ABC was recently invited to Apple's top-secret health and fitness lab for the Apple Watch for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the testing facility, accompanied by Apple executives Jeff Williams and Jay Blahnik. The network shared a preview of its visit on Good Morning America earlier today, and has now provided a closer look at the facility on the latest episode of late night show Nightline.
The five-minute interview behind closed doors revealed that Apple collected over 18,000 hours of health and fitness data based on over 10,000 workout sessions that Apple employees participated in over the past two years at the company's secretive fitness lab. Blahnik, director of fitness and health technologies at Apple, also confirmed that the company tested the Apple Watch outdoors based on a variety of activities.
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Apple Watch will be available April 24, with pre-orders starting April 10 in the first wave of launch countries: United States, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and United Kingdom. The wrist-worn device starts at $349 for the Apple Watch Sport, while the stainless steel models will retail for between $549 to $1,099 and the 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition will cost up to $17,000.
Top Rated Comments
I don't know if/when I'll want an Apple Watch, but I do know Apple goes way beyond the halfway spaghetti-on-the-wall product development practiced by the competition.
"Oh look, people running on machines. How amazing our product therefore is."
...or not.
I wouldn't never expect Samsung to test a product like this, they just release crap and keep releasing different products till they get it right. So good on you Apple on the effort to get a good product out the first time...
I still won't buy it though.... maybe when Apple drops the price or adds more sensors to make it worth that price point...
10 bucks a new watch strap connector comes out in 2 years and makes all those over priced straps useless.... Jono ivey will come out and say.. all new thin connector so we can make the thinnest watch ever, saving 1mm and ****ing all you over. thank you for dropping 500 dollars on your old useless strap...
I don't know whether the Apple Watch will be a marketing success. I don't know whether it will check enough boxes in performance and function. I do know that Apple has done an awful lot of design and testing in bringing their smartwatch to the playing field. None of the other full feature devices have hit the mark yet but many of them were rushed to market in what appeared to be an effort to scoop Apple.