Apple watch series 5 (gps + cellular, 44mm) titanium space

September means a lot of things. The muggy new york summer is winding down. Watchmakers are coming back from their summer holidays. And it"s new hãng apple Watch time. This is now the fifth year that I"ve made the annual pilgrimage out lớn Silicon Valley khổng lồ be a part of the gaggle of reporters literally tripping over one another khổng lồ be first to lớn get their hands on Apple’s latest và greatest.

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For me though, the best part of this is the opportunity to check in & see how táo apple is thinking about the Watch. It"s important to lớn remember that while táo apple Watch is now five years old, it"s still a relatively young product và one that’s still maturing at a relatively quick clip. Each year doesn"t just mean a faster cpu set or more battery life – it means a reimagining of the scope & purpose of the apple Watch & the way it can fit into customers" lives. That"s something worth getting excited about. 

Because last year"s táo bị cắn dở Watch Series 4 was such a massive leap forward, consensus before last week"s event was that this year"s release would be much more minor. In hindsight that feels foolish & the apple Watch Series 5 is yet another big jump in fit, finish, & overall experience. 

I"ve spent a week with the hãng apple Watch Series 5 Edition in the new titanium case, & it"s given me an awful lot khổng lồ think about. 

The new crop of táo khuyết Watch Edition models come in trắng ceramic, natural titanium (seen here), and space đen titanium.

The version of the Series 5 that táo loaned me for this review is the brand new Edition mã sản phẩm in brushed titanium. We"ll get into all the details of what this means later, but it"s worth taking a minute lớn look back at the táo bị cắn Watch Edition lineup over và how this collection of premium Watch models has changed over the last half-decade. 

When the first táo Watch was announced on September 9, 2014, one of the things that got the most truyền thông media attention was Apple"s decision to lớn release a whole collection of models in solid gold. You totally forgot about that, right? Well, they did it. The OG táo apple Watch Edition models were made in solid 18k rose và yellow gold with matching buckles, special straps, và higher-end packaging. Prices started at $10,000 & ran right up to $17,000. 

Beyoncé wearing a solid gold táo bị cắn dở Watch Edition on an unreleased gold bracelet in 2015. (Photo: The Verge)

This was a clear shot across the bow from apple that the Watch was a luxury fashion product as much as it was a technology product. Hãng apple is home to some of the greatest kinh doanh minds on the planet và this is a great example of their genius. From photos of Beyoncé & Karl Lagerfeld wearing gold táo bị cắn Watches on custom gold bracelets to lớn massive spreads in Vogue, the táo bị cắn Watch was instantly a part of the conversation. Sure, they caught flack in some circles and others thought the whole thing was a stunt, but it got people talking. 

When it debuted in 2015, the táo bị cắn Watch Hermès Edition might have surprised some people – but not us. The French luxury and design house has a long history working with watchmakers and the partnership with táo seemed lượt thích a logical next step. Ben wrote a lengthy piece explaining why, & you should definitely give it a read.

Click here to check out Ben"s original story from 2015.

When the Series 2 debuted in 2016, these models were suspiciously absent. Táo apple mostly declined to phản hồi about it, simply saying that the collection would be evolving over the years and this was part of that. We still don"t know how many gold apple Watches were sold, but most analysts think the number was pretty small, relatively speaking. When you"re talking about Apple, "small numbers" could easily mean tens or hundreds of thousands of units.

Then with the Series 3 we got a pair of ceramic models in white & space grey, which Ben reviewed right here. These Edition Watches were priced just a hair over $1,000, so they were still more than twice the price of the introductory models, but they weren"t anywhere near the original gold models. I think most of us here around kasynoonlinemy.com HQ were fans – the hãng apple Watch"s curvy thiết kế is perfectly suited khổng lồ polished ceramic.

That"s exactly why I was disappointed to lớn see the Edition collection disappear yet again last year with the release of Series 4. Instead, we got the new gold-colored steel model, which seemed to lớn step in as last year"s most luxe option. I like that apple Watch plenty, but it doesn"t have quite the same gravitas as the ceramic.

And that brings us khổng lồ today. For Series 5, apple re-introduced a trắng ceramic Edition mã sản phẩm (though space grey ceramic is still absent) as well as a pair of Edition models in titanium, one in a matte natural màu sắc and one in DLC space black. This is the first time we"ve seen a titanium apple Watch & it"s an interesting move from Apple. It sits between the steel và ceramic models in terms of price and it offers a more luxurious option that’s still a great choice for people using their Watch as a fitness device. This fusion of function and indulgence fits in extremely well with Apple"s current thinking on the hãng apple Watch as simultaneously a wellness và fashion product. 

The big question still looms though: vì chưng you really want or need premium materials và increased prices in a device that you"re most likely going to want khổng lồ replace annually (at least for the next few year)? I think that’s still very much a personal decision & it"s hard lớn fault people for coming down on either side. Materials like ceramic and titanium, being both functional và still relatively affordable, make much more sense khổng lồ me than solid gold at this point, but I"d be very surprised if we didn"t continue khổng lồ see the Edition collection ebb và flow over the coming years. 

