Cook calls timepiece ‘most personal device’

Apple will begin selling its new watch from April, with the high-end model starting at $10,000 (€9,215), the company said, rolling out its first new product in five years in a bid to extend its pre-eminence in mobile devices.

The Apple Watch sport will start at $349 for the smaller, 38mm model. The standard version of the watch will start at $549 and the high-end “Edition” watch will be priced from $10,000, chief executive Tim Cook said yesterday.

The different versions of the watch feature different materials for the case: the “Edition” version comes in 18-carat yellow or rose gold, for instance.

Orders will start on April 10, and the April 24 launch will include stores in the United States, China, Japan, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, the UK and Ireland.

In the presentation, Cook described the watch handling many functions currently associated with the iPhone, which tethers wirelessly to the watch and connects it to the internet. For instance, Uber cars can be contacted from the watch.

The watch will track exercise, remind wearers of events with a tap on the wrist, and make calls through the tethered phone, since the watch has a built in speaker and microphone, he said.

Apple calls it “the most personal Apple device ever”.

Prices starts at $349 with Apple Watch Sport, aimed at fitness enthusiasts, in anodised aluminum in silver or space gray, with colorful band choices. Apple Watch stainless steel starts at $549, in traditional and space black. And for those who eat cake: Apple Watch Edition, an 18-karat yellow or rose gold version has a starting price of $10,000.

The watch includes: swipe-able “glances” that show you the information you use most; customisable faces for the dial of your choice, and lots of features for fitness buffs and others who need a reminder to get out of their chairs.

Another feature is called ‘Taptic feedback’ (a subtle tap), which notifies wearers of new emails and other messages. By tapping a finger on the watchface, wearers can control music, send Instagram photos, sketch and send a dynamic drawing to a friend, and see who is calling. Return calls with voice or a voice-to-text messaging functionality.

Apple says the watch can substitute for a hotel room key, boarding pass, even a wallet. Apple Pay promises to enable supermarket checkouts with a single tap of your wrist.

The tech giant also said the device’s “all-day” battery promises about 18 hours of life. It can be charged by snapping a magnetic charger to the back of the watch.

“I have been wanting to do this since I was five,” said Cook. He also laid out other product successes and launched a MacBook notebook computer that starts at $1,299 and weighs 0.9kg.

Every major car brand had committed to delivering Apple’s CarPlay entertainment system, and the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have 99% customer satisfaction rates, he said.