Apple introduced the Apple Watch in 2015. Right around that time there was a lot of speculation about how quickly the company would be refreshing the smartwatch, especially considering how expensive the Apple Watch Edition models were at the time (in the thousands of dollars range). Would Apple really offer a brand new option just a year, or even two years later? Or would the company eschew its smartphone (and other lineup) update schedule in favor of something a bit more relaxed for the smartwatch?
Well, it's 2019 and it's safe to say we have a pretty clear picture regarding upgrade strategy on Apple's part.
Let's take stock. We start with the Apple Watch and its variants in 2015. That model is available until 2016 when Apple introduces a slight change to the naming scheme of its smartwatch, welcoming two models at the same time: Apple Watch Series 1 and Apple Watch Series 2. The Apple Watch S1 is available until 2018, while the Apple Watch S2 actually gets the boot in 2017.
Moving right along here we've got the Apple Watch Series 3, which was announced in 2017 and is still available to buy right now. However, Apple actually announced the Apple Watch Series 4 in 2018 and dropped it from the lineup this year. And, finally, the Apple Watch Series 5 was launched in September of this year, so obviously that one is still available.
So, since 2015 we've seen Apple launch six generations and six series of Apple Watch. That's quite a lot!
It's safe to say that Apple is more than willing to launch a new Apple Watch on a yearly basis. And, based on the company's (less-than-transparent) quarterly earnings it's worked out well enough. The Apple Watch is easily the most popular smartwatch out there, even if it is locked to the iPhone. And while some customers may not find a reason to upgrade every year, despite Apple offering new features (or new designs) to sway them, it sounds like a lot of people are more than willing to fork over their older smartwatch to get a newer model.
Some yearly refreshes have been smaller than others. Some bigger. But every year Apple has tried to come up with a reason to get folks to buy a new watch. But, just like we've seen with smartphones over the years, it certainly feels like we don't need to get a new Apple Watch every single year. Of course, Apple has gone over the numbers and all that jazz to ultimately determine that its yearly refresh is just fine, but I wanted to get your opinion, especially if you're an Apple Watch owner. And the "Apple Watch Series 6" is already being rumored to launch next year, unsurprisingly.
If you bought the first Apple Watch back in 2015, have you been upgrading to a newer model every year right along with Apple's release schedule? Have you skipped some models? Do you have a personal plan to just upgrade every other year, or something similar to that? Let me know!