existing Personal Pickup system for other products, which allows customers to fully purchase items online before picking them up at Apple retail locations. The new system will allow potential Watch customers to reserve a desired case and band combination online, then try the specific Watch in-store before completing the purchase.As it announced yesterday, Apple will begin taking pre-orders for the Watch beginning April 10th at which point Apple Watches will begin to be displayed within Apple retail stores. Apple is describing the two week period between pre-orders and the Watch going on sale as Preview, and the company allow customers to actually try on the Apple Watch for during this period before it starts shipping.

Similar to the iPhone, Apple has also informed retail employees that Apple Watch pricing will not vary for business customers which typically earn tiered discounts based on frequent past or bulk purchases.

Apple is also encouraging employees to promote the new favoriting feature on the Apple Online Store and the Apple Store app for iOS. The favoriting feature is a way to bookmark the Apple Watch styling of your choice before pre-ordering to hopefully make the process smoother. Apple has more plans for the favoriting feature, though, as the company plans to “provide a personalized experience” to customers that pre-select styles ahead of time.

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Comments

  1. Joshua Glowzinski - 9 years ago

    Well, that is a cool thing. See, now I am starting to get all frisky. hahaha

  2. bennynihon - 9 years ago

    Did anyone else notice the huge variation in weight between the different colored sports bands? Seems odd. It ranges from 40g for the black band to 51g for the white band. How could a difference in color account for a greater than 25% increase in weight? And how is it that the watch face (or case as they call it) is only 30g for the 42mm size, while the band is 51g (white)?

  3. telecastle - 9 years ago

    Apple’s Link Bracelet for $449. Is this a joke? Seriously. As a shareholder with a VERY sizable portfolio of AAPL (not lying), I think this is way too brazen and is liable to turn people away from Apple. Not many people who can afford this type of bracelet want to be taken for a ride like this. Folks want value – trust me. If Apple charged $99 for this bracelet, I would say it were bold but reasonable for a quality bracelet provided it’s an Apple product. Anything above $99 for a watch band is ridiculous unless we are talking about precious metals, when the price no longer reflects the quality but rather reflects how fashionable and prestigious the owner considers such an accessory to be. With stainless steel, it’s just a utilitarian accessory, and the price of USD449 is an insult to anyone’s intelligence.

    As a shareholder, I would love it if Apple could make a 2000% profit margin on this bracelet because there’s no way it costs more than USD20 to produce it in China and ship it to the US. On the other hand, I am starting to be afraid that Apple has lost its mind.

    As for the Watch Edition Apple Watch, Apple can charge as much as they want. I don’t care because Watch Edition is targeted to the luxury niche. They can charge $50,000 for that watch if they wish. However, for the stainless steel watch – the price premium of $200 over aluminum Apple watch is ridiculous as well.

    The pricing of the Apple Watch Sport and Apple Watch is really just a trial balloon at this point. Remember what happened with the first generation iPhone? Apple priced it ridiculously high and dropped the price by hundreds of dollars within just a few months. First adopters got really upset about it. Apple tried to compensate them with store credits. This is exactly the same thing. Apple doesn’t know where the right price point is for a smart watch of this quality yet because no one has a competing product of this caliber yet. So, they will launch Apple Watch Sport at USD349 and Apple Watch at $549 just to see how fast these are selling. They will then lower the price. In my opinion, Apple Watch Sport should start at $199 with the larger size going for $249. Apple Watch (stainless steel) should start at $249 with the larger size going for $299. This is still very expensive, but at least not so insulting. And, the infamous Link Bracelet will drop in price like a rock. And someone really should get fired at Apple for being so brazenly offensive to the Apple’s long-time customers with the pricing of the Link Bracelet.

    • tymiles - 9 years ago

      The prices are wild but you can’t really compare it to what they did with iPhone pricing because the original price of the iPhone was before the price was subsidized by ATT.

    • flaviosuave - 9 years ago

      “Anything above $99 for a watch band is ridiculous unless we are talking about precious metals”

      You have never actually priced a quality linked bracelet from any watch manufacturer, have you?

      “However, for the stainless steel watch – the price premium of $200 over aluminum Apple watch is ridiculous as well.”

      You do realize the stainless steel watch also has a sapphire crystal display vs the Ion-X glass display of the Sport model, right?

      “someone really should get fired at Apple for being so brazenly offensive to the Apple’s long-time customers with the pricing of the Link Bracelet”

      You should be fired from humanity, or at least from commenting on this site.

      • telecastle - 9 years ago

        Provide a link to a stainless steel link bracelet that costs anywhere close to USD449. In fact, I will be satisfied if you can provide a link to a stainless steel bracelet that costs $225. Sapphire watch crystal made in Switzerland is available retail on the web for $50. Apple can source those for a fraction of the retail price that anyone can purchase it for.

      • aaronh - 9 years ago

        Is Amazon good enough for you?

        $1395: http://www.amazon.com/Breitling-Blackbird-Steel-Pilot-Bracelet/dp/B008NF0UFY

        In the “customers also shopped for” section of this page are 6 more bracelets with the cheapest being $695.

    • Apple Fanboy - 9 years ago

      Umm. You are a tad on the clueless side. Go price stainless band with deployment buckles from Breitling, Tag, Omega, Rolex to name just a few. Get back to me when you found a clue.

