The New Apple Watch Bands Are In Stores Now

I’m glad to see such a major refresh of the watch bands. I hope this means that the current bands will still fit future iterations of the watch, since I have amassed quite a band collection. I went to my local Apple Store to try on as many of the new Apple Watch Bands as I could without making a total pest of myself. They did not have every single new color available for try-on, but they had a pretty decent sampling. I tried on and photographed a bunch, here are my photos and my thoughts.

Woven Nylon band in Pearl

Woven Nylon band in Gold/Red

The all-new Woven Nylon bands, $49, are available for either the 38mm or 42mm watch in seven colors. The bands feel like thick fabric, and are far more comfortable than I had expected. The multiple colors woven together look different from different angles, making for an interesting look. I know a lot of people were unpleasantly surprised to find out that the stainless steel watch is no longer sold with the Sport Band, but actually I would have rather gotten a Woven Nylon band than the white Sport Band that came with mine. The Pearl and Black shades, which look like different shades of gray from a distance, are particularly nice and neutral. They could almost pass for a Milanese Loop at a glance. The other five colors aren’t to my taste, but on the right person in the right outfit, they could be cool.

The lugs on the Woven Nylon bands are plastic, and they pick up one of the colors of nylon in the band. The buckle is either matte gold, matte aluminum, black, or shiny stainless, depending on which model watch the band is “supposed” to match. I wouldn’t feel limited by that, however, since the buckle sits on the opposite side of your wrist from the watch.

Black Milanese Loop

The rest of Apple’s newest watch bands are new only in color, not form. I think many of the new colors will be a welcome addition to Apple’s line-up. I know the black Milanese Loop is something that many Apple Watch owners have been wanting. The Sport Band lineup seems to be about rotation, rather than addition. For example, the salesperson at Apple told me that the Orange and Blue bands, among others, have been eliminated. They are all still available online for now, but perhaps the less popular shades will be phased out.

You can purchase any of these bands on Apple’s website now, though some of them aren’t shipping for several weeks yet. You might have better luck stopping in a store, if you have one near you. If you want to try on your watch with different bands virtually, then you can do so with Apple’s Interactive Gallery.

Classic Buckle in Marine Blue

Sport Band in Lilac

Modern Buckle in Marigold

Leather Loop in Storm Gray