Tag: apple smartwatch

The pre-order date for the smartwatches is coming ever closer and now applications are finally starting to appear.

Ever since the Spring Forward event at Apple, reports have been stating that the company has been keeping the majority of Apple Watch apps developers from releasing their applications and updates, but some are now starting to squeak through.

While the devices haven’t even gone on sale, yet, the apps are starting to be listed for curious consumers.

The tech giant is now allowing some of its developers to certain updated versions of their mobile applications in a form that will be compatible as Apple Watch apps. The important thing to recognize at the moment is that there have only been a select few that have been permitted to make these launches. The support for the company’s first smartwatches is still quite restricted and the majority of developers have still had to keep the lid on the release of their own offerings.

It is believed that the Apple Watch apps that have been launched were likely handpicked for this purpose.

Those smartwatch apps were probably chosen for providing the best possible experience over this type of wearable technology device. For this reason, though, it means that the list of the number of apps that can be downloaded for the devices remains quite limited. Still, among the few that are actually available, there are some rather powerful options.

Among them include the applications from Target, Twitter, At Bat, Evernote, CNN, and MLB.com. While the updated versions of those apps that are Apple Watch compatible can already be downloaded or auto-updated, it won’t actually give anyone the opportunity to check out the new functionalities, quite yet, as the device hasn’t even become available for sale, just yet. Therefore, the satisfaction that customers will have with those apps won’t actually be known until the end of the month, at the very earliest.

Once the wearables start to be shipped and customers begin using them, it is expected that there will be a much broader wave of Apple Watch apps that will rapidly become available, as developers scramble to take advantage of the opportunity of the limited starting market in a device that is expected to reach considerable popularity.

As the Apple Watch prepares to be shipped, other wearables brands such as Nike and Jawbone are being taken down.

Apple Stores are now starting to prepare for the addition of the brand’s own smartwatches and, as they do, they are taking wearables from the competition – such as Jawbone and Nike – down from their shelves.

According to reports, health oriented wristbands are among the wearables no longer available at the Apple Store.

The Apple Stores in certain major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Palo Alto are reported to have taken down smartwatches and fitness bands from other brands as they prep for the addition of the Apple Watch. The Spring Forward Event, last week, revealed that advance orders of the device will be available as of April 10, and the wearables will actually be available for immediate purchase starting on April 24.

These smartwatches will be available at a range of prices, starting as “low” as $349, for the entry-level device.

The Apple Watch was first unveiled at an event back in September 2014. The Sport version of this wearable technology starts at $349, but there is an Edition version that is plated in any of three types of gold and that will be available with a massive $10,000 price tag.

While it may make sense that other devices that present direct competition to this wearable technology have been taken down in favor of exclusively showcasing the Apple Watch, many are baffled by the decision to remove the Nike+ FuelBand and the Jawbone device. These are fitness trackers and don’t provide nearly the range of different features that will be offered by the smartwatch.

Moreover, Nike announced, last year, that it was going to be stepping out of its FuelBand focus and that it would be placing a greater level of attention on its software development. It should also be pointed out that Ben Shaffer, the design director from Nike+ FuelBand, was hired by Apple in 2013, as was the developer of that device, Jay Blahnik.

Whatever the reason, it does appear that the market for smartwatches is about to become much more fierce than it has been, until now.