BULLETIN – Apple is hosting an Important Media Event March 9th, 2015 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco. This event will make its Formal Presentation of the final features, pricing, and other interesting details for its New Apple Watch, Launching April, 2015, perhaps a bit sooner.
Apple’s March 9th Media Event could signal that the Apple Watch may be RELEASED sooner than later, perhaps earlier in April, like April 3rd, the first FRIDAY in April. It may also signal that the Apple Watch may be available for on-line purchase, perhaps Thursday Match 19th or sooner.
Apple is the Master of Marketing. We know this. Besides the event being named “Spring Forward” the very next day when we all advanced our “Watches one hour Forward,” the Spring Forward term recited in Apple’s formal invitation sent Today to the Media clan. Apple will go over all the details about how the iWatch works, that were not covered at its initial announcement 4 months ago, following the September Announcement of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Apple first introduced the Apple Watch September, 2014, Apple delivered to us a “high-level” comprehensive overview at what the product will be able to do to improve our lives. We remain uninformed about many of the specifics like battery life, pricing for the high-end and the other two-tiers of models.
Apple’s March 9th Media Event will undoubtedly describe how we will be able to use this new Wearable Companion product, the iWatch. Plus Apple will described iWatch Configuration App, loaded into your iPhone via the release of iOS 8.3, that delivers a unique Pathway App {transferring information and configurations from your iPhone directly to your iWatch} utilizing a menu-driven system to Transfer all your Watch Desires and Settings seamlessly into your iWatch.
Apples March 9th Media Event will provide Live-Streamed Video to all Apple folks or anyone that has the Safari browser on their PC computer systems, the hardware-criteria that Apple has used for us to qualify for the Live-Streaming Broadcasts. In My Humble Opinion, Apple will open this live Media Event to the hundreds of millions of iPhone users, many of which are iWatch interested.
Apple’s Live Streaming of Spring Forward Media Event will be published on our web-site once the URL is made available soon – check back here for the LINK.
———————– Previously Reported ————————
Apple weeks ago commenced production of 6 Million Apple Watch Units representing its Initial Quarterly Order.
Apple projects internally sales of 24 million iWatches in the first fiscal-year of sales beginning April, 2015, as stated in news reports, which Apple has not confirmed. Several other analysts project 36 million Apple Watches and more, in the first fiscal-year of sales.
Apple in my opinion, is likely not in a hurry for an early April release date, as Apple surely wants to “iron out all the wrinkles” associated with a new-product release; however, maintain an “April Release” as published. Also when considering the Apple Watch release date, towards the end of April, Apple holds its Quarterly Financial report at 5pm following the 4pm public filing of Apple’s 2015 Q2.
Apple Watch is the only NEW product-release, since the unveiling of the iPad at a Press-Event held January 27, 2010 and subsequently released on April 30, 2010 with built-in Cellular+WiFi connectivity, two weeks earlier the WiFi iPad was available to the public.
CEO, Tim Cook surely desires to hold the Apple Watch high in the air, with all of the software, hardware, App, and iOS system issues rendered as glitch-free as possible. If Apple needs a week or more to polish the edges, the Apple Watch may be released to the Public towards the end of April, like on Friday 24th.
Apple Watch early adopters, the Apple Loyalists, must be Impressed with this unique Wearable iWatch, its Easy set-up, Ease of use, Battery life, Connectivity to everything iPhone/iPad. If accomplished, the major issues the media-critics have been whining about, mostly focused on its battery life, should be silenced early on.
Emergence of early issues may severely hamper accelerated adoption by the folks; Except, yours truly as I’ll be literally on line early morning, at Apple’s Retail Store at the Boca Raton Town Center Mall. Presently I’m focusing on the Apple Watch mid-tier model, the Dark Stainless Steel Bracelet or the Milanese Loop
Unless you’ve just returned from a extended vacation on planet SATURN, you may know the Apple Watch is coming very soon. iWatch is scheduled to be released in April, 2015. April 3rd, is the earliest Friday in April, only 36 days from today, February 26th. Many have asked us, will there be a Pre-Release Media event, (say Tuesday March 24th) 9 days before THE Release of iWatch Inventory to Apple’s retail stores? News reports have been accelerating as the release date becomes closer to realty. The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Bloomfield and other journalists, have been discussed the new Apple Watch line-up.
Uncommon with a NEW Apple product release are the hoards of media-critics, claiming the uselessness of this new product. The Apple Watch is a unique New Product, as compared to a new Iteration of an existing product, like iPhone 5 to iPhone 6.
Historically, the Original iPhone was announced at Apple’s Maxworld Expo held January 9, 2007 annual event the media soon after slammed Apple for getting into a venue (cellular phones) it knew absolutely nothing about, considering there was already a very crowded field of experienced Mobile Phones makers.
The Same choir of critics reported that Apple’s NEW iPad was “nothing new and if Apple’s lucky, maybe 6 million units would be sold” in its first year. Since the initial iPhone in 2007 there have been over a Billion iOS devices sold and in circulation, half of which are iPhones, Apple selling into a very crowded field of smartphone makers.
Recent articles discussing Apple’s iWatch endeavor has given me motivation to take harder look towards generating some reasonable expectations that we formulated for the three-tiered AppleWatch lineup; We’re assuming Apple will fabricate and sell 24 million iWatches for the initial 12 month sales period, plus Apple’s disclosure of the $350 Sports Watch entry-price point.
All the statistics have been projected by us internally, with no knowledge of what Apple has actually projected. Several facts have been released to the public that we’ve used in our presentation: (1) there will be a 3-tiered iWatch model lineup, (2) the Sports Watch will retail for $350, and (3) all else is our conjecture.
