“It might be difficult for investors to imagine a world where consumers line up at the nearest Apple Inc. retail outlet for an upgrade instead of an entirely new product,” Louis Bedigian reports for Benzinga. “Believe it or not, that could be the future for at least one new Apple device.”
“‘I think most of the improvements will occur in the internal guts of the watch,’ Sean Udall, CIO of Quantum Trading Strategies and author of The TechStrat Report, told Benzinga,” Bedigian reports. “‘Effectively, a watch is a watch. Apple can literally upgrade a few key components inside.’ Udall said that the processor and the battery will need to be included in that upgrade.”
“If Apple allows customers to upgrade their watches, Udall believes this will make for a ‘much more compelling purchase,'” Bedigian reports. “‘I’m pretty sure you’re going to be able to take your watch into the Apple Store, give it to them, and they’ll be able to upgrade internal components,’ he said.
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: You’d think Apple would have announced level of upgradability on Monday, wouldn’t you? So far, the only thing we’ve heard from Apple that’s replaceable inside Apple Watch is the battery.
Related article:
Apple Watch’s battery lasts around 3 years and is replaceable – March 10, 2015
“‘I’m pretty sure you’re going to be able to take your watch into the Apple Store, give it to them, and they’ll be able to upgrade internal components.”
And you base that on your examination of how many actual watches?
These guys never get tired of reading their own speculations, as if they had some basis in reality.
And you base your opinion that it won’t be upgradeable on what exactly?
I would consider it axiomatic that the internals will be upgradeable based on the following:
1. Much of the Apple Watch functionality and heavy lifting is driven by the tethered iPhone—new iPhone, new functionality.
2. The S1 SOC is just that—a System On Chip. IOW, the entire internals are contained within a single package.
3. The Watch has a very confined form factor internally but Moore’s Law suggests that future generations of a processor pack more punch within a given space (OK, not quite Moore’s Law but you get the drift).
4. It therefore follows from 3 that any future Sx SOC will pack more grunt in the same space and form factor as the S1. Laying off a lot of the work to the current and later generations of iPhone extends the time of obsolescence for the S1 somewhat but there will come a time when it will be superseded—and we all know how fast tech changes.
5. Is it actually reasonable to assume that Apple have not already thought of this aspect? The very first thing I thought when Tim Cook unveiled the Watch was, the internals are going to be upgradable.
If Apple had only released a single version like the Sport, very few people would be kvetching but because they also chose to release a version in the super-premium league, encased in gold where the value of the casing far exceeds the internals, it makes no sense if Apple hadn’t already considered how technology would evolve.
If Apple are remaining tight-lipped about the core hardware, is that really any surprise? At least we know for certain that battery is ultimately replaceable but ten years down the line the electronic guts will be out of date—but being an SOC, and later iterations packing more oomph for the same package size, it should be trivial—and comparatively cheap—to replace the entire SOC.
My 2 groats-worth.
=:~)
Agree; Apple does not like upgrades.
However, they do start programs when you can bring them old Apple product, so nothing will go to waste.
So, trade your year old $600 watch in for a $100 dollar credit towards another $600 watch.
Apple also doesn’t like multiple models, an extreme degree of customization, and removable batteries. The Watch has all these, why not an upgradable SoC?
It’s just their cheap mind making excuses for the price point of the AWE. They do have a middle class watch too, for 549 to 1099 depending on if you’re upper-middle class or just middle class, and there is also a peasant versions for 349 to 399 depending on the size you want.
It seems that many of the reporters, pundits, and analysts, that write about Apple follow in the Walter Mitty tradition. 😀
Apple is never going to announce upgrades on a product that isn’t even available for sale yet. The last thing they want is brodcasting a short shelf life for the product. But Ben Bajarin asked Apple reps at the event about upgradeability and they didn’t say “no”, they said ‘we have no comment on that at this time’.
Apple’s motto: Keep ’email Guessing 😜💥😱🚀
I’ll bet you meant “Keep ’em all Guessing”. Although my Apple Mail app sometime keeps me guessing.
“If it weren’t for my horse, I never would have gone to that year of college.”
No amount of upgrades is going to save this bomb.
Wow you should be an analyst… they’re half wits too.
What first year sales would qualify the Apple Watch as a bomb?
Put a number on your prognostication.
“No amount [sic] of upgrades . . . .”
Not meaning to quibble with your astute and well-reasoned prognostication, Sean, may I point out that you meant to write “No [number] of upgrades . . . .” “Amount” is used with singular, uncountable items such as water, air, love, etc.
That is: “No amount of reasoning will ever change a mind as closed and puerile as yours.”
“Number,” on the other hand, is used with plural, countable items like pennies, fingers, tires, and so on.
That is, “I cannot begin to count the number of holes in your argument, sir.”
