Over the past fifteen years, I’ve seen certain commenters pick the same fight literally every time Apple releases another device: “are accessories really needed for _____?” Fill the blank in with “iPod,” “iPhone,” “iPad,” “Apple TV,” or “Apple Watch” and you’ll see how the answer has eventually turned out to be “yes” every time. Even though I’ve tested virtually every type of Apple accessory out there, I couldn’t help but shake my head when companies first announced cases for the Apple TV’s remote control. Crazy, right? But there were eventually behind-TV mounts, Bluetooth keyboards, and universal remote controls that became truly handy for even Apple’s least-accessorized device.
Now the Apple Watch is coming, and despite Apple’s focus on its purely aesthetic customizability — including welcoming third-party band makers to the party — the “is this necessary?” comments are appearing again. “Nothing like a faux carbon fiber decal on your watch to convey your sense of good taste,” said one commenter, who separately opined that “every protective product listed here is the modern day equivalent of plastic-covered furniture.” To be honest, I personally agree with the first sentiment, but I’m not the target market for stickers. And I can still remember some people describing iPhone cases as plastic-wrapped furniture, back before Apple started selling them, too. So who’s actually right here, a handful of anonymous commenters acting as arbiters of universal style, or consumers looking to have fun customizing their new toys to their personal tastes?…
Why you might want an Apple Watch band accessory. Apple has explicitly embraced two types of accessories (thus far) for the Apple Watch: bands and chargers. Each has obvious appeal: if you want to change the way your Watch looks, swapping the band is the easiest (but perhaps not the least expensive) option. And if you want to keep the Watch working after its first day of use, you’re going to need a charger. Both come with the Apple Watch, but Apple’s actively selling additional ones.
If I had to guess what percentage of the watch-wearing population currently changed watch bands with any frequency, the number would be far less than 1%. But Apple went out of its way to make band-swapping easy, quite possibly to accommodate sweaty workouts. Early reviews suggested that the heart rate sensor won’t work reliably with loose-fitting bands, so swapping bands might well become the norm for athletic Apple Watch users. We’re already seeing a ton (seriously, stop launching Kickstarters already) of traditional watch band adapters for the Apple Watch. It’s clear that Apple Watch bands are going to be a thing.
In the near future, smart bands with electronic features will be, too. I’m not going to tell you that I have great confidence in the first crop of combination watch bands and battery chargers that have been announced. My prediction is that most of them are going to be significantly delayed, trainwreck-quality bad, or both. But the Watch’s need for a band with additional power is patently obvious — so much so that Apple actually patented flexible, wristwatch-ready batteries back in late 2011. It’s only a matter of time until someone, possibly Apple, does this right. And Pebble Time developers will be working on this and other smart straps in the meanwhile.
Why you might want an Apple Watch dock. Every Apple Watch comes with one of Apple’s official Magnetic Charging Cables. The charger attaches to the back of the Watch, which then sits on a table, a point that some reviewers noted was less than ideal. Docks capture the Magnetic Charging Cable and convert it into a stand that looks nice while keeping the Watch from scuffing. Early options I’ve seen are actually pretty cool-looking — frankly a lot better than most of the watch band hacks that have been announced. And Apple is already making its own docks for Edition customers and its retail stores, an official acknowledgement of the category’s value. After a second band, a stand would be my next major purchase.
Why you might want Bluetooth headphones or speakers for your Apple Watch. Even if you already have headphones or speakers for your iPhone, you might not have wireless ones. Since the Apple Watch doesn’t have headphone or Lightning ports, Bluetooth is the key way to listen to music. There are plenty of Bluetooth headphone models out there — I’m personally a fan of Plantronics’ BackBeat Go 2 — and an insane number of Bluetooth speakers to choose from, such as Bose’s SoundLink Mini. My guess is that a lot of people will quickly understand the value of wireless headphones for workouts, and spare speakers for offices.
Why you might want an Apple Watch screen protector, case, or sticker. Here’s where the accessorizing becomes contentious. Some people just hate these things, no matter what Apple device we’re talking about. The logic is simple: Jony Ive and team make beautiful things, and protectors cover them up. But after finding that nearly 80% of iPhone users use cases, Apple started selling them (and many of its own cases have been pretty mediocre). It also shipped rubbery iPad cases on day one, and has been selling them for years. I personally can’t imagine putting a case on my own personal watch now, but that’s just me. People have used Swatch and Casio protectors for decades.
If you’re buying a steel Apple Watch or gold Apple Watch Edition, you probably wouldn’t even consider wrapping it in something else, unless that something else is another, more precious material. Both of these models have sapphire screens that should be very resilient, and hopefully Apple’s Mordor-forged metals will stand up well to the sorts of things that just happen to watches — accidental bumps against door frames, brushes against desks, and so on. The difference in materials is basically Apple saying that if you spend $549 or more for your Watch, it’s pretty much good to go. (Except in the pool or ocean. You might want a waterproof case for that.)
But most of Apple’s orders were probably for the less expensive Sport versions of the Watch. Their faces are protected with glass rather than sapphire, and their bodies are made from aluminum, like the iPods, iPhones, and iPads people have been scratching and denting for years. Buyers of these Apple Watches have more reason to cover up their Watches, either for protective or cosmetic reasons. I personally think that faux carbon fiber stickers (worse yet, gold carbon fiber stickers) are ridiculous, and wouldn’t wrap them around an Apple Watch. However, adults and kids with varied fashion sensibilities will wear $349 Apple Watches. Some may want to keep their Watches scratch-free for resale when the second-generation model comes out. The stickers, screen protectors, and cases spotlighted by my colleague Jordan Kahn are a cheap way to do this.