Apple Watch Economic Model. The statistical-chart below displays what we believe are “realistic” sales goals, perhaps conservatively, with price-traunches for the three tiered line-up, Sports, Apple Watch, Apple Edition, metaled Aluminum Alloy, Stainless Steel, and 18k Gold respectively.
iWatch [Gold] Edition is the top-tier version of the AppleWatch. Its been estimated that the Edition Apple Watch may retail for an estimated $4500. Sounds like a lot of money. Although Apple chose to leave the word “Gold” out of the Top Tier Title, Apple Edition, gold is in fact the watch-body metal; Note, presently Gold’s raw-material cost is hovering around $1200 per troy ounce, gold watches are “pricey” regardless of who designs and makes them, irrespective of the internal electronics package or electro-mechanical movement.
Apply is now Buying massive quantities of 24k Gold bullion, but that’s just the beginning. Roughly 14.46 Million troy ounces of 24k Gold bullion that are purchased by Apple per year (assuming our guesstimates are close) must be Certified by Apple Metallurgists when delivered, for elemental AU Purity and Weight. These two steps are very complex and require significant Oversight by agents of the bullion-supplier and Apple. Dealing with the payments and receipts of $18 Billion as Apple pays for the gold bullion is quite complex.
Post Certification of Millions of Pounds of Gold Bullion, it passes to the secure Fabrication Plant, carefully measured batches of the Bullion are heated to 2,000ºF in special Gold Furnaces, then Apple Metallurgists mix the molten gold with other specially purified metal ingredients resulting in several unique specialty 18k Gold formulations, then poured into Apple Watch cast-forms, cooled, then the iWatch Gold-Blanks are removed from the forms and inspected, those that pass through quality control are machined and polished, for further assembly. The gold-blanks that are rejected, and foundry castings are not 100%, go back to the Furnaces to be repoured.
This scenario is highly simplified, but gives you a notion of the complexity of the process. As about $18 Billion of gold bullion is involved, significant added costs are incurred for Plant Security, armed security guards, “security watching the valuables and each other, throughout all these processes.
Apple is processing this gold presently in effort for their April 2015 release to their retail stores for sale. Apple is also presently installing into the Common Carriers, Apple Distribution Centers, and Apple Retail Stores, specially designed VAULTS and ALARM Systems to protect the Apple Watch Boxed Inventory.
Apple Watch Edition, Lets take the iWatch apart piece-by-piece, financially speaking. Let’s assume that the Edition Watch may contain 37.5gm of 24k Gold and the Apple Watch electronics module is the same module used universally with all three of the AppleWatch tiers.
Apple Watch Financial Array. The bullet-points below display the cost analysis for the Apple Watch [gold] Edition, all Edition iWatches are gold cased watches.
Current Spot-Gold price. Assuming the iWatch pure-gold content is 37.5gm of gold watch-case (our guesstimate) when formulated to 18k gold metal-alloy. If Apple’s Gold Alloy procedure starts with 37.5gm of 24k Gold, as 24k gold metal is fabricated into 18k Gold by adding presumably precise amounts of Silver, Copper and Zinc, therefore watch-case (without internals) would then weigh 50gm, due to the additional 12.5gm of Apple’s unique mix of metals, blended in its Alloy-Furnaces. FYI, currently (as of 2/27/2015) spot-gold is hovering between $1204 to $1219 per troy ounce. Recall the under-side of the iWatch is stainless-steel which seals the watch-cased Computer module, Lithium Polymer battery, and houses 4 biometric sensor components.
Apple with its team of the best Metallurgists on the planet, have developed several unique 18k Gold formulations that delivers 18k Gold Alloys with custom Colors offering greater Gold hardness and durability unique to Apple. Typically 18k Gold is “softer” making it more prone to scratching and scuffing, showing greater signs of wear, than with traditional 14k Gold alloy formulations.
The Most Common 18k Gold Colors and Formulations are Displayed in this article with graphics and charts showing. The common alloys of elemental Gold, Silver, Copper, and Zinc in various levels of concentrations. Notice in the 12 Gold Colors Chart, Yellow Gold contains Gold, Silver, Copper, and Zinc with Gold representing 75% of the Alloy. To produce Rose colored Gold, the formulation contains only three elements: Gold, Silver, and Copper, removing Zinc. It will be very interesting to know the precise Formulation of Elements Apple’s team of metallurgists have chosen to create its unique Colors and Hardness, never seen before in the Gold Industry.
Apple is Reinventing the Watch. One should not be surprised that when Apple committed to a Watch-Wearable product, again Apple is REINVENTING the business of Gold Wearable Watches. From the images that Apple has displayed, and as presented in this article, Apple has created several striking 18k Gold Colors never seen in the industry. My bet is the brilliance of the gold colors is not simply a photoshop magic act, their unique Gold colors will be even more striking up close and personal, when the buying public visualized the Apple Watch in their Retail Stores.
As a reference, a typical ROLEX watch and bracelet uses 150gm of Gold; however, the gold is contained in the base Watch plus its hefty Bracelet. The Rolex bracelet accounts for a significant portion of the total gold metal package.
Apple Watch Computer module $200, the same module in all Apple Watches
Apple Watch Edition’s gold uses 37.5gm 24k Gold valued at $1500 for an 18k Gold formulation, presently spot-gold is $1205/gm [math: (37.5/31.1) x $1205 = $1500 the cost of the gold component]
Apple Watch Form, Jewlers add “Form” value to the price of its jewelry creations, say $2300
Apple Edition Band, say $500
Apple Watch Edition retail price = $4500 (math: $200 + $1500 + $150 + $2300 + $500)
Specifically, people in the supply-line familiar with this topic claim Apple has commenced production of about 6 million Apple Watches many weeks ago, for the iWatch’s first quarterly production-run; just over half of the production is earmarked for the Sport model, with a third of the production-run allocated for the middle-segment stainless-steel Apple Watch, with the balance is the Top-Tier Edition production, about 10% for the Apple Watch [Gold] Edition models.
