How will the use and passage of time affect each Apple Watch model?

Acquiring the first generation of a device always involves some risk when approaching the unknown. The Apple Watch is full of unknowns, and although Apple is always synonymous with quality, this is still something that greatly worries buyers of your watch. In fact, surely many of you have thought about buying the cheapest model and making a greater investment later, in subsequent generations.

Although we currently do not know how its battery, screen, buttons, etc. will behave, we can know how the materials in which the different models of Apple Watch are finished will behave with the passage of time and daily use. Apple has not discovered gunpowder, it has created watches with materials that have been used in the watch industry for dozens of years, so the behavior of these materials is well known. We already saw the differences between Ion-X crystal and sapphire crystal. In iMore they have carried out an excellent analysis of the materials to see the difference between aluminum, steel and gold, as well as the different colors.

Apple Watch Sport

The most affordable model and the choice for most for its price and because its features are the same as the other models. Aluminum is not the best material to make a watch, in fact you will not see many aluminum models in other brands, since it is a soft and malleable material. But if there is a company familiar with this material and with experience in the manufacture of aluminum devices is, without a doubt, Apple.

I acknowledge that my own decision to purchase the steel model is based on the distrust that aluminum causes me in a watch. On the one hand there is the deformation before a blow, on the other hand the matte appearance that the anodizing gives it and that with the passage of time, the blows and the friction itself may be affected. However Apple could have looked for the perfect solution to reduce this problem to the maximum.

First, for the shock resistance problem, Apple uses an aluminum alloy higher than recommended for a watch. If normally a "6000" alloy is sufficient for a watch, Apple has chosen to use a "7000" alloy, twice as strong with figures close to some steel alloys, in fact, in theory it is stronger than the steel model . It also uses an anodizing process (Type III) different from the usual one (Type II), which makes that thin layer that covers the aluminum resist much better. But make no mistake, the anodizing is very thin on the edges, and there the passage of time will be relentless with the Apple Watch Sport, especially with the black model. The crown, with those grooves to be able to handle it better, will probably be the first to suffer degradation.

Despite all that Apple has done to improve the aluminum of Its Sport model is, without a doubt, the model that will take the worst over time, since to its less resistant Ion-X glass we must add this metal that makes it much lighter but that entails other disadvantages, especially its anodizing.

Apple Watch

The steel used by Apple is the most common in the high-end watch industry. Specifically, it is the 316L alloy, and although Rolex (for example) uses the 904L alloy in some of its models, in theory more resistant, in daily practice the differences will hardly be noticed. The polished surface also increases the shock resistance, and the design of the watch case itself, rounded and without edges, will help to make the passage of time much more unnoticed.

Steel can be polished without any problem by Apple's own technical service (in theory) or by any experienced watchmaker. In fact, it is something that is done systematically in all watches with the change of battery or in any mechanical repair. It should preferably be done with the watch disassembled, to prevent the process from damaging the edges of other components such as the buttons or the crown, but it can also be done with the watch assembled by taking the appropriate protection measures.

Apple's decision to make the metal strap with a brushed finish, rather than polishing the watch case, but it is something that is usually the case. You will find few polished high-end watch straps, as it ends up being too shiny. In addition, the strap will be the one that takes the vast majority of aggressions, and the brushed finish takes it better than the polished one.

Apple Watch Space Black

The most beautiful model for many, but perhaps the most delicate next to its aluminum equivalent. Although the steel it contains is of the same quality as the normal model, this Space Black Apple Watch is a real beauty but the coating that it includes makes it a candidate to take the medal for the "Appel Watch that will age the worst". Apple has used a very advanced technology for this coating (DLC, Diamond Like Carbon) but in practice you should know that any damage it suffers will be noticeable for miles due to the contrast it will make with the color black, and that it will also be irreparable. Forget about giving it a "black bath" over the years, since in practice it would cost you more than the watch itself.

Apple Watch Edition

A luxury item more than a technological device. Much was made of the gold alloy of this Apple Watch, suggesting that Apple had "invented" a new alloy that would make it more resistant. It really is 18 karat gold, that is, it is at least 75% gold. The remaining 25% are materials to harden it, give it color, or facilitate metal work. Gold shares with aluminum that it is a soft metal, so it can be easily damaged. But contrary to what happens with aluminum, gold can be easily repaired by an experienced jeweler / watchmaker and the end result will be perfect.

A pending issue is what will happen to the belts. We do not yet know if the belt buckles (which are gold) can be easily removed. This is how it should be, because leather straps have an average life of 2 or 3 years, depending on the use and care of its owner. It could be that Apple picked up the old straps and offered new ones with the buckles built in. I don't think even someone who has spent more than € 10.000 on a watch would like to ditch a gold buckle strap out of hand.