Apple took the leap into the wearable space with the announcement of its Apple Watch earlier in September this year, revealing that the device will start at $349. Now rumors suggest that the gold and stainless steel editions of the Apple Watch may set consumers back by $5,000 and $500, respectively!
Apple revealed that it would release three collections - Sport Collection, Watch Collection and Edition Collection, which would be composed of aluminum, stainless steel and gold cases, respectively. It was anticipated that the company would have three basic price points, which would vary depending on the band choice and perhaps size.
Now, according to French website iGen.fr, the stainless steel version of the Apple Watch will start at $500, whereas the gold variant of the wearable may start from $4000 to $5000.
"Apple Watch Stainless Steel (polished or black sidereal) would be proposed at $ 500. The Edition model in yellow or pink gold would be sold between $4,000 and $ 5,000 (translated)," reveals iGen.fr.
The French website cites reliable sources as the basis of its information. iGen.fr has a track record of being dependable as the publication reported the dimensions of the then impending iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6 smartphones from Apple correctly.
Previous estimates from industry experts have pegged the top-end gold Apple Watch's pricing between $1000 and $5000. The Edition Collection will be fashioned from 18K gold and have sapphire crystal. This variant of the Apple Watch will also come with several expensive strap options. Apple, however, has not disclosed whether the chassis of this variant of the Apple Watch is solid gold or simply gold plated.
According to iGen.fr's sources, the Apple Watch will release by Feb. 2015 on Valentine's Day. Both resellers and distributors are fervently preparing for the mid-Feb release of the Apple Watch next year per the site.
Apple SVP of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts' leaked video to employees let slip that the company would release the Apple Watch in Spring next year.
With the pricing of the stainless steel and gold variants of the Apple Watch veering towards the expensive, it seems the aluminum version is poised to be the low-end model. It will be interesting to see if consumers are willing to spend a bomb on a smartwatch whose performance is not known.