The táo Watch Series 5 was kind of a surprise. Sure, we obviously knew that táo bị cắn dở was going to lớn release a new Watch this month, that was all but 100% confirmed. But what wasn"t expected was the big technological leap that we got. There was chatter about new case materials và maybe some new health tracking features ahead of the release, but the introduction of the always-on display was a big surprise and it"s as big a change to lớn the táo Watch as we"ve seen so far.

In case you"re not familiar, all past táo Watch models featured displays that would go dark when you weren"t looking at them. Lớn show the time, you would raise your wrist & an accelerometer inside the watch would tell it khổng lồ turn on. This saved power and was key to lớn Apple"s "18-hour, all day battery life" promise. Sure, there have been tons of other smartwatches from other makers who have had low-power modes and various always-on displays, but this quirky feature was baked into the táo Watch from day one. 

The key thing here though is that táo apple added this new display without changing the physical form size of the Watch models or the battery life. The 44mm & 40mm watches are exactly the same dimensions (which are 44mm x 38mm x 10.7mm for the larger model) as they were in the Series 4, & you still get 18-hour/all-day battery life. This solves what might be the most-heard complaint about the táo bị cắn dở Watch, which is that people don"t like having khổng lồ flick their wrists to lớn read the time. That gesture is so baked into our culture và oftentimes has a rude connotation khổng lồ it – notice how you feel next time someone overtly checks their watch while you"re talking khổng lồ them, if you have any doubts. Now, a quick glance is all you need và you"re good khổng lồ go.

For the second volume of The kasynoonlinemy.com Magazine, our own Ben Clymer had a chance to sit down with apple Chief kiến thiết Officer Jony Ive to lớn talk about the origins of the apple Watch, its deep ties to lớn traditional horology, và Jony"s own taste in watches. This is an unprecedented look inside the creation of one of Apple"s most-talked-about products (and a fun one at that).

Explore the full feature here.

This meant a lot of software changes for watchOS 6 too. Most importantly, Apple"s kiến thiết team has to reimagine the various watch faces to be flexible enough khổng lồ run at full power when you’re looking at the watch and in a low-power mode for when the watch is at your side or resting on your desk. For many faces, this means that colors disappear, seconds hands might vanish, & overall brightness diminishes. However, in most cases you still get all (or most) of the key information you need. I"ll get into the practical benefits of this in a minute, but spoiler alert: it"s a huge deal.

I won"t get too nerdy here, but the technology that enables this is called a Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide (LTPO) display. It"s still an OLED-based Retina display but it has a dynamic refresh rate, meaning that when the display is in low-power mode it can adjust khổng lồ refresh just once per second instead of 60+ times per second. That"s how you still get all that battery life without sacrificing chất lượng and legibility.

The taupe dial màu sắc on the California watch face is named "Edition" & only available on the premium titanium and ceramic watches.

There are a few new faces, including the Meridian, Numerals Duo, and Solar Dial, & the faces in general are even more customizable than they used to be. As Apple"s offering of straps expands, you"ve got all kinds of màu sắc choices for the watch faces to match. My favorite of the bunch is a new California dial that shows there are some real watch nerds on the táo design team. I"ve had mine phối in the special "Edition" color, which is a great shade of taupe that"s only available on the Edition models. Táo has previously had exclusive colors & faces on the Hermès models & Nike+ models, but not the other Edition watches. The fact that it"s taupe doesn"t hurt anything.

There are a few other new features, both hardware và software, but whether or not you"ll get a lot of value out of them will depend on how you use your apple Watch (things like a compass, menstrual cycle tracking, và a noise metering app). But no matter what you do, the always-on display is, without a doubt, the most important update the apple Watch has seen in years.

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As far as pricing goes, the titanium Edition models occupy a nice middle ground between the steel and the ceramic, starting at $799 for the 40mm và $849 for the 44mm. Those prices include either a thể thao Loop or sport Band, but you can now swap one of those out for a leather or metal strap for an up-charge instead of having to lớn just purchase additional straps later. Personally, I"ve always thought that the sport Bands are the best all-purpose táo apple Watch bands và some of the new colors are really great, so for my money I"d stick with the basics.

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On The Wrist

The Series 5 has a bunch of new faces, including this Solar Dial.

I"ve spent the last week wearing the táo bị cắn Watch Series 5 Edition in the 44mm natural titanium variation. When I first took it out of the box & strapped it on, I could immediately feel the difference between this & the more classic steel version that I"ve been wearing on and off for the last year. The former weighs in at 41.7 grams, while the latter weighs in at 47.8 grams – a difference of 7.1 grams. That might not sound lượt thích a not, but it"s about 13% and you really bởi feel it. There"s still substance lớn the titanium Edition though. My complaint with the aluminum models has always been that they’re too light. They feel insubstantial. This is comfortable while still letting you know that you"ve got something on your wrist.

