Truth is, many people were hoping the Apple Watch to be a massive failure. But while Apple's first wearable hasn't been the sleeper success folks at Cupertino might have hoped for, it hasn't exactly been a non-success either. According to the unerring research firm IDC, about 3.6 million Apple Watch devices were sold in the second quarter of 2015.

The Apple Watch, which went on sale about six months ago, is the second most popular wearable device on the market, as per the latest figures disseminated by IDC. Apple managed to ship about 3.6 million Apple Watches in the second quarter of 2015. The Apple Watch is only behind Fitbit fitness trackers in the wearable space. Fitbit is estimated to have sold 4.4 million units fitness wearables.

Continue reading →

Apple has sent out media invites to an event on 9 September. Widely expected to see the launch of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, the event takes place at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco at 10 am PDT.

The invitation itself gives little away, but it does include artwork that will undoubtedly feature on the big day, as well as the intriguing tagline 'Hey Siri, Give Us a Hint'. So does Siri have the answers? Tell us about the new iPhone!

Continue reading →

Is it a troll move, smart marketing, or something else entirely? It's not clear quite what Swatch wants to do with Steve Jobs' famous 'one more thing' line, but the Swiss watch company has grabbed a trademark on the three word phrase.

Before his death, Jobs was renowned for introducing a surprise (although frequently not so surprising) extra at the end of a presentation. Although Apple has never really exploited 'one more thing' in advertising, Swatch's new European trademark will no doubt stick in the craw somewhat.

Continue reading →

New research has found that almost 80 percent of Apple Watch owners are using the tech giant’s contactless payment system, Apple Pay.

The research was carried out by Wristly, which is an independent research platform. It asked 1,000 people whether they were using Apple Pay or not and almost 80 percent of them answered affirmatively. Nine percent said that they preferred to pay through their iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus (these are the only two compatible iPhones as of now).

Continue reading →

Not everyone has svelte wrists -- some hand hinges are as thick as thighs. Apple has decided that those with chunkier wrists no longer need to develop anorexia to be able to strap on an Apple Watch, releasing larger bands for the larger customer.

As well as a Sport band that comes in that all-important L/XL sizing, there's also an extender kit available for the metal bracelet. If you over-estimated the size of the Link Bracelet, or under-estimated the size of your wrist, you can slip in a few extra links to up the size to 245mm.

Continue reading →

Satya Nadella is a man with a formidable challenge. Microsoft CEO's predecessor, Steve Ballmer, squandered the company's mobile fortunes. From smartphone platform leader a decade ago, the software-and-services giant is a category also-ran in 2015. Microsoft has no independent mobile platform future. The war is over. There remains this: Making alliances with old enemies to preserve existing territory, while using the foothold to reach into new frontiers.

Made available August 5th, Outlook for Apple Watch is a very smart move and metaphor for what went wrong on Microsoft mobile platforms and what has to go right to preserve and extend the legacy applications stack. While Windows 10 makes its way to Lumia devices, the future is Android and iOS and how the company supports them with contextually meaningful cloud-connected apps and services.

Continue reading →

Apple Watch has been quickly gaining the support of major iOS developers, as more and more top titles have been updated to work well with the best-selling smartwatch on the market. So it should come as no surprise that Microsoft, with its increasing focus on mobile, has introduced Apple Watch support in the latest version of its Outlook mobile email client.

Apple Watch users have been able to take advantage of Outlook features prior to this update, which bumps up the app's version number to 1.3.5, but in a more restrictive manner. The official support, however, brings some new features that make Outlook much more useful on the smartwatch.

Continue reading →

About two weeks ago, I shared how Apple Watch tickles my fancy. From likes, we go to dislikes, and keeping with the other I purposely limit the number to five. Quick recap: I bought the aluminum model on June 18, 2015 from the local Apple Store. Seven days later, I exchanged for the stainless steel variant. Except to charge or to shower, I've worn it constantly since.