Apple Watch Edition impact on Global Gold Supply. One more thing, lets have some fun in determining what Apple Watch Edition sales may have on the World’s supply for gold. Here are some givens to consider
Apple Watch facts and conversion factors: there are 31.1gm in 1.00 Troy Ounce, there are 32,150.75 Troy ounces in one Metric Ton, Global production of Gold is 2500 Metric Tons annually, spot-gold price currently hovering around $1205 per troy ounce
Apple is currently produce 500,000 gold Edition Apple Watch units as its initial quarterly production-run
Apple Watch Edition ramps up production to 1 million Apple Watch units monthly [or more] as demand dictates
Apple Watch Edition requires 37.5gm of pure 24k Gold for each iWatch, guesstimated
Apple Watch Edition utilized 1.2058 Troy ounces of Gold per Apple Watch Edition, extrapolation of a guesstimate
Apple Watch Edition will consume 14,469,453 troy ounces of Gold in its First fiscal Year of production, equating to 450 Metric Tons of 24k Gold/Yr, which equates to over 5x Rolex’s current Gold consumption
Apple will Buy $18.086 Billion per Year for 24k Gold Bullion to built its Gold Edition Watches, base on current assumptions and spot-gold prices
Apple Edition Watch Gold will place a New Demand for 20% of the total annual global Gold production
Reference #1. Rolex sells $4.7 billion in gold watches yearly, from an estimated 600,000 Rolex watch sales. Rolex watches average 150gm or 4.82 troy ounces of Gold per watch, equating to 2.894 million troy ounces, or 90 Metric Tons Gold/annually
Reference #2. Federal Reserve Bank of New York stores on average 7,000 metric tons of Gold Bullion in its Manhattan vault.
By Mid-April, 2015, we are expecting over 50,000 Apple Watch Apps on the AppStore. Currently, for an average iPhone user there are 65 Apps per iPhone. We currently have 418 Apps on my iPhone 6 Plus and 300 Apps on Marilyn’s iPhone 6 Plus. We are estimating that an average Apple Watch may have 75 Apps per Apple Watch. There may likely be no single killer app for Apple Watch when the iWatch is released (other than the iWatch Configuration App) as each user will have their “own set of Killer Apps.” One way to look at this new “Wearable” is that the consumer is getting 75 different devices housed in one Apple Watch. Several Analysts are projecting that Apple may sell over 40 million Apple Watches in 1st the year, which is a very high estimate but not totally out of line with other estimates we’ve heard.
Many of the Apple Watch details are still unconfirmed, typical for Apple product releases, most notably the three-tired segment pricing, Apple Watch may be the revenue growth driver Apple needs for this April-Quarter, typically a relatively modest earnings period.
Apple’s Sports Watch is configured with an satin Aluminum case with a variety of elastomer sports water resistant bands. The Apple Watch is housed in highly polished hardened Stainless Steel with two colors, with a number of elegant bracelets. For the fashion minded, the Apple Watch Edition is encased in a highly polished and hardened Gold case accompanied with appealing bracelets. If our guesstimates are correct, this new Wearable product-line may have significant implications for year-over-year revenue growth at the company.
If the last eight quarterly financial reports are an indication, Apple may benefit handsomely with this mid-year revenue accelerator. The first fiscal-quarter (Apple’s fourth calendar quarter) is where Apple has really outperformed, growing revenue nearly 30% year-over-year.
Led by the newest iterations of its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, most notably Apple smashed all expectations and accordingly propelled the $AAPL stock to all-time highs, with no end in sight. Not to mention that many of the largest Investment Banking firms’ analysts increasing the Target Pricing to $150/share and seemingly other analysts concurring with increased share target pricing.
Apple’s mid-year quarterly performance are generally less impressive then Apple’s first quarter results. And while it is important to note that 5% to 6% year-over-year growth is still amazing for a huge company pushing nearly $200 billion in revenues, with an Apple Watch earnings injection during the seasonally slower quarters should be an additional catalyst for Apple’s stock trading prices.
As you may know, one of the Apple “low” growth quarters is the third fiscal quarter, that typically starts April 1st. With an iWatch April release date expected, the Apple Watch may be most felt during this quarter. Assuming forecasts are close to reality, Apple generally errs on the conservative side with their projections. The Apple Watch may add roughly 16.8% growth to the quarter year-over-year, considering all other product sales factors constant. However, being rather bullish on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, these “slower” seasonal quarters may be “not so slow” as usually expected by the “talking heads.”
The Big Question: Which Watch is for You? With the start of the New Year the specialty Watch Makers like Montblanc, Longines, Baume & Mercier, and others announce and display their new creations to the public.
Watches – Which is Best for You Comparing a robust “mans” chronograph with a modern gold iWatch with a red-band is eye catching, the primary purpose. However, when one acquires Mechanical-Chronographs with Complications in its Face, other than the watch-band, your use and visuals are Fixed. With iWatch other than your choice of the Gold, Stainless, or Aluminum alloy case, all else may be changed including the bands.