Why you might not want any of these things. You’re a purist. You love when Apple’s executives show off their completely bare devices, suggesting cases aren’t needed. You feel it’s only right to use and show off those products just as Apple’s web site hero shots display them. I get it. Everyone else gets it: you really love unadorned Apple products.
But if not for common decency, then for the way your jabs will look when 80% of other users disagree with you, please don’t pooh-pooh people who feel otherwise. Enjoy your Apple Watch, and let other people do the same. How someone else accessorizes a device doesn’t really matter… does it?
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Jeremy, great article. It shows a view point for the types people who might need the accessories.
I am one of the people who knocked the cases shown in yesterday’s article. Since then, I have now learned that, yes, a builder or landscaper might need them when they’re working. That had not crossed my mind. Thank you to those who educated me on that.
What I do have an issue with is (a) the design of them, and (b) the people who think they need them. Whether it’s a phone cover, or a Watch cover, most of the cheap ones are tasteless colours with chunky exteriors. I see people who work in offices who have phone covers that could survive a drop down an elevator shaft. I suspect this may happen for some users of the Watch too. Is it really necessary?
Probably not.
But hey if it makes people happy to protect their devices, let them have it. For those that do want a cover on their watch, it just helps if the designers of these covers understand form is as important as function. At least, that’s my opinion.
Again, great article.
There’s definitely value in questioning the need for some of these things. Choosing not to mock the whole category doesn’t mean you have to become accepting of poorly-made or badly-designed examples within that category.
We still want to be discerning consumers, and there is a LOT of crap out there. A critical eye is a good thing.
One person’s gold watch is another person’s gawdy crap. It’s great to have opinions and “a critical eye,” but when it comes to fashion, all bets are off.
An opinion heartily enforced by my initial post below. How many of those examples are you guilty of Jeremy? Nevertheless, critique is helpful from the point of view that discussion helps expose alternatives, we simply don’t need to be pricks about it.
Not sure which examples you’re asking about, but it would be great if there was actually some intellectual merit in such discussions. Too often the comments sections for new accessories look like a small group of dogs marking their territory by pissing on every post they walk by.
While we’re at it, let’s extend this line of thinking to selfie sticks, Nickelback and Avril Lavigne… or better yet, let’s extend it to thick-framed glasses and nerdy sweaters. If we can’t universally stop the playground shaming, then maybe the message we’re sending is that people’s individual tastes are worthy of mockery.
Shaming everyone into behaving the same way, or valuing the same things is a kind of fear-based tribalism. Are we so worried that our tribe will go extinct, that we need to bully others into echoing the same sentiments?
I’ll judge. You can’t stop me. I live for today. Accessories for the Apple Watch are stupid. Only a complete moron would spend their company’s resources developing accessories for a watch. Did they make accessories for Rolex? No. I didn’t think so. You can’t stop me. I’m on fire!
The cases ARE stupid and they ARE the modern day equivalent of plastic covered furniture. But I get that your trying to support and rationalize those obviously sponsored accessory posts that show up in your news feed everyday.
Way to prove my point. Thanks!
Just wait until you fall on a bicycle or skateboard and smash your watch against pavement. You could just as easily smash it against a desk. In the real world stuff happens. It only takes once to put a dent in a wonderful wearable. I have a very expensive Dunhill stainless watch with a 3 dimensional sapphire crystal. It was a stunning timepiece but I was hard on it since it was my every day watch. It has scratches galore. I bought a cover for my Apple watch. I may not have it on every day but when I know I am going to ride my chainless bike, I’ll likely put it on assuming it’s an easy task. As a matter of fact, I bought 2 Apple watch covers; one because I think it will protect it and the second because I thought it looked cool while hopefully offering some protection. If they don’t work, it’s only $50.
You use a case on your watch? Or a screen protector?
You, sir, are an idiot!
It’s not even in your pocket! Or is handled. It’s strapped to your wrist! And it’s made of metal! And it’s meant to be used!
I disagree. I think everyone should have a first cover to product the watch from impacts and scratches. And then we need a second cover placed over the first that gives our watches a distinct look and feel. And then I think we should add flair to the second cover to show off our personalities. And then we should take selfies with our covers and our flairs and put them on our personal Geocities websites to show how smart we are that we can build our own websites. And then we should include links to these pictures in our electronic resumes that we send to employers so they can get an idea of our personalities, styles, and tastes.
If only someone design a dock which had a head that could be tilted (within a certain range, and had a locking mechanism) as opposed to being fixed. A fixed head makes them less useful, and customizable.
I don’t think so, you’re not supposed to use, or view the screen of your watch while it charges.
What do you mean I’m not “supposed to?” It’s my watch, I will use it how I please, thanks – especially considering it’s a “personal device.” Some people would like the ability to see what time it is on their watch and use alarm functions to wake up I would imagine – not everyone likes to use Siri, at least not all the time – like if I’m in bed with someone and they are already asleep and I have to set an alarm I don’t want to wake them by yelling commands to my watch because the angle and height of the charging stand make actually using it impractical.
Errrm yeah but devices still have intended means of use. You can use your phone as a shovel but your not supposed to, and as such, it won’t work very well afterwards.
To clarify what I meant, the watch doesn’t receive notifications while not on your wrist so you’re not going to be looking at it constantly while it’s charging. I would argue that your phone would be a better alarm, with a larger screen to hit when you are woken, but your call…
Whine, whine, whine…
I’m just joking. Thanks to cjt3007’s post, I just realized that there are no docks that have tilting heads. So maybe by tomorrow, someone will announce one, and then not give cjt3007 any credit for recognizing the disparity.
My hearing aids are Bluetooth compatible. Can’t wait to try them with my phone.
What did you say?