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mrwilly25

macrumors regular
Oct 4, 2015
136
79
My S2 Aluminum was still perfect after one year, no scratches or dings. Upgraded to SBSS Series 3, sold it after 10 months for $300, so really bad resale. Went back to Aluminum when I got Series 4.
 
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DianaMR

macrumors 65816
Sep 12, 2016
1,022
1,859
I know you asked the other member but I've used these.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G7UJI2M/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The one that is on the screen now has been on there for well over 6 months and is showing no sign of peeling at any of the corners. A couple of drops of dish soap in water, stirred and then applied generously to the back of the skin and watch face. This one in particular has been on longer than any screen I've used. Before this I went with Zagg because of good experience with other products. Their watch protection kept peeling at the corners and it became a PITA to file for replacements not to mention more expensive.

I checked this out but couldn’t find any for the Series 4.
 

Farrellcollie

macrumors 6502a
Apr 23, 2011
703
364
What brand of screen protector do you use?
I use skinomi. I am not particularly stuck on the brand, but they come 6 to a pack and I have not run out. I have replaced the protector a couple of times - mostly due to a paint project that the watch survived but my watch band and the screen protector did not.
 

millerj123

macrumors 68030
Mar 6, 2008
2,576
2,552
I tried a silicone case. It trapped water underneath, and made the watch unusable, so I abandoned it. In a year and a half since, I've banged the watch up a bunch, and now have some scratches on the left side. None prevent it from being used, and can't be seen unless I go looking for them.
 

perezr10

macrumors 68000
Jan 12, 2014
1,990
1,456
Monroe, Louisiana
I don’t think previous experience with the series 1, 2, or 3 is relevant. Apple seems to tinker with their formula from year to year to make the glass less shatter proof or scratch proof. I suspect the Series 4 is more shatter proof and more prone to getting scratched.
 

staggerlee41

macrumors 65816
Sep 25, 2017
1,072
1,057
Pittsburgh, PA
I checked this out but couldn’t find any for the Series 4.

I searched for the covers for Series 4 watches on Amazon and I think the issue is they haven't made them specifically for the larger screen yet. I read some reviews of another brand and they seemed to indicate they were not specifically designed for Series 4 and looked to have markings on the packaging indicating that they are compatible. My guess is production hasn't caught up yet. On Series 1-3, these will wrap around the edges and almost down to the case, so the face of Series 4 will be completely covered and should provide partial coverage going down to the case, which is what the review I referenced earlier seemed to indicate.
 

zfarooq

macrumors member
Oct 3, 2017
59
67
Its a non-issue - I will never see the point of paying extra for the Stainless Steel, having owned both. Not worth the extra money, I simply bought another watch for my wife.

No major issues with scratches, I wear it during sports, swimming etc. Go for the Space grey, get applecare, you will be golden.

Resale value as well is horrible for stainless steel, fetches almost the same price as the Aluminium.
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
Its a non-issue - I will never see the point of paying extra for the Stainless Steel, having owned both. Not worth the extra money

Depends how you define worth. I think the aluminum is a solid choice, especially for the price point difference between the stainless model. But saying it’s not ‘worth the extra money’ is entirely subjective, because some do prefer the aesthetics and the Sapphire display for the added protection. And personally, my counter argument would be that I *don’t* care for the Ion – X Glass, which is not nearly as durable as the Sapphire having on the sport model, I was less than satisfied with the display and how easily it scratched.

Resale value as well is horrible for stainless steel, fetches almost the same price as the Aluminium.

Not everybody cares about resale value, some just want to enjoy the watch for what it is and what it has to offer. Secondly, the resale for the Apple Watch in general is not good, it’s not just about the stainless not selling well, when Apple releases annual Apple Watches like they have been, the whole market plummets with the Apple Watch altogether.
 

dotzero123

macrumors 6502a
Sep 3, 2018
519
485
Philadelphia Suburbs
I had S2 and S3 for one year each and they looked perfect when I upgraded. The SS is tempting though. It’s a tough call. If I had the money I’d get an SS for events and dressing up and the alum for working out. Not an option so got the aluminum s4. i ordered an armorsuit screen protector (never used one before) to see how it looks and also got AppleCare.
 