With the iWatch, Fixed only applies to your choice of how tall the watch body is, either 38mm or 42mm, and your choice of metal, Gold, Stainless, or Aluminum… all else you may change. The Watch Face may look anyway you desire, with Complications or not, thousands of possibilities, that you may change anytime. Directly under iWatch’s highly polished scratch-proof Sapphire Crystal, is a brilliant OLEM retina touch-display.
iWatch Face may display whatever information you desire, Day, Date, Graphics, Animations, iMessages, eMail, Weather, your next Calendar event, an incoming Call or Text, the position of Planet Earth in its solar system, your Heart rate, your Friend’s Heart Rate, anything or everything you desire, including the local Time. Want the Second-Hand on an analog face, turn it on or off. Want Digital or Analog time display, Want the Day/Date, turn these on or off, as you desire. Bands and Materials may be easily changed, choose from Leather bands, Stainless, Links, Sports elastomer Bands, however your use and venue dictates. Have a sports band for daily use, and have a elegant band for evening wear. You may easily change the iWatch Band, with no tools whatsoever.
iWatch Graphics. These two graphics shows the 42mm and 38mm iWatch faces and an overlay. The 38mm iWatch face graphic has an Overlay (the blue left and bottom edges) highlighting the 42mm iWatch face to show the size comparisons.
iWatch’s Introduction and Demo. Apple announced September 9, 2014 the highly anticipated iPhone 6 at its Major press conference at the Flint Center, Cupertino, California. After completing the iPhone 6 announcement, Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook mentioned just “One more thing…” a famous Steve Jobs saying, and went on to Announce the Apple Watch. This Video Link takes you directly to the iWatch segment of the Program, which announces the iWatch and gives a demonstration of its use and settings. The video is inspirational, as it shows how Apple, the Nation’s Largest Company develops and announces a new innovative reinvention of the Watch, a device that has been with civilization since the year 1530 AD.
Apple Watch certainly is not intended for everyone, neither is the Montblanc, a more limited audience for sure. Lets face it, “old fashioned electro-mechanical” wrist watches have an appeal to more mature affluent audiences, while possess “retro attraction” to the yuppie millennials. However, these classic mechanicals may be 42mm in diameter by 12mm, fragile, relatively expensive, and many amazingly keep terrible time. The iWatch has a 42mm face that rests 12mm on your wrist, and a second iWatch model of 38mm.
Apple Watch embodies many interesting aspects, as under its highly polished Sapphire Crystal is a brilliant OLED very high resolution “retina” touch-screen, that may Display hundreds of possible iWatch Faces. I’m imagining that the iWatch face is a rounded-rectangular shape so that the four-corners may house miniature Informative-Icons, or other Graphic Signals, or not.
Apple Watch’s Display is Strategic, meaning that with careful software graphics capabilities, one may design a “Perpetual Calendar Chronograph” digital iWatch face with unlimited complications, being mindful not to make it too confusing. On the other hand, one may choose an uncluttered iWatch face, or something in between, all user selectable.
🍎⌚️ Apple Engineers Completing iWatch Software. Apple has ceded the 4th beta of its iOS8.2 software today, largely dealing with the iWatch interface and its connectivity with iPhones. Apple is finishing up work on the Apple Watch’s complex iOS operating system software.
🍎⌚️ Sources familiar with iWatch development say the Apple Watch is currently ahead of schedule and on track to ship in the United States in March according to 9to5MAC, who has a very good track record and sources, in predicting product releases. Apple previously stated that the wearable product will ship in “early 2015” certainly not a very precise phrase.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch engineers have been “polishing up” the iWatch iOS operating system and putting the device’s Battery through very extensive testing. Apple engineers have also been “working overtime to improve the inductive charging system necessary for “contact-less” charging-up the device’s internal Lithium Polymer, LiON battery each night.” Tim Cook stated during an October 2014 press event that: “We think you’re going to end up charging the Apple Watch daily. Overnight, that’s what we think.”
iWatch Show-Floor DemoThis link shows an on-floor Apple-Show 5 minute raw employee-demo of the use and settings of the iWatch: http://ift.tt/1qg8K4j .
🍎⌚️ iWatch Survey. Notice the Graph above drawn from the statistics from a recent extensive survey (conducted by finance company Credit Suisse) of current iPhone owners approximately
⌚️ 18% of iPhone Owners will Definitely Buy iWatch
⌚️ 10% of iPhone Owners will Probably Buy iWatch
⌚️ 27% of iPhone Owners will May Buy iWatch
⌚️ 27% of iPhone Owners will Probably Not Buy iWatch
⌚️ 18% of iPhone Owners will Definitely Not Buy iWatch
⌚️ 100% of iPhone Owners that are Considering the Purchase of the iWatch
🍎⌚️ iWatch Survey Extrapolation Assumptions . Lets extrapolate these statistics further. For the 10% of those stating they will Probably Buy, what portion of this group will actually buy, lets estimate that if 1000 people in the Apple Store stated they Probably will buy, lets say 500 of the 1000, about 1/2 of this group, will actually buy the iWatch; Similarly, For the 27% of those stating they will May Buy, what portion of this group will actually buy; lets estimate that if 2700 people in the Apple Store stated they are Maybe Buyers, lets say 700 of the 2700, about 1/4th of this group will actually buy the iWatch.