      • Apple Fanboy: I’m sure you are aware then Breitling, Tag, Omega, Rolex, Longines etc have hundreds of years of history between them. Those brands where present when Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic, was present when Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon, have helped win wars, and been on the wrist of pioneers the world over as they explored new frontiers, yet you think the Apple Watch – a watch made on a conveyor belt in a chinese factory no less – should be held in the same esteem as those watches?

        Sorry my friend, just because an Apple Watch is expensive doesn’t automatically elevate to that lofty club just yet. Maybe in a hundred years.

        p.s the sports version is a steal and I’m ordering one :)

      • aaronh - 9 years ago

        AuntyTroll, so you think that stainless steel link band is just punched off a conveyor belt? Each one takes about 9 hours to machine the 100 unique pieces, then they are assembled, and finally brushed by hand. Throw in the custom butterfly closure and not requiring any special tools to remove links as needed and this is not just any old watch band.

        http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-watch-band-photos–2015-3

    • Indeed Steel Bands from Omega are priced much higher
      http://www.ofrei.com/page1280.html

    • darwiniandude - 9 years ago

      Here is a breitling stainless band, with a basic fold clasp rather than the more sophisticated double fold deployment buckle on Apple watch.
      http://www.chrono24.com/en/breitling/braceletstrap-bracelet—mark-vi–id1728061.htm?sortorder=1&watchTypes=Z&urlSubpath=/breitling/index-40.htm&manufacturerIds=32

      And here is a link, yes, one single link from a band, stainless, $290
      http://www.chrono24.com/en/breitling/linkbar-bracelet-link—speed–id1729264.htm?accessoryTypes=2001&dosearch=false&manufacturerIds=32&maxAgeInDays=0&resultview=list&searchexplain=false&sortorder=1&watchTypes=Z&urlSubpath=/breitling/index-5.htm&manufacturerIds=32

      Apple watch is actually very good value for its build quality finish and materials. But unlike a classic timepiece it will be of limited use when it is no longer supported. We don’t know how long support will last.

      But since you asked for proof of any metal band above $225 and I showed you a link costing $299, case closed.

      Real watch fanatics may pickup an Apple watch but won’t abandon their classics for it. It’s too cheap.

    • So sell your shares. I’ll be happy to take them off your hands. I’ll take the actions of a company that has continually proven people like you wrong over the last 15 years to become the most successful company ever over some ignoramus with a keyboard and too much time on his hands.

    • flaviosuave - 9 years ago

      Is this a fancy restaurant? Because you just got served by, like, five people.

    • Stephen McAllister - 9 years ago

      if people are paying 5-800 for an ipad.. a 3-500 watch is nothing

  4. aawil24 (@aawil24) - 9 years ago

    I know people are complaiing about the price of the link bracelet, but the price is probably similar to a swiss replacement. I’m pretty sure I saw the Omega Seamster replacement was over $400 when I was looking at parts. It’s also tough to size, I had to take mine to a jeweler. Anybody can change apple’s. I didn’t really like the looks of it myself but I must say sizing it is a revelation.

  5. Since the  watch was launched I’ve never heard so much wailing and lamenting about the watch prices, straps, and combinations of all 3 variants on every forum.

    It’s a 1st Gen watch – The watch you really want will be the 2nd Gen (or possible Gen 3 before it has all the “sensors” I’d like [I’m diabetic so would like sugar monitoring’. When I attach a watch to my wrist, it never comes off until the battery needs changing. As one of the ‘IT crowd’ in a University in a day I can be in contact with water twice – shower and/or gym. The fact that I will have to remove it to charge and shower/swim I will get used to – still not best pleased, but it won’t stop me buying 1. 2nd Gen *will* be shower/swim proof.

    At the launch, me like most of you, only need the basic Sport model because, like me you *will*, “no doubt about it” as my Canadian cousin says, want to upgrade to the 2nd Gen in 12-24 months time.

    I also don’t like the way the sport band fastens on the inside, instead of the outside – I like it tight and feel it might irritate me. I’ve not seen any posts where people have said “but there will be alternatives once the ‘strap producers’ get into the action.

    I’ve just seen a post on another site showing pictures of 5 or 6 variants by just one strap maker – a couple of nice looking alternatives, all for under $99. Give it 3-6 months and you will have a choice of, if not thousands, certainly hundreds of 3rd party straps to choose from. I also predict that the Strap attaching mechanism will not change over the next 2 Gens so any investment you make on a strap will carry over to the next gen, as a watch any smaller than the launch 38/42 would be impractical, besides useless.

    I’m buying the Sport model in either silver or black once I’ve seen the 2 in real life. Like the Space Black but unsure if it will scratch/score easily as I just have this knack of injuring watches against walls, hard surfaces, no matter how hard I try to not! *clumsy*

    The  Watch for me on a 9 to 5 basis, (as I predict, most of you) will be about receiving all the alerts, messages, emails and calls I need to know about, and sensoring all the data I require (ie, health and sport data)…. after 5 it’s a different matter…

    If I’m going out to dinner or party, etc, I will slip off my cheap, disposable  Watch and slip on my timeless Rolex analogue (bought for $1,000 on my 30th birthday, more than 20 years ago).. a $10,000 gold  Watch Edition will be *outdated* in 12-24 months – never mind 20.

    .. no pings, no rings, just me and my dinner date…

  6. 18 hrs battery life and screen sleeping is a concern that Apple are aware of, we don’t expect this product to enjoy the usual success Apple achieves.

Author

Avatar for Zac Hall Zac Hall

Zac covers Apple news, hosts the 9to5Mac Happy Hour podcast, and created SpaceExplored.com.