Apple rumored to further enhance personalization of Apple Watch with custom engravings

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited March 2015
People wanting to buy an Apple Watch may be able to ask for a custom engraving, much as the company has allowed with products like the iPad and iPod before it, although the option may not be available in time for the product's launch.




Then information comes French website iPhonote, citing a source claimed to be tied to Apple. The person allegedly said they are virtually certain engraving will become available, whether sooner or later.

If the company follows its past pattern of past engraving options, such as with the iPad and iPod, only online orders will qualify.

One question is where an engraving would fit on the diminutive, wearable Apple Watch. There is very little space around the bezels of the Watch, and the underside is dominated by a heartrate sensor, as well as some of Apple's own markings such as the serial number.

iPhonote is relatively unknown site with no established track record. Apple does however have a history of offering engravings for iPhones, iPods, and iPads.

Conventional watches are frequently engraved, moreover, and the option would make sense given Apple's emphasis on personalization in official marketing. The company has taken the Watch to a number of fashion magazines, and highlighted different combinations of body materials and wrist straps.

More details about the product are due to be announced at a Monday press event, whee AppleInsider will be in attendance with live coverage. The company is already preparing San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center by raising Apple logos and building an exterior structure thought to house a demonstration area.
«1

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 21
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    [B][I][SIZE=4][font="zapfino"]One Watch to rule them all
    One Watch to find them
    One Watch to bring them all
    And in the darkness bind them.[/font][/SIZE][/I][/B]



    I'm going to go out on a limb and say that engravings would be popular. But where? The lefthand side of the casing is the only decent place I can see.
  • Reply 2 of 21
    stevostevo Posts: 1member
    Engravings will in be small font and will be on the underside of the case. Perhaps around the circular heart rate monitor
  • Reply 3 of 21
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sog35 View Post

     

    this will hurt resale. doomed




    Do you live one single minute without thinking of money?

  • Reply 4 of 21
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    mstone wrote: »
    Do you live one single minute without thinking of money?

    I have to assume he's joking because iDevices have had the option for factory engraving since the iPod was king and those seem to be doing fairly well.
  • Reply 5 of 21
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    Apple currently does engraving on products. What is the story here?
  • Reply 6 of 21
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    I have to assume he's joking because iDevices have had the option for factory engraving since the iPod was king and those seem to be doing fairly well.



    I would always get "Just keep swimming" on my ipods

  • Reply 7 of 21
    eightzeroeightzero Posts: 3,133member
    I would expect custom engraving too, but if you look at the back of the Watch, you can see that some of the information already engraved is somewhat superfluous. Yes, the serial number, but unless the things like "42mm case" and what the thing is made of are somehow already fixed in the manufacture, I can see "opting out" of that in favor or "personalization." I think gold has to be marked with karat content.
  • Reply 8 of 21
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post



    One Watch to rule them all

    One Watch to find them

    One Watch to bring them all

    And in the darkness bind them.








    I'm going to go out on a limb and say that engravings would be popular. But where? The lefthand side of the casing is the only decent place I can see.



    I agree. There's really no sensible place for an engraving.

  • Reply 9 of 21
    island hermitisland hermit Posts: 6,217member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post



    I have to assume he's joking because iDevices have had the option for factory engraving since the iPod was king and those seem to be doing fairly well.

     

    Is there a big market for iPod resale? (I really don't know... I've always only heard about iPhones)

  • Reply 10 of 21
    jfc1138jfc1138 Posts: 3,090member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sog35 View Post

     

    this will hurt resale. doomed




    Only were it mandatory; "sog35's Appelewatch" slathered on the sides like the default iPhone email signature block..

     

    Graduation gifts, retirement, bowling league swag bags: for a keepsake an engraving can be a possiblle option.

  • Reply 11 of 21
    jfc1138jfc1138 Posts: 3,090member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post



    Apple currently does engraving on products. What is the story here?



    So a look at a resale site might offer some info: like if Gazelle explicitly said to knock x% off if there's engraving. Frankly I don't recall the question coming up, but maybe it's rare enough they just wait to catch that at inspection when it arrives?

     

    ETA: Gazelle asks about iPods: "

    2. Additional Specs


    Engraving/Personalization? Information

    YesNo"

     

    They knocked $6 off (from $65 to $59) for a working 5th gen iPod Touch with 32 GB... when I answered "Yes" to engraving.