Now, and with that said, “PHHHHT” (tongue very moist) to your opinion.
You will this time next year.
A company with a history of being against upgrades is going to suddenly make a watch that can be upgraded?
Hey, it’s Tim Cook.. Who knows what he’ll do next..
I do think there will be an upgrade, at least for the 10K or 17K Apple Watch Edition. Even if you are rich, I don’t think you just trow away a beautiful piece of craftsmanship made of the most resistant gold.
I also believe if Apple can change the batteries then changing the single component computing engine is not that much harder to exchange.
The real issue is if the watch was designed to allow the upgrade and what will be the margin on the upgrade costs versus cost of buying a new watch.
Apple is in new territory so all past practices are being revisited.
…keep on smokin’ buddy; it’ll be legal here too…soon!
I think the second hardware upgrade will include a camera next year so the upgradable processor may be a feature of that model. But not so likely with this model. 💥😱
People will not spend $500 to upgrade the watch every 2-3 years like they do their phone. If Apple introduces those kind of improvements that frequently it will be pretty shitty unless there is some kind of trade-in upgrade structure in place.
But millions would at $99.
I think if Apple wants people to adopt their watch as jewellery (and they do), I think we’ll see internal upgrades every year. Especially the processor and battery.
Of course if Apple wants people to adopt their watch as fashion (and they do), I think we’ll see external upgrades every 2-3 years.
Any one person may keep their watch for 6 or more years. But there will be fashion pressure driving people to newer models.
Agreed 100%.
The watch won’t be upgradeable. Apple will continue to make the watch thinner and lighter every year just like they do with their PCs, laptops, phones, and tablets.
There may be a trade in option with the Edition watch where the gold can be melted down and recovered. That would be an awful waste if there wasn’t, and a grade secondary market opportunity.
If if you could, they would charge you an arm and a leg for it. Look how much they charge to replace a battery in a iPhone. I can do that for less than 10 dollars, they charge at least 85. So a upgrade for a watch will probably cost at least 300.
Come on, Mommy’s little Troll Dude, get back under the bridge and get off the internet. Leave those people with triple digit IQs alone and be happy they don’t realize that you and your two brothers can together, nearly equal theirs.
Lifespan of Apple product is between 4-7 years.
That’ll do for the Watch. I trust Apple. I’ve always been.
John Gruber had been speculating for awhile about upgradability on the highest end watches…even for the 1%ers, the idea of spending 5 figures on a watch which is obsolete in a year is silly.
Have no interest in the watch, but why not apply that to Mac Pros?
That trashcan thing- while a very nice computer- is not a replacement for my tower.
This is the dumbest article I can remember. People will buy all new watches every year, then give their old ones to family members so they have more people to send little drawings to. Apple knows this. There will be no replaceable parts, except the battery and band.
Let’s all wait until the post release teardowns. That should give everyone an idea of how the watch will be repaired or upgraded.
Regular watches, whether mechanical or quartz, can easily have their movements swapped out. This could well be the case for this watch. However, there is no reason for Apple to say anything about it at this time.
Someone will soon disassemble one and report on the prospects.
Well, there’s never been any real upgrade path for an iPod or iPhone per se, but I can see where the Apple Watch Edition would come with one. However on the Sport and steel models, I don’t expect to see any real upgrades other than battery.
I’m not sure how often it would need to be upgraded so it will be interesting to see what Apple offers moving forward. There should be an upgrade path for the Edition model but then again if you can afford a $10-17K Apple Watch, maybe you just want to get a new one when you feel the need to upgrade.
We’ll have to wait until iFixit gets ahold of one to see how it all looks inside. First thought is, this is another device that is approachable by removing the display. It would be nice if they discover a full set of contacts to the sensor/power array and the display, thus facilitating a swap of the (probable) CPU module. Still wouldn’t make the Edition worth it…. 😉
Upgrade-ability is a key factor in my willingness to buy this product. Obsolescence is enemy of technology. I can’t afford to spend $600+ to get a watch that doesn’t last 5-10 years. Apple needs to address this concern. At this point I’m holding off on buying until version 2 of the watch to get more feedback from users and Apple to see if this risk is being addressed.
Hopefully the bands will work with future models. Spending ~$600 for a stainless steel band is a lot, but easier to swallow if it will work for several generations and new watches can be bought without bands.
Apple will entice future buyers with additional lines. Apple Watch Health will be next with a greater number of health related sensors that were not as yet ready. Then we will see Apple Watch Thin, etc.
aapl seems out of that mode but they once did these things. Most awesome performance upgrade ever – 512k Mac to Mac Plus – motherboard, case replacement and memory – new machine.
It’s sensible for Apple to keep quiet and see what happens. My guess would be it is possible to upgrade but why on earth would Apple announce that before they see how many they sell and, more importantly, whether customers like the watch in its current iteration.