🍎⌚️ iWatch Survey Extrapolation. Using the logic and assumptions above, lets restate three of the above groups of Likely Buyers, Probable Buyers, and Maybe Buyers, into a Single grouping of what we’ll call “Very Likely” Buyers
⌚️ 18% of iPhone Owners that stated they’d Definitely Buy, will actually Buy iWatch
⌚️ 5% of iPhone Owners that stated they’d Probably Buy, will actually Buy iWatch
⌚️ 7% of iPhone Owners that stated they May Buy, will actually Buy iWatch
⌚️ 30% of iPhone Owners therefore are “Very Likely” Buyers of the iWatch
🍎⌚️ Your Wait for Apple Watch may be over… sooner than you may have thought. According to news reports, Apple Watch iOS version software has been finalized. Apple is preparing a massive training session for Apple Store employees. The Apple Watch wearable device is on track for a March 2015 release timeframe, although no specific date is available. These news reports trim the previous timeline quite a bit. Fairly soon you may see long lines forming outside at an Apple Store in your neighborhood. I witnessed the unruly lines at 2am outside Apple’s Boca Raton store for the iPhone 6 Friday morning release, September 19, 2014.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch wearable device is on track for March, 2015 release, although no more detail on a specific release date is currently known. These news reports trim the timeline, and provide more precision on the iWatch release, then you’ll see the long lines forming at an Apple Store in your neighborhood. Prior to this News, Apple stated an imprecise phrase “Early 2015” as the iWatch release schedule. Another Senior Corporate spokesperson was even more vague stating a “Spring 2015” iWatch release schedule. Take a moment to view these beautifully produced Apple Watch videos.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Production will begin this month, January, 2015, whereas the iWatch was once scheduled to be rolling off Apple contracted lines in February.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Production Orders. Apple has reportedly ordered 24 million iWatches from their contracted supplier, Quanta. In response to this relatively strong initial production order, Quanta has increased its workforce five-fold, increasing it from 2,000 workers to 10,000 workers. It’s expected that Quanta will then double again its workforce to 20,000 as the Apple Watch develops its sales momentum as 2015 progresses.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch 24 million unit Initial Production Order. One may consider a 24 million initial order seemingly aggressive; However, if recent polling is correct, 24 million iWatches may actually on the mark or somewhat conservative. Current polling indicates that about 10% of iPhone users are actually “Very Likely” to buy the Apple Watch; Combine this 10% in the “Very Likely” Group, with an even larger group of iWatch iFolks, that say they are “Somewhat Likely” may increase the total “Likely Buyers Group” by another 5%. If predictive of actual demand, this trend will stress the supply-line for the 24 million iWatch initial production order.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Time will Tell, this high level of predictive demand may give the impression of production constraints, although, having the effect of keeping iWatch stocks flowing out of Apple retail stores, as fast as inventory arrives. Our guess, for the initial 12 months that iWatch is available, there may be some 30 million to 38 million iWatches sold.
🍎⌚️ Think about it. IMHO, Apple “pre Announced” the Apple Watch in September last year for multiple purposes
(🍎) Apple Defines this new product’s concepts early, rather than the rumor-mills and leaks
(🍎🍎) Provides sufficient time for the market-place, the iPhone folks to digest this entirely new product concepts
(🍎🍎🍎) Six months of assimilation, the iWatch pre-announcement to its formal release, gives everyone time to imagine having this unique Wearable, a marketing marvel by Apple.
🍎⌚️ History of 2007 iPhone. Recall Eight years ago, on Jan. 9, 2007, Steve Jobs on stage during Apple’s annual Macworld conference, announced Apple’s very first iPhone. Starting off with the words “We’re gonna make some history today” Apple’s cofounder Steve Jobs tricked the audience by claiming he was going to introduce three new products: an iPod with touch controls, a mobile phone and an Internet communications device, knowing that all three components were built into Apple’s newly Announced iPhone.
🍎⌚️ First iPhone Announcement. Similarly, when the Original iPhone was Announced January 9, 2007, 6 months later its was Release on June 29, 2007. This 6 months duration gave the World, the Market, the Apple Analysts, and Clients an “assimilation” period to digest The New iPhone Concept.
🎬 http://tiny.cc/qe68rx The iWatch presentation given September, 2014 is presently being “assimilated” just as the iPhone was exactly 8 years Ago, January 9, 2007 at its announcement. Presently, Apple has sold more than 530,000,000 iPhones, and is expected to sell some 220,000,000 iPhones this year.
🎬 http://tiny.cc/cd48rx The First iPhone, 8 years ago (21m:15s into the Macworld Keynote speech delivered by Steve Jobs the iPhone is Reinvented).
🎬 http://tiny.cc/zx48rx . The First iPad was Reinvented on April 3, 2010. In sum there are over 750,000,000 iPhones and iPads in circulation, by year-end 1,000,000,000 iDevices enhancing peoples lives.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch 24 million Production Schedule. The News Reports do not specifically outline the reasons for Apple moving iWatch production up; However, there were vague references that “production yield issues” have been resolved. This could be referring to either the LiON Battery, Sapphire Crystal, the Touch Display, or a mix of the three. If the iWatch is as popular as we think it will be, Apple will need as much of a production head-start as they can.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Display. The centerpiece of the Apple Watch is an bright AMOLED display (newly designed for Apple) that is estimated to be more costly than traditional LCD screens Apple uses in its iPhones and iPads, which are not AMOLED displays. According to Taiwan’s Apple Daily, the alleged terms of the Quanta deal limit Quanta from partnering with any competing device makers building wearable electronics. This News Report aligns with earlier rumors suggesting that Quanta had secured “exclusive manufacturing rights” for the Apple Watch, although some reporters are suggesting that Foxconn and Inventec may “muscle their way” into the iWatches’ supply chain.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Associate Training. iWatch training courses will commence February 9th through February 16th. The core training will take place at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters and a satellite office in Austin, Texas. Direct training will be given to one or two representatives from each of the 263 USA Apple Stores. At the completion of the iWatch Training, the Store Associates are then tasked to return to their Apple store, to train the Store sales staff. Apple has currently 444 retail stores operating in 16 countries, including 263 in the USA, plus an online store available in 39 countries.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Training is said to commence in early February; however, the Apple Watch release date is set for March. According to news reports, those who completed Direct Corporate Headquarters training will thereafter be training their Home-Based Apple store staff. This follow-up training will occur in the days just before the Apple Watch release Event. Apparently since Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, told the pre-release iWatch story at the announcement of the iPhone 6 in September, 2014, Apple is not concerned with pre-release leaks from its 30,000 retail store associates.
