Apple Watch Leather Bands May Be Discontinued for Series 9

Late last month, rumors suggested that Apple plans to eliminate leather cases for the iPhone 15 lineup, and today we are hearing that Apple Watch leather bands may also soon be phased out as part of a fresh sustainability push by Apple.

hermes single tours 2022
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman believes that Apple will "begin moving away from leather on its Apple Watch bands as well," which, as he rightly notes, puts the future of Apple's partnership with luxury brand Hermès in question.

Adding weight to this assumption, Gurman reports that last month Apple began offering employees its Apple Watch Hermès leather accessories and leather link bands at heavily discounted prices – in some cases up to 90% off – in a clear indication that Apple is clearing its inventory.

Gurman offers the example of Apple Hermès bands with a retail price of $850 – likely the Noir Swift Leather Gourmette (Metal) Double Tour – being offered to staff for $85. The internal deal is said to be continuing even though many Hermès bands are officially out of stock.

hermes Noir Swift Leather Gourmette Metal Double Tour

Hermès Noir Swift Leather Gourmette (Metal) Double Tour

"Several other accessories including many Solo Loop bands in outgoing colors and the MagSafe charging dock [sic] are also on deep discount to clear stock," added the reporter in a Twitter (X) post, suggesting these too are set to be replaced imminently. (Note: It's not yet clear which MagSafe charger Gurman is referring to here.)

Last week we reported on rumors suggesting Apple intends to offer leather-alternative iPhone 15 cases with a woven fabric look, under the case moniker "FineWoven." If this is accurate, Apple would presumably sell silicone cases and the new "FineWoven" cases, replicas of which have been shared online.

A leather alternative that is fabric-based would have a smaller carbon footprint than a case made from traditional cowhide, and it would be more environmentally friendly. Indeed, Gurman speculates that sustainability will be a "larger than normal" part of Apple's "Wonderlust" September 12th event, where it is expected to unveil its new iPhone 15 lineup, Apple Watch Series 9, and a second-generation Apple Watch Ultra, among other possible new products.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Will Include These New Features for Your iPhone

Wednesday February 5, 2025 7:15 am PST by
iOS 18.3 was released last month, so the first iOS 18.4 beta should be coming soon. iOS 18.4 is expected to be a more substantial update for the iPhone, with several new features and changes related to Apple Intelligence and beyond. Apple's website suggests that iOS 18.4 will be released in April, following beta testing. Below, we outline what to expect from the update so far. Apple...
General Apple Invites Feature

Apple Launches New 'Invites' App

Tuesday February 4, 2025 8:00 am PST by
Apple today announced the launch of a new app called "Invites," which is designed to allow users to plan events like birthday parties, graduations, vacations, baby showers, and more. "With Apple Invites, an event comes to life from the moment the invitation is created, and users can share lasting memories even after they get together," said Brent Chiu-Watson, Apple's senior director of...
App Store vs EU Feature 2

Apple Says It Doesn't Approve of EU Porn App

Monday February 3, 2025 1:15 pm PST by
Apple does not approve of the "Hot Tub" pornography app that was released for the iPhone in the EU using alternative app distribution, Apple said in a statement to MacRumors. Further, Apple is concerned about the potential user safety risks with a pornography app, and says that it undermines consumer trust in the Apple ecosystem. We are deeply concerned about the safety risks that hardcore...
maxresdefault

An Apple TV Refresh is Coming in 2025 - Here's What You Should Know

Wednesday February 5, 2025 10:17 am PST by
Apple hasn't refreshed the Apple TV since 2022, but rumors suggest that we're finally going to get an update in 2025. We don't have a full picture of what to expect yet, but we have some hints on what's coming. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Updated A-Series Chip The current Apple TV 4K uses the A15 Bionic chip that was in the iPhone 13 lineup, and it's time for...
applecare apple care banner

Apple Raises Monthly AppleCare+ Subscription Price for All iPhones

Tuesday February 4, 2025 9:35 am PST by
Apple this week increased the prices for its monthly AppleCare+ subscription prices for the iPhone, raising the cost by 50 cents for all models in the United States. Standard AppleCare+ for the iPhone 16 models is now priced at $10.49 per month, for example, up from the prior $9.99 per month price. The 50 cent price increase applies to all available AppleCare+ plans for Apple's current...
iCloud General Feature Redux

