On Wednesday, Apple may introduce new smartwatches that cost less than the most affordable model in the lineup, the $279 Apple Watch SE.
- What is happening? Rumor has it that Apple will unveil a new Apple Watch model at Wednesday’s Far Out event, which is said to undermine the Apple Watch SE.
- Why care? At just $279, the Apple Watch SE is the most affordable model in the family. But with an even cheaper model, Apple will target parents who are looking for an affordable smartwatch for their kids.
- What to do? If you’re considering upgrading your Apple Watch, now is not the best time to do so. Wait until Apple reveals its cards tomorrow before making your move.
Budget Apple Watch coming out
As far as smartwatches go, the $279 Apple Watch SE is a budget model. However, it looks like this may change soon.
A new report from The New York Times claims that Wednesday’s Far Out press conference will also serve as a launch pad for an all-new budget Apple Watch model.
Apple plans to compete more aggressively for younger smartwatch buyers in the near future. Wednesday’s event is slated to release a new version of the Apple Watch that’s cheaper than the Apple Watch SE.
The report clearly states that this will be a completely new model.
According to them, the model will be presented along with other new versions of the watch, including high-end wearables for serious athletes that will compete with fitness trackers created by their rival Garmin.
American children are more likely to use smartwatches than adults
The numbers don’t lie – there’s a lot of demand for affordable smartwatches designed for kids. This is largely due to the growing popularity of Apple smartwatches. Read: How to Limit Kids’ Screen Time on iPhone and iPad
Surveys show that kids as young as five are currently a very lucrative market for smartwatches. Investment bank Piper Sandler conducted a survey of American teenagers in 2020 and found that 31% of them own smartwatches. That same year, the Pew Research Center found that 21% of American adults own them.
In the United States, parents are increasingly buying Apple Watches and putting them on the wrists of children as young as 5 years old. Purpose: to use these devices as a temporary mobile phone for children. With the watch’s cellular capabilities, parents can use it to contact and track their kids, while the miniature screens mitigate issues like Internet addiction.
It helps that smartwatches are harder to break and lose than a smartphone.
Introducing the Budget Apple Watch
On Wednesday, Apple will introduce its own new smartwatch. This time there will be several models designed for different users. In addition to the Apple Watch Series 8 models, Apple will introduce high-end rugged watches designed for athletes, extreme sports enthusiasts and the like.
In addition, there will be a new model of Apple Watch SE.
With that in mind, could these cheaper-than-Apple-Watch-SEs be the current Apple Watch SE, which is on sale at a discounted price when the third generation model becomes available? We doubt it. When the second-generation iPhone SE was released in 2020, it replaced the former as Apple’s new low-cost model in the family.
Therefore, we believe that the budget Apple Watch reported by the NYT is a completely new model, designed specifically for children and young buyers. Such a device might even use a plastic case and skimp on some features to make it as affordable as possible.
The lack of official Apple Watch apps from TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and others would make affordable, kid-friendly Apple Watches even more appealing, a bit like smartphone training wheels.
And thanks to features like Family Setup, Apple already lets parents set up smartwatches for their kids to track their location, manage their contact list, and limit their notifications. Read: How to use Schooltime on Apple Watch to avoid distractions