Apple Watch

Earlier this year, reports began to suggest that Apple would launch the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus in an additional color beyond the Space Gray, Silver, and Gold options that have been available in the popular iPhone 6 and iPhone 5s. Since then, there have been conflicting rumors regarding Apple’s color choice: some (including the Wall Street Journal) have claimed that the new iPhones would come in “pink,” while some analysts have referred to the color as “Rose Gold” (the discrepancy could be attributed to the similarity between colors). Today, our sources have confirmed that the new iPhones will actually come in a color that is unmistakably Rose Gold in both appearance and name…

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A lot of Apple Watch owners who splashed out on a nice charging stand must have been swearing at Apple when watchOS 2 was announced. Most existing charging stands out there position the watch vertically, which was the obvious thing to do at the time – but then along came watchOS 2, with Nightstand mode one of its headline features.

Nightstand mode allows the watch to serve as a bedside clock while charging – but only when on its side, with the buttons on top. Bad news for anyone who already laid out the cash for a vertical stand, and worse news for manufacturers whose stock was effectively rendered obsolete overnight.

For those who haven’t yet bought a stand, the good news is that manufacturers have been quick to respond. Zac Hall reviewed Spigen’s low-cost Apple Watch Night Stand, and now FŪZ Designs has launched a similarly-priced alternative in the form of the FŪZ Dock for Apple Watch … 
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Email apps are dime-a-dozen these days, and every single one claims it brings some incredible new tool to the table that will change the way you do email forever. Usually this just means you can attach images from Dropbox or some other otherwise unremarkable feature.

Geronimo is the latest in a long line of email clients for the iPhone, but unlike many others, it actually does manage to introduce a new management paradigm to the decades-old communication platform. Keep reading for details on its creative new inbox view and gesture-based management message management system.

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Apple is preparing to bring some motion from the Apple Watch to the iPhone 6S. One of the new device’s differentiators over its predecessor will likely be a spiced up set of animated wallpapers, according to three sources who have used internal iPhone 6S prototypes within Apple. The new animated wallpapers come from the same family as the set of “Motion” watch faces that dominate the main screen of the Apple Watch, where the user can choose from jellyfish, multi-colored butterflies, or brightly colored flowers.

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Because Apple won’t report official Apple Watch sales numbers, we have to rely on analyst estimates to get an understanding of how well the Watch is faring with consumers. New numbers out of IDC push sales estimates upward somewhat, suggesting sales of 3.6 million units from April to June. In general, analyst consensus for Apple Watch sales is around 3 million units.

According to IDC, 3.6 million units shipped makes up 20% of the overall wearable market for the same period. Apple currently sits just behind Fitbit in sales volume, which shipped 4.4 million wearable devices. Due to the drastic difference in average selling price between models of Apple Watch and other wearables however, Apple is highly likely to be far ahead in terms of profits.

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Griffin today has taken the wraps off a pair of new cases for Apple Watch, the company’s first venture into the Watch case market. The company touts that the two cases, dubbed the Survivor Tactical Case and Ultra Thin Case, are slim and stylish, while still offering an added layer of protection to your Apple Watch.

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Another week in the world of Apple and it looks like Tim Cook may have violated some important SEC regulations. Along with that, there has been major demand for Apple Watch, but not where you’d expect it. Oh, and remember Bendgate? Looks like it won’t affect the iPhone 6S. The Happy Hour podcast is available for download on iTunes and through our dedicated RSS feed.

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As anyone who knows me or follows me on Twitter will tell you, I’ve been openly critical of the Apple Watch and the entire concept of smartwatches for a long time now. Most people have responded with an attitude of “don’t knock it until you try it,” which I suppose is a fair attitude to have. The problem was that I had no plans to spend over $300 (or $1,000 for the model I really liked) to try an Apple Watch.

Recently, however, an opportunity arose to try the watch out for a while. I was offered a loaner watch to test out an app that I was covering. I accepted the offer and spent about a week with it, wearing it full-time and using it for everything I could (including, of course, using the app that I was testing whenever I could). Earlier this year my colleague Ben Lovejoy had been convinced to keep his after using it for a week.

Could I be convinced that the watch was, in fact, a convenient and useful gadget to have in the same amount of time? I went into this week with an open mind to find out.

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The results of a Wristly survey published today reveal a new look at Apple Watch behavior among early adopters and adds some insight into how many Apple Music users plan to subscribe after the 3-month free trial. The survey is the latest in a continuing series and captures responses from more than 1,300 people, Wristly says, marking its largest pool of participants yet. In it, Wristly shows what apps Apple Watch users are using most often, what type of apps they enjoy most on their wrist, plus how many participants also own an Apple TV. Also interesting is the crossover between Apple Watch users and interest in Apple Music.
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While Apple has been mostly mum on the numbers behind Apple Watch sales so far, Best Buy is standing behind the iPhone maker’s general message that the Apple Watch has been a hit with customers. The electronics retailer started selling Apple Watches this month in select stores, first in the United States and later in Canada, and today Best Buy’s CEO Hubert Joly said Apple Watch demand has been “so strong” both online and in stores as the retailer plans to carry the smartwatch at even more locations.
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In her latest video to retail store employees, Apple Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts discusses upcoming deeper integration of business sales across Apple Retail Stores as well as new back to school sales tactics for the Apple Watch. Currently, sales to small and medium-sized businesses via Apple Stores are mostly handled by a small group of specialized employees. Ahrendts says that she wants all employees to “own” business sales in order to provide a better experience to business customers.