🍎⌚️ iWatch, Apple Watch is the most personal iDevice ever. Apple’s goal has always been to make powerful technology more accessible, more relevant and ultimately more personal.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch represents a new chapter in the relationship people have with technology. It’s the most personal product Apple has ever made, because it’s the first Apple product to be worn.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch. Apple took a very unusual step in pre-announcing an entirely new Product Category BEFORE it was ready for release. Granted, Apple announces its iPhones, iPads, MacBooks before actual product release; however, for these MAC and iDevices, there was a 7 to 11 day period one waited for delivery of the New product released. In contrast Apple “Announced” the AppleWatch in late September, 2014 concurrently with its iPhone 6 announcement; however, Apple indicated then, that the iWatch would be Available in “early 2015.”
🍎⌚️ Apple will release iWatch in Early 2015. I can imagine Five vocabulary words for defining “when” in 2015 other than mentioning a chosen Calendar Quarter or a particular Month. Apple could have used these Four phrases: Beginning, Early, Middle, Late 2015. Late 2015 could mean November-December 2015, Middle could indicate May-June-July 2015.
🍎⌚️ What does “Early 2015″ tell us? Since Apple chose not to use a particular Month like January 2015, January likely not what Apple had in mind. However, “Early, 2015″ could mean either February, March, or April. Lets Add one more factor. Apple’s reports its financial results on a fiscal basis, where its 1st fiscal Quarter is defined as December 1st through February 28. Since the iPhone 6 is selling strongly, perhaps Apple desires the AppleWatch to make its Sales-Splash beginning in March of 2015 the start of Apple’s 2nd fiscal quarter.
🍎⌚️ Apple – One thing I have learned about Apple… “Apple does everything on purpose, with all aspects thoroughly thought out.”
🍎⌚️ Apple is Driven culturally to deliver. Apple is proud and patient with all product releases by “getting it right” technology-wise, market-wise, and timing-wise, getting most of the bugs out before the public see it, and before its critics see it. Apple may also desire to give its stable of independent developers, some time for iWatch Application (App) Development. Apple may desire the “kick off” the iWatch in its 2nd fiscal quarter of 2015.
🍎⌚️ Apple prefers to release new products on Friday for a Three-Day, Friday-Saturday-Sunday “weekend” sales splash. Looking at our Calendar, February 27, 28, March 1st, is the first weekend containing a March date; however, March 6, 7 and 8 is the first all March Weekend.
🍎⌚️ Apple Factoid to Consider. Apple is somewhat constrained in the fabrication of the Sapphire Crystals used on the WATCH and its WATCH EDITION product lines (the Sports models have hardened glass crystals not sapphire), Apple may be scheduling the Apple Watch in March giving sufficient time to build up a reasonable inventory of all the iWatch models. Its illogical for Apple to create huge anticipation, and not have a reasonable inventory of iWatch models to satisfy its Loyal Following.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch Release Date: March 6, 7, 8, 2015, total conjecture though, as we have NO internal sources whatsoever.
🍎⌚️ Mobile Phones. The iPhone is mentioned in this article, as the adoption of the iWatch may follow the adoption-history of the iPhone. Apple reinvented the mobile phone with their first iPhone in 2007, 30 years after Motorola literally “invented” their very popular, however, expensive Star•TAC 8500XL. I bought this Motorola “Brick” 30 years ago for $4200 in 1985, weighing in at 28oz. I retained it as a souvenir of the times, then the most portable cellular phone.
🍎⌚️ 30 Million to 38 Million iWatch customers may be “voting” with their Wallets in its first 12 months of availability. Lets see how we get to these numbers. Looking at Apple’s iPhone sales history, it showed an adoption rate of 11 million iPhones in its 1st fiscal year (21 million in the 2nd fiscal year, 39 million in year 3, 72 million in year 4, 125 million units sold in the 5th year of the iPhone). Our guess is the adoption rate of the AppleWatch may follow the growth rate history of the iPhone, as both devices (iPhone and iWatch) were totally new Apple products.
🍎⌚️ iPhones are currently selling at 72 million units per quarter, capturing 51.3% of all global smartphone activations, 3 Times that of Samsung’s. With about 469 million iPhones currently in circulation, if 6.5% iPhone users adopt the iWatch, this may yield about 30 million iWatch 1st year sales, then say 60 million 2nd year sales, 120 million 3rd year sales… this are our guesstimates.
🍎⌚️ AppleWatch Likely Buyers. A recent survey by Quartz (QZ.com) shows that about 14% of iPhone Owners who indicated that they are either Very Likely, Likely and Somewhat Likely to buy the new iWatch this year; however, some 86% are not interested in adopting for the iWatch in 2015. The Quartz Survey chart is displayed for your review. Lets use this 14% extrapolation.
🍎⌚️ Apple’s recent Annual Report, iPhone Sales represents about $101.9 Billion in iPhone Sales, for 169.2 Million iPhone unit sales, amounts to an average iPhone sales price of $602.72/unit. If in fact for the first 12 months of iWatch sales, 14% of iPhone owners buy the AppleWatch, then about 23 million iWatches may be purchased.
🍎⌚️ 469,000 iPhones reportedly are in Circulation, remove the 169 million iPhones sold last year, lets consider the remaining 300 million iPhone owners that purchased iPhones in years before 2014. Lets assume just 5% of those remaining iPhone owners buy the iWatch, this would add 15 million of possible iWatch buyers. Combine these two assumptions 23 million + 15 million = 38 million iWatch sales may occur in the first 12 months of AppleWatch sales.
🍎⌚️ Apple’s creation of the iPhone seven years ago, Apple literally reinvented the mobile cellular phone, into a very crowded market; However Apple literally changed the Mobile Phone into a “SmartPhone” weighing in at 6oz and sized at 0.46″x2.4″x4.5″ that continues to be improved and enhanced, today with their iPhone 6 sized at 0.27″x2.6″x5.4″ and 6 Plus sized at 0.28″x3.1″x6.2″.