I also really like the finish on the titanium. Táo bị cắn describes it simply as "natural," but there"s a bit of brushing to lớn it so that the light bounces off of it in a cohesive way. I especially lượt thích the way that this brushing accents the curves around the corners & lug area of the case. It has a slightly powdery feel to the touch, which is likely due to lớn a combination of the finishing of the metal itself và a nano-coating that táo bị cắn applies khổng lồ prevent patina from developing. Would I personally prefer a case that takes on some character over time? Sure. But I think I"m probably in the minority there and I appreciate Apples"s attention to detail there.

The titanium case has a matte finish khổng lồ it that looks và feels outstanding.

The lug area gives you a great view of the light horizontal brushing.

There"s a nano coating on the titanium khổng lồ prevent patina from developing over time.

As I started wearing the watch around, I found the always-on screen a bit disorienting a first. After years of expecting there khổng lồ be a shiny black void, I suddenly had something staring back at me even when I wasn"t paying it deliberate attention. In a funny way, after the initial weirdness wore off, it actually made the Series 5 feel more natural & comfortable. As someone who"s most often wearing an analog watch of some kind or another, I"m very used lớn more subtle time-checking gestures and to always having my watch"s hands và dial visible. Even beyond the functionality, this makes the Series 5 feel more like a watch than any previous táo bị cắn Watch.

I will say that one side effect of the always-on display is that I"m using simpler watch faces. This isn"t all down lớn my mild obsession with the California dial, either. With the display always on, I don"t necessarily want other people checking out my complications without my permission. My vintage Rolex doesn’t tell people when my next appointment is và my modern IWC doesn"t tóm tắt my heart rate with passersby. This might not bother some people, but I"ve been keeping it simple and I don"t think it negatively impacted my experience at all. If this really bothers you, there is the option to turn it off too.

As I"ve chatted with people about the Series 5 over the last week – some folks who saw the watches in the metal at last week"s sự kiện and some who didn"t – the question of whether this generation of táo bị cắn Watch is incremental or revolutionary keeps coming up. I"ve gone back & forth on this point a few times, but ultimately I think it"s much closer to a revolution than it might seem. The display staying on fundamentally changes how you use the watch và it"s something you notice constantly. That, khổng lồ me, is a pretty big deal.

I found myself largely having the same experience I have each September when a new táo khuyết Watch comes out. I"m sucked right back into its world. Jack wrote a few weeks ago about how he"s made the táo bị cắn Watch a part of his daily life, and I’m awfully tempted to do the same. It"s very easy to get used to the instantaneous information pipeline, the easy-wearing nature of the táo bị cắn Watch, and all the ways it can bring genuine utility to daily tasks. I"m not sure for how much longer I"ll be wearing the Series 5 on a daily basis, but I find that each year it takes me a bit longer to start phasing my mechanical watches back into rotation.

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Final Thoughts

It"s a cliché, but it"s true: This is by far the best táo bị cắn dở Watch yet.

As someone who has been covering the táo Watch since the day it was first unveiled, I find myself getting wrapped up in a lot of the more philosophical questions every time a new evolution is released. How does táo bị cắn see this device fitting into its broader ecosystem? What does this version telegraph about how apple sees the Watch growing in the future? What sorts of tough decisions had to be made & how can you see them manifested in the final product? By the end of any review, there’s really on one question that matters: Should I buy this thing? 

If you"re not yet an táo bị cắn Watch user & you"re at all curious about the apple Watch, I do think this is something you should try and need lớn experience lớn fully understand. And while it might be tempting to opt for one of the entry màn chơi models or even khổng lồ buy the less expensive Series 3 (which is still sticking around as the base offering), I don"t think you"re going khổng lồ get the most out of the táo apple Watch or enjoy it most if you go that route. As a device that you wear on your body toàn thân and cảm ứng frequently, the apple Watch really benefits from materials like steel, titanium, and ceramic. The experience of wearing the titanium Edition versus an aluminum mã sản phẩm is night và day.

If you already have an táo khuyết Watch, even a Series 4, I still think this is a worthy upgrade. You"re not going lớn get the full hãng apple Watch experience without that always-on display and the new watch faces. With a hàng hóa that"s changing & growing as quickly as táo apple Watch, annual upgrades are just part of the giảm giá if you want khổng lồ immerse yourself in it. If you"re a casual user, your Series 4 is still going lớn be great, assuming you can keep the FOMO at bay.

For me, it’s pretty simple: This is the táo bị cắn dở Watch I"ve always wanted. The matte titanium case is the perfect middle ground for me between the sometimes-a-bit-much trắng ceramic và the highly polished steel, & the always-on display makes it feel more natural and watch-like in daily use. I"ve said it before and I"ll say it again: It"s very clear lớn me that the days when the táo apple Watch is nearly indispensable are coming – and probably faster than we think.

The táo bị cắn Watch Series 5 is available for pre-order now, with delivery beginning this Friday, September 20. Prices start at $399 and the watch you see in this review sells for $849.