     

     


  • Reply 12 of 21
    mac_128mac_128 Posts: 3,454member

    How about custom diamond encrusting?

     

    I have to admit, the picture above is he nicest I'e seen that watch look since they announced it. When it's a little thinner that will be a sleek looking profile. But they really do have to get rid of that pill-capsule shaped button. It looks so 1998. 

  • Reply 13 of 21
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,312member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post



    One Watch to rule them all

    One Watch to find them

    One Watch to bring them all

    And in the darkness bind them.








    I'm going to go out on a limb and say that engravings would be popular. But where? The lefthand side of the casing is the only decent place I can see.

     

    I would assume it would be engraved on the back!!!  It's not something for everyone to just see.  It's like Engraving say a ring, it's on the inside of the band.   Or your iPad on the back.   Personally for something like this I think it's dumb!  it devalues the product if you ever plan to sell it in the future and upgrade to something newer.  Others don't want your engraving.  

  • Reply 14 of 21
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by JBDragon View Post

     

    Personally for something like this I think it's dumb!  it devalues the product if you ever plan to sell it in the future and upgrade to something newer.  Others don't want your engraving.  


     

    Who cares about that?

     

    I remember buying an iPod a long time ago for somebody as a gift, and I got it engraved.

     

    Since it was a gift, I don't care about the resale value of it. The gift recipient is not supposed to sell it ever!

     

    If I was buying an Apple Watch for myself though, I probably wouldn't bother getting it engraved.

  • Reply 15 of 21
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post

    One Watch to rule them all

    One Watch to find them

    One Watch to bring them all

    And in the darkness bind them.

     

    It doesn’t font correctly when I quote it. Yes, I just used font as a verb.

     

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post

    Apple currently does engraving on products. What is the story here?

     

    They don’t do engravings on ALL products.

     

    Thing is, it only makes sense to engrave watches. People have been engraving watches for centuries.

  • Reply 16 of 21
    I like the default engraving: "Designed by Apple in California"
  • Reply 17 of 21
    island hermitisland hermit Posts: 6,217member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfc1138 View Post

     

    So a look at a resale site might offer some info: like if Gazelle explicitly said to knock x% off if there's engraving. Frankly I don't recall the question coming up, but maybe it's rare enough they just wait to catch that at inspection when it arrives?

     

    ETA: Gazelle asks about iPods: "

    2. Additional Specs

    Engraving/Personalization?

    YesNo"

     

    They knocked $6 off (from $65 to $59) for a working 5th gen iPod Touch with 32 GB... when I answered "Yes" to engraving.




     


    Never mind... the formatting is blown today for me.


     


    Being able to update the OS on this 2007 iMac with the pos vid card would help.

  • Reply 18 of 21
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,821member
    solipsismy wrote: »
    I have to assume he's joking because iDevices have had the option for factory engraving since the iPod was king and those seem to be doing fairly well.

    But he is correct, all those iPods and iPhones users who engraved; Jim Smith 901 111 1111 etc. on the back really screwed themselves when it comes to selling. I know I did that in the early days. ????
  • Reply 19 of 21
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    But he is correct, all those iPods and iPhones users who engraved; Jim Smith 901 111 1111 etc. on the back really screwed themselves when it comes to selling. I know I did that in the early days. ????

    In the event he's sincere about the first sentence, then the comment is flawed. We all know that personalizing a product will, well, may it more personal, but it can both lower and raise the value of an object. As noted, the drop in price from Gazelle wasn't that much, and while a price drop will be the most common, it's not necessarily true. If one buys a product merely for utility or to gut certain parts it may not matter at all if you are selling it to an individual. Or, if it's proof that it was owned by (in the case of an engraving) or written by (in the case of, say, an autograph) someone famous or infamous the value could jump significantly.

    I assume it's all common knowledge, so why is there even a discussion on why one should or shouldn't get an item engraved? I recently bought an iPad Air 2 for something and choose to get it engraved. I think I've only done the engraving only one other time as a gift. This last time I had Fac alteri ut tibi vis engraved on the back. While that might affect resale value, it wasn't nary a concern when I made the decision to get it done, and I'm not really sure what individual would choose not to buy it secondhand if it had had engraved.
  • Reply 20 of 21
    dasanman69dasanman69 Posts: 13,002member
    mstone wrote: »

    Do you live one single minute without thinking of money?

    I found a photo of [@]sog35[/@]
    400
Sign In or Register to comment.