

$10,000 Apple Watch Edition in Select Retail Stores - crdr88
http://live.theverge.com/apple-watch-macbook-liveblog-march-2015/

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lxchase
As someone in marketing, I see this as a price anchoring strategy. For other
versions of the Watch, present or future, they can price the watch in the mid
thousands and subconsciously it will seem "affordable" whether it is or isn't
in actuality.

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nevi-me
One of the execs at a client I work for bought a nice expensive Breitling. One
evening at a function I innocently asked him what the value of such an
expensive watch was. He told me that the value of it is that it can last
generations. Watch straps can be replaced, but the time piece thing itself is
there to last for as long as long.

So when I saw the price tag on this watch today, I wondered what would make it
cost that much, anyone have insights? I mean, the battery on the watch will at
some point fail or need replacing. I get that the watch should be serviceable,
but then; if the internals can be replaced, why price it so high? What's there
to guarantee that 50 years down the line the thing will still be usable?

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Lx1oG-AWb6h_ZG0
The apple store only offers a two year guarantee, three if you pay extra for
apple care. And since this thing requires a paired phone, even if the hardware
is usable after that, there is no saying the software will be compatible with
new iphones.

It's pretty clear this watch is meant to be disposable.

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nevi-me
Yes, I agree there that we can conclude it's meant to be disposable. So are
the wealthy elite then paying for the "Apple brand"? I ask this seeing that
there's not that much gold on the watch itself to justify the price from a
commodity perspective.

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Lx1oG-AWb6h_ZG0
I thought so too, but if the only difference between the 17000$ version and
the 500$ version is the case, the only thing you're paying for is the
opportunity to tell others you can afford to drop 17 grand every couple of
years. It's probably a pretty lucrative market.

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no_gravity
Guess there is a market for it. There already are 3rd parties that are gold
plating apple products:

[http://www.productchart.com/smartphones/5804](http://www.productchart.com/smartphones/5804)

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mousa
My guess is the expensive version is less about being a huge source of revenue
and more about emphasizing Apple brand is the brand of the elite.

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Ezhik
To be honest, I can't see myself ever spending $10k even on an ordinary luxury
watch, if I was in position to do so. Much less so with an electronic one that
will most likely be obsolete in a year.

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terrywilcox
You're not the target market.

People who spend $10k on a watch exist. They're the target market.

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Ezhik
Still, how is Apple planning to handle yearly upgrades at that price point?

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tdkl
All those billions in cash will help.

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kingkawn
Steve Jobs would never have done this shit. He designed like he believed there
was a way in that moment to do something absolutely right. After he left Apple
the first time they started doing this too.

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VikingCoder
If you A) buy this watch, and B) complain that your taxes are too high, then I
really can't relate to you AT ALL. Same planet, different worlds.

