Apple is set to close its last remaining pop-up shop dedicated to Apple Watch next month. Signs displayed at the Tokyo shop, located in Shinjuku's high-end Isetan department store, were shared on Twitter announcing the closure.
The message reads, "This is a notice that Apple Watch at Isetan Shinjuku will close as of Sunday, May 13. Thank you very much for your continuous patronage."
The closure of the pop-up shop follows last month's opening of Apple's Shinjuku store, which is situated directly opposite Isetan and offers the full range of Apple products and services, including Apple Watch.
Japan's pop-up shop is notable for being the first of its kind to open, coinciding with the launch of the original Apple Watch in 2015. Apple has only operated three pop-up shops worldwide selling Apple watches and bands. The other two operated out of Galeries Lafayette in Paris and Selfridges in London. Both closed in 2017.
The closures appear to be part of Apple's recent strategy of promoting Apple Watch as a health and fitness accessory first and a haute couture fashion detail second. The pop-up shops specialized in selling Apple Watch Edition models, gold versions of which sold for at least $10,000 and up to $17,000 when they hit the market.
The pop-up shops were essentially outlets for Apple's remaining inventory of 18-karat Gold and Rose Gold Apple Watch Edition models, which were discontinued in 2016 and replaced with the ceramic Edition models the company continues to offer online and in-store to this day.
Thursday November 6, 2025 11:12 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today updated its trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models. Trade-ins can be completed on Apple's website, or at an Apple Store.
The charts below provide an overview of Apple's current and previous trade-in values in the U.S., according to its website. Maximum values for most devices either decreased or saw no change, but the iPad Air received a slight bump.
...
Thursday November 6, 2025 2:45 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple is promoting the new Liquid Glass design in iOS 26, showing off the ways that third-party developers are embracing the aesthetic in their apps. On its developer website, Apple is featuring a visual gallery that demonstrates how "teams of all sizes" are creating Liquid Glass experiences.
The gallery features examples of Liquid Glass in apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac. Apple...
Friday November 7, 2025 6:40 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's online store in the U.S. is suddenly offering a pack of four AirTags for just $29, which is the same price as a single AirTag.
This is likely a pricing error, and it is unclear if orders will be fulfilled. Apple has not discounted the AirTag four-pack in any other countries that we checked.
Delivery estimates are already pushing into late November to early December, suggesting...
Monday November 3, 2025 5:54 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Following more than a month of beta testing, Apple released iOS 26.1 on Monday, November 3. The update includes a handful of new features and changes, including the ability to adjust the look of Liquid Glass and more.
Below, we outline iOS 26.1's key new features.
Liquid Glass Toggle
iOS 26.1 lets you choose your preferred look for Liquid Glass.
In the Settings app, under Display...
Thursday November 6, 2025 4:08 pm PST by Juli Clover
IKEA today announced the upcoming launch of 21 new Matter-compatible smart home products that will be able to interface with HomeKit and the Apple Home app. There are sensors, lights, and control options, all of which will be reasonably priced. Some of the products are new, while some are updates to existing lines that IKEA previously offered.
There are a series of new smart bulbs that are...
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...
The future of Apple Fitness+ is "under review" amid a reorganization of the service, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple Fitness+ remains one of the company's "weakest digital offerings." The service apparently suffers from high churn and little revenue.
Nevertheless, Fitness+ has a small, loyal fanbase that...
Friday November 7, 2025 1:19 pm PST by Juli Clover
HTX Studio this week shared the results from a six-month battery test that compared how fast charging and slow charging can affect battery life over time.
Using six iPhone 12 models, the channel set up a system to drain the batteries from five percent and charge them to 100 percent over and over again. Three were fast charged, and three were slow charged.
Another set of iPhones underwent...
Thursday November 6, 2025 4:37 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple in iOS 26.2 will disable automatic Wi-Fi network syncing between iPhone and Apple Watch in the European Union to comply with the bloc's regulations, suggests a new report.
Normally, when an iPhone connects to a new Wi-Fi network, it automatically shares the network credentials with the paired Apple Watch. This allows the watch to connect to the same network independently – for...
Pop-up implies eventual pop-down after the pop-ulation is satisfied or the item proves generally pop-ular or absolutely un-pop-ular.
The original Edition watches were more of a perception-smashing marketing gimmick designed to break the snob-appeal of high-end mechanical timepieces.
Given that an Apple Watch does all the functions, except being like jewelry, that high end watches do, the Edition was necessary to move people beyond the aesthetic hang-up they would have against a black screen and something akin to Geek Wear. The gold Edition served this purpose and Apple Watch has cemented its place at nearly the top of the Watch industry.
So no great surprise that the pop-up are popping-down now as their customers can buy through conventional channels now. And if the ultra-spenders don’t replace, but go back to Swiss watches? No big deal because they are a rarified slice of the overall market, a market that Apple now is #2 in (within 3 years of entry.)
MacRumors left out the most interesting nugget in the whole story, imo. From 9to5Mac ('https://9to5mac.com/2018/04/21/apple-watch-isetan-shinjuku-closing-may-13/') article: "Earlier this week, Apple held a fire sale for the Apple Watch Edition on the Isetan website ('https://isetan.mistore.jp/onlinestore/fashiongoods/apple_watch/index.html'), where remaining inventory quickly sold out. The 38mm model was offered ('https://www.gizmodo.jp/2018/04/apple-watch-edition-97-off.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=d9e0981168eaec1a7b48b8c291c90dc0') for 75,600 yen (just over $700 USD.) Upon its debut in 2015, the Apple Watch Edition was priced from $10,000 to $17,000, depending on the model."
I couldn't believe the marketing strategy for the original Apple Watch as a fashion accessory. I really think that was the pinnacle of the recent climb in Apple snobbery. Apple has always been about making cool products that look good, but the primary focus has been to improve people's lives in some way. The cool, fashionable aspect has always just been a given - a byproduct of thoughtful design - and hasn't needed to be forced on buyers, like the watch's marketing in 2015.
The shift to fitness first, and then the watch being an emblem of athleticism and therefore coolness, is much more effective.
However, when the Apple Watch first launched, it was promoted heavily as a fashion statement, especially given they launched an 18 karat gold Apple Watch starting at $10,000. Most of the marketing towards the Apple Watch when it first launched was also geared towards being a fashion statement, however; since the transition with the heart rate sensor inrovements, swimming features, and even the most current marketing is focused on health related features. So it’s making a transition from where first started, which I believe likely for the Series 4 we will see additional health sensors and more health oriented applications, and eventually glucose monitoring, which the future the Apple Watch will rely on health advancements.
I think they wanted to market it as a fashion item at the beginning but they didn't sell enough edition models and found out it was easier to promote it as a fitness device.
