Apple Should Offer a Cheaper Watch SE by Not Including the Bands
I’m something of a late adopter to the Apple Watch as my wife got a Series 3 for free at an office event in 2019 and gave it to me. We had been Garmin watch people prior to that.
Note: At Apple’s September Event, Apple did announce a Watch SE, instead removing the wall charger from the box, reducing the price by $20. I still think a watch with no band for $250 would sell like crazy.
I was thinking about selling it or returning it to Best Buy for store credit because the band was so small. Imagine my surprise when a friend who worked at the Apple Store told me that every watch includes a small and large version of one half of the band in every box.
Considering Apple charges $50 retail for a band, Apple could easily drop the price of a low-end, entry-level Apple Watch by not including a band at all. Or you specify which band size you want so they don’t send you one and a half bands with every watch when you already have two or more compatible bands.
It makes sense if you are giving it as a gift and you aren’t sure about the fit. But Apple seems to be reconsidering the cost and environmental impact of this kind of choice going forward and I think at the low end they should drop it or go a different way.
