Apple design chief Jony Ive and Hermès artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas recently spoke with The Wall Street Journal about how the Apple Watch Hermès came to be.
Interestingly, the two companies began collaborating on the premium Apple Watch last year, several months before the wrist-worn device was released.
“It’s something highly unusual for Apple to do—to talk about an unannounced project,” said Mr. Ive, 48 years old. They decided to partner over lunch in Paris, where Hermès is based, last October.
Jony Ive believes that, while the Apple Watch Hermès was the most expensive product introduced at Apple's media event earlier this week, the premium watch does not make Apple an "exclusive" company. He later compared the Apple Watch Hermès to the Apple Watch Sport, stating that the same amount of time and effort went into designing both models.
“We don’t think in those terms,” Mr. Ive said in an interview Wednesday, after the Apple Watch Hermès was unveiled. “I’m not comfortable with words like exclusive.” […]
“Look at this next to one of the sport collection,” he says, referring to the $349 rubber-bracelet version that accounts for the majority of watch sales to date, according to people familiar with the matter. “There’s not one that had more care invested in its designing or making.”
Nevertheless, Apple's partnership with luxury goods maker Hermès is further evidence the Apple Watch is being positioned to both the high-end technology and fashion industries. The returns could be lucrative, with the Apple Watch Hermès lineup ranging in price from $1,100 to $1,500.
Apple Watch Hermès watches feature leather straps handmade in France, with ten different models to choose from in Single Tour, Double Tour and Cuff designs. The collection will be available for purchase in October at select Apple Store and Hermès locations in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco and Toronto.
Apple today announced that its next-generation CarPlay experience, now dubbed "CarPlay Ultra" begins rolling out today, starting with Aston Martin vehicles.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
CarPlay Ultra is now available with new Aston Martin vehicle orders in the U.S. and Canada. It will also be available for existing models that feature the brand's next-generation ...
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature.
According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
Apple today announced the launch of CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles.
CarPlay Ultra features deep integration with a vehicle's instrument cluster and systems, built-in Radio and Climate apps, customizable widgets, and more. The interface is tailored to each vehicle model and automaker's identity, and drivers can also adjust...
President Donald Trump has asked Apple CEO Tim Cook to halt the company's manufacturing expansion in India, in a potential disruption of Apple's plan to shift iPhone production away from China.
"I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday," Trump said during his state visit to Qatar, according to Bloomberg. "He is building all over India."
"They [India] have offered us a deal where...
Apple this week introduced a new feature designed to allow prospective Apple Music users to import their saved music and playlists from third-party music services to Apple Music.
The feature is either in an expanded testing phase or it has started rolling out, and it is available in Australia and New Zealand according to an Apple Support document. Signs of the transfer option first surfaced...
The first videos of Apple's CarPlay Ultra experience are now available, providing a never-before-seen look at the long-anticipated iPhone-linked infotainment software.
British automaker Aston Martin today shared the first video of Apple's CarPlay Ultra experience in-action, followed by a detailed walk-through of the CarPlay Ultra system on Top Gear's YouTube channel, which provides the...
Apple's Vision Pro headset has left many early adopters expressing dissatisfaction over its weight, limited use cases, and sparse software ecosystem, according to a new article from The Wall Street Journal.
In the year following the device's launch, user feedback suggests that it has failed to meet expectations for comfort, software support, and social acceptance. In interviews conducted by T...
Microsoft today shared a new ad on YouTube with the tagline "we're faster than a Mac."
In the video, Microsoft says the top-end Windows PCs with Copilot+ branding are up to 58% faster than the previous-generation MacBook Air with the M3 chip, based on Cinebench 2024 multi-core CPU benchmark results. The ad is citing old figures that were reported on all the way back in May 2024, so take that ...
I see most of you have never been inside an Hermes store.. I would advise you to refrain from entering one, because if you freak out about this you will most definitely have a seizure there
I disagree. I think they look great and would be a reason for me to buy the Apple Watch. I just wish it wasn't $1500. Can't any other third party manufacturers make something that looks/feels similarly great?
So.. wait a minute.. how much exactly does one of those leather straps cost?
I bought a piece of leather once for about the same price, and it came with a floor, a roof, some doors and wheels, and an engine, and it was really useful. What does THIS piece of leather do?
What I find interesting is that while these are among the most expensive Apple Watches (not Edition, of course), they are actually the cheapest watches Hermès offers. So, in a way, the Apple Watch makes Hermès less exclusive