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Apple Watch available in 9 countries on April 24

Press release; Joseph Tsai, DIGITIMES Asia 0

Apple has announced that the Apple Watch will be available on April 24 to customers in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, the UK and the US.

The Apple Watch introduces technologies including the Digital Crown, an innovation to help users scroll, zoom and navigate without obstructing the display. The Retina display with Force Touch on the Apple Watch senses the difference between a tap and a press, providing a new way to access relevant controls. The Taptic Engine delivers a gentle tap on the wrist whenever the user receives a notification or message.

The Apple Watch keeps time to within 50 milliseconds of the universal time standard (UTC). The Apple Watch can be personalized with watch faces ranging from traditional analog such as the Chronograph face, to the information-rich Modular face, or animated butterflies and jellyfish on the Motion face.

The Apple Watch's Activity app provides a simple visual snapshot of users' daily activity with three rings that measure active calories burned, brisk activity and how often users stood up to take a break from sitting during the day.

The Apple Watch is available in two different sizes, 38mm and 42mm, and in three collections - Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition. Apple Watch Sport features a lightweight anodized aluminum case in silver and gray with a Retina display protected by strengthened Ion-X glass and matching high-performance fluoroelastomer Sport Band in five colors. The Apple Watch collection comes with a choice of three different leather straps, a stainless steel link bracelet and Milanese loop, and a black or white Sport Band. The Apple Watch Edition features cases specially crafted from custom rose or yellow 18K gold alloys developed to be twice as hard as standard gold, a Retina display protected by polished sapphire crystal and a choice of straps and bands with 18K gold clasps, buckles or pins.

The Apple Watch delivers up to 18-hour all-day battery life and comes with a unique charging solution that combines Apple's MagSafe technology with inductive charging for a quick connection.

Beginning April 10 in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, the UK and the US, the Apple Watch will be available for preview, try-on by appointment at Apple's retail stores, and available for pre-order through the Apple Online Store. On April 24, The Apple Watch will be available online or by reservation in Apple's retail stores and select Apple authorized resellers in China and Japan. Customers who purchase online or in-store from Apple will be offered personal setup to customize and pair the Apple Watch with their iPhones.

The Apple Watch is available in three collections, Apple Watch Sport, priced at US$349 and US$399; Apple Watch, available from US$549 to US$1,099; and Apple Watch Edition with prices starting at US$10,000.

Apple Watch smartwatches

Apple Watch smartwatches
Photo: Company