Apple Announces Nylon Watch Bands, Drops Starting Apple Watch Price to $299

At Apple's March 2016 event today in its Cupertino headquarters, the company announced a brand new band material for its Apple Watch: woven nylon. Apple also announced several new colors for other Apple Watch bands, including a black Milanese Loop. The Apple Watch will also see a price drop, with the Apple Watch Sport now starting at $299.

wovennylon
The new woven nylon bands, which are the signature addition to the new "spring collection" of Apple Watch bands, are priced at $49 and come in 7 colors: Gold / Red, Gold / Royal Blue, Royal Blue, Pink, Pearl, Scuba Blue and Black.

Other new bands include Red and Marine Blue Classic Buckles, Marigold and Blue Jay Modern Buckles, White and Storm Gray Leather Loops, Space Black Milanese Loop, and Yellow, Apricot and Royal Blue Sport Bands.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Skipped the iPhone 17 Pro? Here's What is Rumored for iPhone 18 Pro

Tuesday September 23, 2025 8:55 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. This story was published previously, and it has been updated to reflect the latest rumors. Many early rumors prove to be true, but nothing is confirmed yet, and Apple's...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
apple tv 4k new orange

Next Apple TV Expected to Launch This Year With These New Features

Monday September 22, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
The next Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Likely Features N1 Chip With Wi-Fi 7 Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the next Apple TV would be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which is...
Apple More Personal Siri Ad

Apple Responds to U.S. Class Action Lawsuit Over Delayed Siri Features

Friday September 26, 2025 6:57 am PDT by
In March, Apple delayed the launch of its personalized Siri features, and soon after the company was hit with multiple class action lawsuits over the situation. The plaintiffs said they never would have purchased an iPhone 16, or would have paid less, had they known Apple's marketing about the Siri features was false. In the U.S., all of the complaints were consolidated into one class...

Top Rated Comments

dsburdette Avatar
124 months ago
I'm interested in an Apple watch at a price point of about $99-$129. As someone who abandoned watches a long time ago, I just cannot get excited at all. That's not speaking against the array of features it has, but more that I'm completely disinterested in this category.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
OldSchoolMacGuy Avatar
124 months ago
Big price drop..
Sales must be lower than they expected/want.
They sold for that much around Xmas. They just have room to discount and are taking advantage of that to drive more sales before they roll out an upgrade.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cloudness Avatar
124 months ago
Just finished browsing the updated Apple Store (nylon bands are priced as sport bands) and getting increasingly frustrated by lack of options for black watches.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
doelcm82 Avatar
124 months ago
It doesn't help Apple's image either. Other than the original iPhone (which was a brand new market category for the entire cell phone industry - which the watch is not), I don't think Apple has ever dropped the price on a product less than a year old without releasing a new one to take its place.

Very telling.
Those who owned smartphones before Apple came out with the iPhone (and who argued to anyone who would listen, that the iPhone wasn't even very "smart") will take exception to your assertion that the smart phone category was created by Apple, while the smart watch category was already mature.

Or were you talking about some other category? If so, what is that category called in the industry press?

In what ways does lowering the price on the year-old Apple Watch damage your personal opinion of Apple?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vooke Avatar
124 months ago
Underwhelming
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nburwell Avatar
124 months ago
I'd have to see these bands in person before I pass judgment. However at first look, I'm not really a fan.

FYI, Best Buy and Target have the AW starting at $249 for the sport model. I picked the rose gold sport model up for my girlfriend for her birthday yesterday.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)