praterkeith

macrumors 6502
Oct 30, 2005
417
111
Montgomery, AL
My aluminum Series 1 and 3 both looked new when I sold them. My Series 4 obviously looks new since it’s only a week old.
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I had S2 and S3 for one year each and they looked perfect when I upgraded. The SS is tempting though. It’s a tough call. If I had the money I’d get an SS for events and dressing up and the alum for working out. Not an option so got the aluminum s4. i ordered an armorsuit screen protector (never used one before) to see how it looks and also got AppleCare.
I have the same screen protector and I don’t notice it while it’s on. I’ve used a few over the years and this one is my favorite so far.
 
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edhchoe

macrumors 65816
Oct 28, 2011
1,398
899
Evening all,

Those who have owned an Aluminium Apple Watch, would you say it is/isn’t hard to scratch?

Thus far, I have owned an AW2 & AW3, both Stainless Steel.
With the latest prices, I am seriously considering the Aluminium edition.

Thanks
Isn’t SS supposed to scratch more easily than anodized aluminum?
 

circatee

Contributor
Original poster
Nov 30, 2014
4,427
3,000
Hmm, I can't answer that with facts. I was under the impression that Aluminum would scratch easier than Stainless Steel, period...

Isn’t SS supposed to scratch more easily than anodized aluminum?
 

zfarooq

macrumors member
Oct 3, 2017
59
67
Depends how you define worth. I think the aluminum is a solid choice, especially for the price point difference between the stainless model. But saying it’s not ‘worth the extra money’ is entirely subjective, because some do prefer the aesthetics and the Sapphire display for the added protection. And personally, my counter argument would be that I *don’t* care for the Ion – X Glass, which is not nearly as durable as the Sapphire having on the sport model, I was less than satisfied with the display and how easily it scratched.



Not everybody cares about resale value, some just want to enjoy the watch for what it is and what it has to offer. Secondly, the resale for the Apple Watch in general is not good, it’s not just about the stainless not selling well, when Apple releases annual Apple Watches like they have been, the whole market plummets with the Apple Watch altogether.


- Apple watch does not hold value well, however the difference in price between Stainless steel and Aluminium is about $25 ($250 vs $225) when Apple offers to buy it back. Aluminium holds its value much better, as has been documented the forums since there is a $300 difference when purchased new.

- Agreed, the value for SS vs Aluminium is subjective. In my opinion, its a piece of technology where the next iteration continues to improve rapidly - and I upgrade frequently, thus would never buy the SS because of the economics of upgrading. If I did not upgrade then maybe, but I love technology far too much - besides the Space Gray Aluminium perfectly suits my needs given I play sports and I like the look. I would simply point out the folks that bought the gold apple watch with series 0, tech moves on, and these are not traditional time pieces - series 0 cannot even receive Apple Watch OS5.
 

newellj

macrumors G3
Oct 15, 2014
8,127
3,030
East of Eden
Hmm, I can't answer that with facts. I was under the impression that Aluminum would scratch easier than Stainless Steel, period...

The aluminum finish is a matte anodized finish. Anodizing hardens the surface of the metal and the matte finish tends to hide small blemishes. The bright stainless steel finish is simply highly polished bare metal. It will show scratches almost immediately, though if you're careful you can polish some of those to a point where they're hard to see. If you actually scratch the aluminum, there's really no practical repair.
 

Lennyvalentin

macrumors 65816
Apr 25, 2011
1,431
793
I was under the impression that Aluminum would scratch easier than Stainless Steel, period...
Anodizing aluminium turns the surface into a hard ceramic(-like) material, so it will resist scratches quite well. (And as the other guy mentioned, matte finish helps to hide imperfections.) Hard dings can dent or gouge the casing though since aluminium alloy is softish compared to steel, especially as at least first/early-gen stainless watches used cold-forged steel billets to form the cases which is really resistant to deformation. Not sure if Apple still cold-forges its raw steel material though. Anyway, even cold-forged steel will microscratch, which shows up very easily on a mirror finish.