'Apple Invites' Leaked on iCloud Website

Tuesday February 4, 2025 7:11 am PST by
Update: The new Apple Invites app has officially been announced. The main iCloud.com page has seemingly confirmed Apple's rumored invites tool, which has yet to be officially announced by the company. The page says "Apple Invites" will be an iCloud+ feature:Upgrade to iCloud+ to get more storage, plan events with Apple Invites, and have peace of mind with privacy features like iCloud...
disney

Disney+ Loses 700,000 Subscribers Following Price Increase

Wednesday February 5, 2025 3:34 pm PST by
Disney+ lost 700,000 subscribers worldwide in recent months, according to Disney's earnings results for the first quarter of 2025. Disney said it now has 124.6 million Disney+ subscribers, a decrease of 0.7 million compared to its subscriber numbers in the fourth quarter of 2024. The drop in subscribers comes after Disney+ prices increased in the fall. Disney+ with Ads went from $7.99 to...
maxresdefault

Testing Apple's New Invites App for Event Planning

Tuesday February 4, 2025 10:26 am PST by
Apple today surprised us with a new Invites app, which is designed for planning events like birthday parties, vacations, and baby showers. We checked it out in our latest video to see how it works, what you can use it for, and to demonstrate all of the different features in the app. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Invites is a standalone app that you can download...

Top Rated Comments

jchatwood Avatar
19 months ago
This drives me crazy - I’m a leather technician and if people understood leather is made from taking a byproduct (waste, if you like) of the meat industry, and reusing it as a sustainable, long lasting material. What do we think happens if we don’t use these hides for leather - they go to landfill ?‍♂️ I’m all for apple creating different bands/using different materials, but don’t tell me something synthetic, bound by acrylics, is going to be more sustainable and better for the environment. The move by apple for sure is to appear ‘greener’ to certain consumers, but in reality will come down to cost savings.

I see people commenting that they are all for saving animals - but animals typically used for leather (Bovine) are never killed for the hides - they are killed for the meat.

These animals will be slaughtered if apple makes leather bands or not.
Score: 90 Votes (Like | Disagree)
amn3siak Avatar
19 months ago
I fail to see how synthetic materials, which needs chemicals and energy to produce, aren't durable, and need thousands of year to be degraded, are better for the environment than animal skin... ?
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Fatboy71 Avatar
19 months ago
Lets face it, animals are reared and killed for us to eat. Leather is a byproduct/waste from the butchering process, so what better way to use this byproduct than to create things from it. The more companies that ditch leather in a bid to appear more sustainable, the more leather is going to be put in landfill. Pointless decision in my opinion.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xDKP Avatar
19 months ago

This drives me crazy - I’m a leather technician and if people understood leather is made from taking a byproduct (waste, if you like) of the meat industry, and reusing it as a sustainable, long lasting material. What do we think happens if we don’t use these hides for leather - they go to landfill ?‍♂️ I’m all for apple creating different bands/using different materials, but don’t tell me something synthetic, bound by acrylics, is going to be more sustainable and better for the environment. The move by apple for sure is to appear ‘greener’ to certain consumers, but in reality will come down to cost savings.

I see people commenting that they are all for saving animals - but animals typically used for leather (Bovine) are never killed for the hides - they are killed for the meat.

These animals will be slaughtered if apple makes leather bands or not.
Great perspective! Greenwashing can sometimes be super frustrating! And if you take good care of your leather boots, straps, bags etc. they will last a lifetime - no canvas straps etc. will come close
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mongobongo Avatar
19 months ago

This drives me crazy - I’m a leather technician and if people understood leather is made from taking a byproduct (waste, if you like) of the meat industry, and reusing it as a sustainable, long lasting material. What do we think happens if we don’t use these hides for leather - they go to landfill ?‍♂️ I’m all for apple creating different bands/using different materials, but don’t tell me something synthetic, bound by acrylics, is going to be more sustainable and better for the environment. The move by apple for sure is to appear ‘greener’ to certain consumers, but in reality will come down to cost savings.

I see people commenting that they are all for saving animals - but animals typically used for leather (Bovine) are never killed for the hides - they are killed for the meat.

These animals will be slaughtered if apple makes leather bands or not.
Great take, important perspective.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JanoschR Avatar
19 months ago

Not for the animals/environment. Not sure why it’s taken Apple so long to do this across their range to be honest.
You really think there are cows in Apples backyard and every time a user orders a leather band, they'll have to slaughter one? That's not how it works.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)