🍎 Today, January 9th is the 8th Anniversary for the First iPhone. This was a great Day for Apple and an incredible Proud Day for Steve Jobs!
🍎 See the First Look at the iPhone, 8 years ago: <u http://tiny.cc/jsl7rx (21m:50s into the Keynote speech delivered by Steve Jobs as the very First iPhone is Announced).
🍎 iWatch 🍎 Apple Watch – Apple’s Entry into Electronic Wearables
🍎⌚️ Mobile Phones. 22 years after the Motorola 8500XL known as “the Brick”, Apple reinvented the mobile phone with their first iPhone in 2007, which was so much more than a mobile phone, literally a “smartphone” weighing in at 6oz and about 1/4″ thin, 2.5″x0.26″x4.0″ that Apple continues to enhanced with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
🍎⌚️ Apple’s critics reported that Apple has no business getting into the mature field of experienced mobile phone makers.
🍎⌚️ In 7 years Apple has delivered 500,000,000 premium priced iPhones, and are now selling iPhone 6 and 6+ at a pace well over 200,000,000 yearly. Not a typo, Apple is currently selling premium iPhones at a pace of 72 million units reportedly per calendar quarter with a profit margin over 30%. Its been also been reported that, based on actual cellular activations, iPhone 6 models were 51.3% of all global smartphone sales in December, 2014, outselling Samsung 3-to-1. Marilyn and I each own the iPhone 6 Plus and love them.
🍎⌚️ Tablets. Similarly, tablets were available several years before Apple reinvented it with the iPad in 2010. Apple carefully examined how Apple could develop such a device that folks would really want and use. Apple’s critics again reported that Apple was waisting their energies on tablets into such a mature tablet-marketplace, where Apple would be lucky of it could sell 5 million units in a good year.
🍎⌚️ The market place “voted” with their Wallets as iPads are selling at a clip 60 million units yearly with over 250 million in use today. Marilyn has the iPad mini, fits perfectly in here handbag, and I have the iPad Air 2, fits perfectly into my nifty DECODED black leather case.
🍎⌚️ 30,000,000 iWatch sales may “vote” their Wallets in 2015. Looking at Apple’s iPhone sales history, they show an adoption rate of 11 million units in its 1st fiscal year (21 million 2nd fiscal year, 39 million 3rd year, 72 million 4th year, 125 million 5th year) compared to current iPhone sales of 72 million units per quarter. With about 450 million iPhones currently in circulation, if 6.5% iPhone users adopt the iWatch, this may yield about 30 million iWatch 1st year sales, then 60 million 2nd year sales, 120 million 3rd year sales, your guess thereafter…
🍎⌚️ Watch. Some Watch history. The watch which was developed in the 16th century (circa 1530) was a mechanical device, powered by winding a mainspring which turned gears which moved the hands, and kept time with a rotating balance wheel. Most of the subsequent 500 year history of watches was devoted to refining the mechanical watch.
🍎⌚️ The Quartz Watch in the 1960s, which ran on electricity and kept time with a vibrating quartz crystal, proved a radical departure for the industry. During the 1980s quartz watches took over the market from mechanical watches, an event referred to as the “quartz crisis”. Although mechanical watches still sell at the high end of the market, the vast majority of watches now have quartz movements.
🍎⌚️ The origin of the word “Watch” is that it came from the Old English word woecce which meant “watchman”, because it was used by town watchmen to keep track of their shifts. Another says that the term came from 17th century sailors, who used the new mechanisms to time the length of their shipboard watches (duty shifts).
🍎⌚️ First watches were strictly mechanical, driven by spring-powered clockwork. As technology progressed, mechanical devices, used to control the speed of the watch, were largely superseded by vibrating quartz crystals, producing accurately timed electronic pulses. Some watches use radio-clock-technology to regularly correct the time. The first digital electronic watch was developed in 1970, the Pulsar LED.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch. Apple again, is reinventing the Watch, certainly entering a very mature field, dating back to the 16th century, 500 years ago and the “electronic” watch of 1970’s, some 50 years in the making. Apple’s entry into the “Watch” arena may be similar to its entry into Mobile Phones, when it made cell phones literally “Smart.” With the iWatch, Apple will be making the timekeeping wearable very “Smart” too.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch. Apple has created three venues for their Wearable: Apple Watch, Sports, and the Edition, each containing many designs, metals, and bands, generating thousands of possibilities to reach a huge audience, with no compromise with its core capability. Presently I am wearing a RADO for the past 10 years, loving it. However, with the release of the Apple Watch, I’m highly motivated towards the Apple Watch.
🍎⌚️ iWatch || iPhone Connection. A significant capability of the iWatch is its connectivity with the iPhone. Think about it, all of the iPhone’s: rote Computing power, SIRI, sensors, GPS, Internet, WiFi, 3G, 4G, LTE, 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth, its Processor, Memory, its Apps are available to and from the iWatch. Literally thousands of developers are having a “field-day” imagining all the capability and connectivity between your iPhone, your iWatch, and everyone else’s iWatch and iPhone.