So it's an either-or situation really. As long as you don't do major violence to your aluminium watch it will hold up well. Mine is over three years old and don't show any wear at all on the case to the naked eye. A few very fine scratches a couple mm long on the glass display, but that's it. You don't even have to baby the watch, I haven't. Just don't be careless and you'll be fine.
 

beerglass007

macrumors 6502a
May 13, 2008
547
94
Had all the watches in space grey alu and no marks

I wear in a office, ride downhill mountain bikes and enduro Moto cross without any marks

The money I save I purchased apple care plus and can always claim if I damage the watch but never had too
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
- Aluminum holds its value much better, as has been documented the forums since there is a $300 difference when purchased new..

I’m not contesting the aluminum doesn’t hold value, what I am indicating, tech in general depreciates. But one has to make the purchase knowing what they are happy with, not worrying about the future of the resale value. I Purchase tech because it conveniences me, and I don’t focus or worry about the resale value.
 

Scott G.

macrumors regular
Nov 23, 2016
153
43
Amsterdam, NY
I wanna get a screen protector, but I'm always afraid of using the wet install. I don't wasn't my brand new watch to get water in it anywhere like the speakers or between the glass and the frame. I know the watches are IP68 rated, but I find it hard to believe that water won't seep through somewhere when using the squeegee to remove the excess liquid after putting the screen protector on.
 

mcaswell

macrumors 6502
Dec 22, 2013
390
228
I wanna get a screen protector, but I'm always afraid of using the wet install. I don't wasn't my brand new watch to get water in it anywhere like the speakers or between the glass and the frame. I know the watches are IP68 rated, but I find it hard to believe that water won't seep through somewhere when using the squeegee to remove the excess liquid after putting the screen protector on.

I absolutely would not worry about that... I shower with my S2 on almost every day, and swam with it all Summer last year and this year. Any water that would get on your watch during the process of a wet install would be insignificant in comparison.
 

newellj

macrumors G3
Oct 15, 2014
8,127
3,030
East of Eden
I absolutely would not worry about that... I shower with my S2 on almost every day, and swam with it all Summer last year and this year. Any water that would get on your watch during the process of a wet install would be insignificant in comparison.

I agree. The Watch is essentially waterproof, at least for this purpose. Lock the screen with the blue water drop icon and then let the unlock do the sonic water-clearing process when you're done.
 

Mabus51

Suspended
Aug 16, 2007
1,366
847
I wanna get a screen protector, but I'm always afraid of using the wet install. I don't wasn't my brand new watch to get water in it anywhere like the speakers or between the glass and the frame. I know the watches are IP68 rated, but I find it hard to believe that water won't seep through somewhere when using the squeegee to remove the excess liquid after putting the screen protector on.
Don’t worry about getting it wet. I swam in the pool and showered with my S3 SBSS w/ milnese loop and never had issues.
This year I bought the S4 in aluminum. Because it’s not a sapphire screen I put the Armorsuit screen protector on and it seems fine. I’ve showered with it applied no issues at all.
 
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Scott G.

macrumors regular
Nov 23, 2016
153
43
Amsterdam, NY
I absolutely would not worry about that... I shower with my S2 on almost every day, and swam with it all Summer last year and this year. Any water that would get on your watch during the process of a wet install would be insignificant in comparison.
Cool, thanks!
 

blwade

macrumors 6502a
Sep 16, 2014
537
239
I have a S2 aluminum SG watch... it took several hits that made me wince... after 2 years of wear, I have one small scratch on the edge of the screen and for the most part, the body is flawless - with the exception of underneath by the sensor.. the coat is like chipping!

9E2F3300-ECA2-4BD5-BD03-EEFCF4A238A8.jpeg
 

44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
I have a S2 aluminum SG watch... it took several hits that made me wince... after 2 years of wear, I have one small scratch on the edge of the screen and for the most part, the body is flawless - with the exception of underneath by the sensor.. the coat is like chipping!

View attachment 791265

What could be causing the chipping underneath by the heart rate sensor, is actually your sweat might be corrosive, and this is happened other members in that *exact* same area, because the watch is against your wrist with constant contact and sweat/moisture over the course of time has had a reaction with the anodized aluminum. Can we determine this, if the rest of the aluminum on the watch looks fine, but underneath where the Watch is against your wrist is chipping, that’s a sign that it may be due to your sweat. Its rare, but it has happened to others.
 
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