The Editions: Part I
The Apple Watch Edition in 18K Yellow Gold with Midnight Blue Classic Buckle. In 2015, this combo would set you back a cool $15,000.
This article started as a paragraph or two about the ceramic Apple Watch Edition's discontinuation when Apple introduced the Series 6 on September 15, 2020. But as these things often do, the article began to take on a life of its own. It has now morphed into a longer retrospective covering the entire timeline of the Apple Watch Edition. This first article presents the first chapter of that story: the rise and fall of the 18K gold Apple Watch Edition.
The Editions Series:
The Editions: Part I - September 23, 2020
The Editions: Part II - October 14, 2020
When the Apple Watch was introduced in 2015, the Edition line featured 18K yellow & rose gold watch cases, whose prices began at $10,000 (38mm with sport band) and extended up to $17,000 (38mm with Modern Buckle). Apple touted that the gold alloy was up to twice as hard as standard gold, and each model came with a sapphire crystal display, ceramic back, and an exclusive band with matching gold hardware. To announce their new line, Apple even set up several exclusive Apple Watch pop-up shops inside prime luxury stores in Paris, London, and Tokyo to promote the new Apple Watch. Some of the displays Apple created the initially promote the watch at some of these locations is absolutely breathtaking, as chronicled by Storeteller.
Apple Watch Edition Pairing Process, screenshot compliments of the reader featured in the linked 9to5mac article.
Each Edition model also came with an exclusive leather/felt-lined box that doubled as a charging station. And any Edition customers who purchased Apple's $1,500 AppleCare+ plan also added two accidental damage repair incidents at the cost of $1,000 per repair (to compare, the Aluminum/Stainless Steel fee was $79 per repair).
The Apple Watch Edition shipped with a custom leather box featuring a built-in inductive charing system.
While I don't think many people thought the first Edition models would be cheap, I don't believe many people expected the cost to in the range that they did. Because luxury watches are not in their orbit for some folks, there isn't a reliable reference point for what luxury watches should cost. Unlike mechanical watches that can last for decades, it was clear from the onset that the Apple Watch was going to last for only a few years before it eventually became obsolete and might best be served being melted down for cash. And from a tech-purchasing perspective, buying something for seventeen thousand dollars that'll be obsolete within a couple of years, and that didn't offer any additional features or performance enhancements didn't make much sense.
Left to Right: 38mm Rose Gold Apple Watch Edition with White Sport Band ($10,000) & 38mm 18K Yellow Gold Apple Watch Edition with Red Modern Buckle ($17,000)
But with the Edition line, Apple was not targeting the average tech buyer. From their retail strategy to the exclusive Apple Watch Edition support line, everything around the Edition was centred around marketing the product as a fashion device. It was clear that the Edition was being positioned as a luxury good, not a tech product. Apple wanted the Edition to compete with the likes of Rolex, Omega, Cartier and others as their equal.
But at just over a year of the gold Edition's launch, Apple began to close their pop-up shops, their prominence on the website faded, and in the fall of 2016, the gold Edition models were discontinued when Apple released the Apple Watch Series 2. And on May 13, the last of these shops in Tokyo closed, and shortly before that, some remaining Edition models were fire-sold for as little as $700.
Left to Right: 42mm 18K Yellow Gold Apple Watch Edition with Black Classic Buckle ($15,000) & 42mm 18K Yellow Gold Apple Watch Edition with Midnight Blue Classic Buckle ($15,000)
One article pointed at former Apple design chief Jony Ive for advocating for the Apple Watch, stating that Ive's vision is that the Apple create a product that served as a fashion accessory first, technology second. It was Ive who pushed for the creation of the Apple Watch in the first place, with Tim Cook green-lighting the project even as others at Apple remained opposed to the project. So while we might look back at the Edition as a misguided or overambitious flight of fancy, another argument could be that without Ive and his ridiculous foray into the luxury market, we may never have gotten the Apple Watch at all!
There’s so much more a person could write, but I think I’ll stop for now. In the next part, we’ll look at how the edition line transformed over the years, focusing on the ceramic Apple Watch era. I want to thank all those who connected with me on twitter, offering photos, comments, and support - you make writing this stuff a pleasure.
External Links
YouTube: Apple Watch Edition: Gold - Narrated by Jony Ive
Website: All About the 18K Gold Apple Watch Edition - aBlogtoWatch