Broadly, my feelings about the smartwatch are mixed. The delivered benefits are excellent, but they aren't enough to justify the lofty price. If not for using MacBook Pro and iPhone 6 Plus this summer, Android Wear and iOS incompatibilities, or the promise of watchOS 2 coming early autumn, I would not have purchased the device. I'm not dissatisfied with Apple Watch, but want more from it. As I explained on July 18, the measure of success or failure isn't sales but returns. I kept mine. How many early buyers didn't?

Continue reading →

Apple has not revealed an official sales figure for Apple Watch, but, according to a Canalys report, it leads the smartwatch pack, with sales estimated to be around 4.2 million units. And we are talking about sales exclusively through Apple's own online and brick and mortar stores, which is a different strategy to iPhones and iPads.

Staring next month, however, Apple Watch will no longer be confined to Apple's own locations, as the smartwatch will also be available for purchase at US retailer Best Buy. Will this boost sales?

Continue reading →

The Apple Watch has only been available a few months, but it has already captured a sizable portion of the wearable market. Selling 4.2 million units throughout the second quarter of 2015, it has stolen an early march on its rivals, particularly the many wearables that use Android Wear as their primary operating system.

The question remains, however: how much longer can Apple continue to dominate the market with its self-imposed restrictions? The Apple Watch is only compatible with the iPhone 5 and later models running at least iOS 8.2, cutting off a huge proportion of consumers who use Android handsets. If Apple wants its new smartwatch to have genuine mass appeal, it will struggle under these terms.

Continue reading →

Today's question: Is Apple's CEO hiding weak smartwatch sales or does he demonstrate transcending leadership by positioning for greater platform success—taking the long view? The answer lies perhaps in his comments made during yesterday's fiscal Q3 earnings conference call.

In data released today, Strategy Analytics puts Apple Watch shipments at 4 million for the April quarter. Yesterday, Canalys gave estimate that is 200,000 units higher. Posting to BetaNews just minutes ago, analyst Sameer Singh calculates 3 million devices shipped and 2.5 million sold. Apple doesn't share the real numbers that it surely has. In chief executive Tim Cook's remarks that follow, there are hints—but little more. Something he says later in the conference call is quite provocative; genius and contrary-logistics-thinking. Either he's hiding or abiding.

Continue reading →

People are more satisfied with the Apple Watch than they were when they first bought the iPhone and the iPad, a new survey shows.

The report by Apple Watch research platform Wristly, published on 19 July 2015, found that three months after the launch of the smartwatch, overall customer satisfaction is at 97 percent.

Continue reading →

All eyes turned to Apple this afternoon as the world's most profitable tech company announced the first full quarterly results that include its smartwatch. You could hear a collective pin drop across the Internet as U.S. stock markets closed and everyone waited wondering: Flop or Not?

We don't know. In the press release, CEO Tim Cook refers to the "great start for Apple Watch", but there's no data in the PR or in the 8-K filing with the SEC. The device fits into the "Other" category. During Cook's earnings conference call opening remarks hard data also is lacking.

Continue reading →

After the closing bell today, Apple announced results for fiscal third quarter, which largely is congruent with calendar Q2 (End date, April 27). Broadly: $49.6 billion in sales, $10.7 billion net income, and $1.85 earnings per share. Year over year, revenue rose 33 percent and EPS by 45 percent. Apple guidance before the big reveal: Between $46 billion and $48 billion revenue. Wall Street consensus was $49.31 billion sales and $1.81 EPS. The Street's estimates ranged from $46.9 billion to $53.64 billion.

Gross margin reached 39.7 percent compared to 39.4 percent annually and 40.8 percent sequentially. Company guidance: 38.5 percent to 39.5 percent. Once again, international sales accounted for most of the quarter's sales: 64 percent, which is up from 59 percent the previous year but down from 69 percent three months earlier.

Continue reading →

Apple will release its Q3 FY2015 earnings report later today, revealing just how well its products have performed in the second quarter of the year. The star of the show will likely continue to be the iPhone line, while iPads are expected to disappoint once again. But what about its most-recent endeavor, Apple Watch?

Apple has been relatively quiet so far. There are no official figures of any kind yet, and there is no guarantee that the company will reveal any concrete information surrounding its smartwatch today. There is, however, an estimate from analyst company Canalys, which places Apple at the top of the wearable vendors list.

Continue reading →