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Like a lot of 9to5Mac readers, I’m generally a purist when it comes to matching Apple hardware with accessories: I prefer iPhones and iPads without cases unless using one of Apple’s iPhone 6 Leather Cases or iPad Air Smart Covers and I can’t resist their overpriced Lightning Docks. If Apple made an Apple Watch Charging Stand, I’d be tempted to toss my Spigen Nightstand in a drawer in favor of the official solution.

And while I own both the Classic Buckle and Milanese Loop Apple Watch bands, I wear the simpler black Sport band on most days aside from a nice dinner or more formal occasion. Both are fine bands, but Classic Buckle can feel a bit too dressy with a t-shirt and shorts and Milanese Loop isn’t as comfortable as the other bands. For myself, I’ve found that there’s a space in between completely casual and totally formal for Apple Watch bands. Pad & Quill’s Classic Apple Watch Band takes a more traditional strap approach than even Apple’s Classic Buckle and fits this space, with four leather color options and two metal finishes that match stainless steel Apple Watches or Space Gray/Space Black Apple Watches.

I’ve been eager to try the Classic Apple Watch Band since Pad & Quill began transitioning their expertise in fine leather bag and case making toward prototyping Apple Watch bands a few months ago. After finally getting my hands on a Whiskey-colored American leather version, I’ve settled on a few first impressions on what is now my first favorite third-party Apple Watch band. Read on for details:

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Last week, Europe-based news website letemsvetemapplem.eu reported that Apple is preparing “Smart Bands” to add additional health tracking sensors to the current-generation Apple Watch. The article went on to say that Apple would release the bands starting next year instead of refreshing the Apple Watch’s core hardware, with speculation that Apple does not believe people will upgrade their Watches annually like iPhones. Based on discussions with our sources, we do not believe this report to be entirely true.

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Swatch, apparently threatened by Apple’s recent forays into watchmaking, has taken another legal step seemingly aimed at tweaking Cupertino: registration of two “One More Thing” trademarks, a catch phrase famously associated with former Apple CEO Steve Jobs’ keynote speeches.
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We are just weeks away from the launch of the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, Apple’s newest addition to the iPhone lineup, but the fate of the iPhone 5c successor, a new 4-inch iPhone dubbed by the rumor mill as the ‘iPhone 6c’, remains unclear.

When Apple upped the screen sizes last year, it did not offer an update to the iPhone 5c. This has led much speculation that Apple was saving an update for the 4-inch iPhone to next year to allow the big screened iPhone 6 take the limelight. Since then, there have been many conflicting reports over the release of Apple’s next 4-inch iPhone. A Chinese media report indicates that Apple will actually release a smaller iPhone 6c in November.

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Apple has long been known to extravagantly deck out its own retail stores with eye-catching window displays featuring flagship products at key times, and unsurprisingly it’s treating the 24 window displays that wrap around Selfridges’ high-end retail store in London just the same. Profiled today by Wallpaper.com, the massive display of detailed floral shots easily catches the attention of window shoppers to advertise the Apple Watch. The profile also shows previous themes used by Apple to advertise the Apple Watch’s availability at the high-end retailer and includes some interesting details about the display as well:
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Apple Watch comes with Apple Maps, which allows you to find your current location, pan and zoom around on the area, search the map, get information about a location, call a location, get directions, and more. One of the benefits of having Maps on the watch is that it allows you to get directions without needing to pull out your iPhone, especially if you happen to be lost or in a sketchy neighborhood. In this how-to article, we will discuss how to use Apple Maps on the Apple Watch.

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A nice update is awaiting 1Password users on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch today as the password management app has enhanced a few key parts of the experience. On the iPhone 5s and later plus iPad min 3/iPad Air 2, 1Password’s login screen now features a Touch ID button under the Master Password field so you can choose to sign in using your finger print even if you accidentally hit cancel on the first request. Tapping the fingerprint button prompts the system Touch ID unlock screen.

Also useful for Touch ID users on iOS is an improvement to how the app can stay unlocked between uses in different apps. Previously 1Password’s extension in other apps required being unlocked by password, passcode, or Touch ID each time, but now the 1Password extension and 1Password app share the same unlock time limits. This makes relying on 1Password to enter passwords in the many of supported apps including Safari a faster experience if security is a lower priority.

Finally, 1Password has enhanced its Apple Watch app with the usual bug fixes that give you a better experience, and credit cards saved to the Apple Watch app now include the important PIN codes that 1Password can save. 1Password’s Apple Watch app lets you selectively sync important passwords to the app with an optional added passcode over the app. You can find the full release notes below:
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Following Apple’s decision to make the Apple Watch available for sale in Best Buy in the U.S. and Canada, it has been making a similar move in other countries. It is already available through select branches of the Australian department store chain MYER, and iPhone Addict reports that it will go on sale through French electronics retailer FNAC as of tomorrow. More chains are likely to follow in other countries.

MYER has an extensive presence across Australia, though currently sells the Apple Watch at only four of the largest ones, in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. FNAC has more than 100 stores throughout France, sales beginning tomorrow with the website and the company’s flagship store on Paris’s famous Champs Elysées, with other stores following at some point next week. The store already sells a range of accessories … 
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