🍎⌚️ iWatch || iPhone A simple example. Imaging the ladies that have an iPhone in their purse, or the guy with his iPhone in a briefcase, its ringer is off, to not disturb their surroundings. The iPhone receives an important telephone call. With the iPhone’s connectivity to the iWatch, the iWatch’s underside, sends a tympanic (“tap” or two) onto your wrist, notifying you of an incoming voice call, text, or upcoming calendar event…
🍎⌚️ Rotate your wrist a bit to glance at who’s calling you… To ignore the Call or Text, (lets say you are sitting at a conference table taking notes and participating with 12 others), simply cover your wrist with your other hand, which signals iWatch to ignore the Connection… or, answer the Call on the iWatch…
🍎⌚️ iWatch you may answer the telephone call speak and listen through the iWatch’s internal miniature speaker and microphone… you may then transfer the call to your iPhone, as the call may be lengthly, knowing its worth the effort to retrieve the iPhone from your purse or briefcase. Alternatively, if you didn’t want to receive this call, you could send a text message to that caller from your AppleWatch, texting that: “I will return the call once you’re out of the meeting, I’m on my Way, I’ll call you in and hour….”
🍎⌚️ iWatch || iPhone An ApplePay example. You are at Walgreens and want to pay for your personal supplies and Meds, instead of finding your Wallet and extracting a traditional Plastic Credit Card, or instead of finding your iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, with its new ApplePay capability… just reach-out to position your iWatch close to the Walgreens cash-register’s NCF transceiver terminal, and your iWatch will communicate with your iPhone, and Walgreens Store… you can select the CC you desire and authorize payment, using the touch-display of your iWatch…
🍎⌚️ iWatch || iPhone A Camera example. You have a terrific group shot to capture with your iPhone, you prop up the iPhone on the dining room table… to get in the shot you could let a stranger snap the shot for you, or you could, leave the iPhone on the dining room table, while you position yourself in the Shot, then LOOK at your APPLE WATCH, where you can actually see the image like looking into a “viewfinder” and then snap the shot or two, once everyone settles into a good pose. Once the image is captured you can see the result on the display of your AppleWatch. These examples do not even mention all the HEALTH capabilities.
🍎⌚️ Apple Watch. AppleWatch wearable is a Technology Marvel, making it possible to package microchips, sensors, graphics, WiFi, Bluetooth, Firmware, Software, Apps… into one highly styled shock and water resistant wearable, that will “Tell a lot more than Time .”
🍎⌚️ Apple is Heavily Invested with reInventing the Watch, which electronic watch industry has been tinkering with since the 1970’s.
🍎⌚️ Viewing Apple’s web-pages devoted to introducing the 2015 AppleWatch, you’ll get the message that Apple is deeply committed to having the masses add to their existing wearables, and encouraging others that don’t don wearables, may now do so.
First Portion of this Article briefly highlights traditional high-value electro-mechanical time pieces, priced from $3,500 to over $50,000 followed by reporting on Apple’s unique contribution to the Watch arena, priced from $350 to several $Thousand. [Apple has not published their pricing as of this writing.]
Montblanc is now one of the most exciting brands under Richemont’s wide umbrella, thanks in no small part to Jerome Lambert’s leadership, the man who played a key role in making Jaeger-LeCoultre the powerhouse that it is today.
With SIHH 2015 Conference on January 19th, http://tiny.cc/r8wdsx , The SALON INTERNATIONAL DE LA HAUTE HORLOGERIE, where watch makers released details of there latest watch offerings, the Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum, among others.
Montblanc’s Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum comes with a 41mm diameter case, available in 18k red gold (priced at $17,000) and stainless steel for the “wealthy wannabes” including polished bezel, with a horizontal satin finishing on the sides. The band-lug, which curve quite steeply, have the same satin treatment.
Montblanc’s Heritage Case thickness is 12mm, which is not thin, but entirely acceptable, as the mechanical movement was not developed from scratch, apparently the “movement” was purchased from a true watch maker’s previous invention. [Editorial remark: one would think for a $17k end product, Montblanc would design a unique watch movement for this release.]
Montblanc’s joining this first-rate array of watches for 2015 is the Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarrum, featuring an in-house developed worldtime complication (more on this later). Worldtimers are not all that uncommon, but are notoriously tricky to get right. There is a lot of information to display, and if the designers and engineers are not careful, the dial can easily become way too busy, to be easily legible.
Vacheron Constantin’s Patrimony Traditionnelle World Time, has done it right with one of the best examples of a well-designed worldtimer.
Watches worthy of mention are Baume & Mercier’s Capeland Worldtimer, Girard-Perregaux’s Traveller WW.TC And Moon Phase, which has chronograph functions to boot, (priced at $52,000) or (€44,000). [now that’s a bargain.] Like the Meisterstück Perpetual Calendar before it, this new Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum is also “very attractively priced” [not my words], in red gold, this watch will retail for $17,000 or (€14,400); and in stainless steel, the price is a very tempting $6,100 or (€5,175), [not really?]
☎️📞📡🍎 Marilyn and I will likely select iWatch styles, and take advantage of what seems to be an amazing step forward in personal wearable devices.
☎️📞📡🍎 Take a moment and watch several of Apple’s excellently produced videos at these locations.
🍎⌚️ http://ift.tt/1wcH9TV
🍎⌚️ http://ift.tt/1rCiyBa
☎️📞📡🍎 Many Reasons for regular folks to take a hard look at the Apple Watch priced from $400 to thousands, depending on metal.
The Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum comes in a 41mm case – available in 18k red gold and stainless steel – with polished bezel and horizontal satin finishing on the sides. The lugs, which curve quite steeply, have the same treatment. Case thickness is around 12mm, which is a little on the thick side, but entirely acceptable, since the movement was not developed from scratch. At $17,000 what a bargain. NOT.
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As many of my friends, family and students know, I am an avid iPad adopter since its release April, 2010. With Apple’s release of the Retina-Display iPad Air 2, (I sold iPad 4 to Gazelle.com) applied the proceeds to purchase the "mini" with 128GB of Storage, AT&T connectivity, plus added Logitech’s UltraThin Keyboard Cover, and a DECODED natural leather thin slip-over protective case.
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