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Introduction
In the development history of Apple Watch, Apple Watch Edition has always been a special existence.
The Apple Watch Edition does not assume the role of a popular and mass-market product like the Apple Watch Series, nor does it form a joint product line that continues to this day like the Apple Watch Hermès. It’s more like a large-scale experiment that Apple has carried out for several years around the concept of “high-end smartwatches.”
From 18K gold, to precision ceramics, to titanium, Apple has tried to use different materials to answer the same question——How can a smart watch that can be updated as quickly as a mobile phone have the quality and value of a high-end watch?
Gold is expensive enough, but it is incompatible with the rapid depreciation of electronic products; ceramics are delicate and wear-resistant, but require extremely complex manufacturing processes; titanium is both lightweight and strong, but not as simple and crude as gold.
The Apple Watch Edition has changed materials several times in just a few years. Behind the scenes is Apple’s process of constantly revising the answer to this problem.
What’s even more interesting is that after the Apple Watch Edition series disappeared for many years, what was left behind has returned to other Apple products bit by bit.
The story begins with the first generation Apple Watch Edition.
Does Apple also want to sell luxury goods?
In September 2014, Apple Watch was officially launched.
At this time, Apple clearly hasn’t quite figured out what the Apple Watch should be. An iPhone accessory that wears on your wrist? Health equipment? Sports watch? Or a fashion item that can compete with traditional watches?
Apple Watch is a personal device designed to be worn, and we developed technologies and a new user interface just for it. It makes the watch itself and the user interface become one and the same. We have pioneered an entire range of products for an unparalleled personalized experience.
——Jony Ive, then Apple’s senior vice president of product design
The first-generation Apple Watch is divided into three series – Apple Watch Sport with aluminum metal case, Apple Watch with stainless steel case, and Apple Watch Edition at the top of the product line.
Apple Watch Edition features an 18K gold or rose gold case, sapphire glass and ceramic back. The buckle, pin and other parts of the accompanying strap are also made of 18K gold.
Gold itself is soft, and the watch case, which needs to withstand daily bumps, places higher requirements on hardness. So Apple specially developed its own 18K gold alloy, making it twice as hard as standard gold.
Of course, what’s even more impressive is the price. The starting price of the aluminum Apple Watch Sport is only 2,588 yuan, the stainless steel Apple Watch ranges from 4,188 yuan to 8,288 yuan, and the 18K gold Apple Watch Edition starts at 74,800 yuan, and some models even reach 126,800 yuan.
An electronic product that will have a new model in a year and cannot even be upgraded to the latest system in a few years is sold in the price range of mechanical watches and jewelry.
At the same time, Apple’s approach to selling it is markedly different from other products. The first-generation Apple Watch has entered department stores such as Galeries Lafayette in Paris, Isetan in Tokyo, and Selfridges in London, and is sold in fashion boutiques such as Colette and Dover Street Market. Coupled with the exposure of celebrities such as Beyoncé and Karl Lagerfeld wearing gold Apple Watch Edition, all signs indicate thatApple is indeed seriously exploring the luxury and fashion markets beyond traditional electronic products。
But this route did not last long. Apple has never released specific sales figures for the 18K gold Apple Watch Edition, which only existed for one generation. However, from the fact that Tokyo Isetan cleared the remaining inventory of Apple Watch Edition for hundreds of dollars in 2018, we can at least see that the market performance of this product may not be ideal.
An easy question to think about is that for people who are used to buying high-end watches, it is difficult for an electronic product that will become obsolete in a few years to have the long-term value of a traditional mechanical watch; and for ordinary Apple Watch users, the price of tens of thousands of yuan has obviously crossed the psychological threshold of most people.
Apple has not given up on the Apple Watch Edition, but it has given up on the most direct answer of “the more expensive, the more advanced.”
From “expensive” to “difficult”
In September 2016, Apple released Apple Watch Series 1 and Series 2.
It is worth mentioning that the first-generation Apple Watch did not have a generation number. Therefore, Series 1 is actually an upgraded version of the first-generation product, and Series 2 is the true second-generation Apple Watch.
This generation of Apple Watch Edition has ushered in major changes. On the Series 2, Apple abandoned the extremely expensive gold and rose gold and switched to a new precision ceramic material. This is the first time that the Apple Watch Edition has shifted the interpretation of “high-end” from the value of the precious metal itself to engineering materials and manufacturing processes.
As the second series of Apple Watch Edition, this watch is almost entirely made of zirconium oxide ceramic and sapphire glass, integrating innovation, dedication and exquisite craftsmanship. Its case exudes a charming luster, and its hardness is more than 4 times that of stainless steel, highlighting the beauty of the balance between purity and strength.
The starting price of Edition Series 2 has been reduced to 9,588 yuan. Although it is still much more expensive than the standard Apple Watch, compared with the price of tens of thousands of yuan for the previous generation, it can be called “approachable”.
Compared to gold, ceramics have completely different properties. Ceramic is hard, wear-resistant, and has a unique luster. After careful processing, ceramics can present the visual effect of polished metal on high-end watches, but will not easily produce obvious scratches like metal.
But ceramics are quite cumbersome to process.
The manufacturing process for the Apple Watch Edition case begins with high-strength zirconia powder, which is combined with aluminum oxide to give it a rich, rich white color. After that, each case is pressed, sintered, and polished with diamond grinding fluid to create a flawless surface and a delicate and eye-catching luster. To achieve such precise craftsmanship, each Apple Watch Edition case requires several days of meticulous carving.
Apple uses a zirconium oxide-based ceramic material for its watch cases. After the raw materials are mixed and pressed into a billet, they are first processed into a rough shape and then sintered at a high temperature of about 1,500 degrees Celsius for a full 35 hours.
What’s even more troublesome is that the entire case will shrink evenly by about 20% during the sintering process. In other words, engineers cannot make the mold according to the final size, but must calculate the dimensional changes caused by material shrinkage in advance.
Burning out is just the beginning. Each watch case also undergoes CNC machining with more than 70 diamond tools, which takes up to 6 hours. After that, polishing is carried out for about 2 hours, and finally the warm and shiny ceramic texture will appear.
Spending so much effort to make a watch case obviously does not take cost reduction as the primary goal. But unlike 18K gold, what Apple wants to show this time is no longer how much the material itself is worth, but Apple’s ability to turn a difficult-to-process material into an Apple Watch.
It can also be said that starting from this generation, Apple Watch Edition has found a set of “high-end” logic that is more in line with Apple’s own advantages——Rather than emphasizing the scarcity and price of materials like traditional jewelry, it is better to emphasize the level of modern material science and craftsmanship.
Ceramics getting better
One year later, in 2017, Apple Watch Series 3 arrived as scheduled.
Apple Watch Series 3 further improves performance and adds cellular capabilities for the first time. The aluminum model is available in both GPS and GPS + cellular network versions, while the stainless steel and precision ceramic models are equipped with cellular network as standard. To distinguish them in appearance, models with cellular network support have a striking red crown embedded in the Digital Crown.
The white precision ceramic Edition Series 3 continues the seamless case design of the previous generation. The pure white ceramics contrast sharply with the black sensor area, and a touch of red on the digital crown just breaks the monotony of the pure white case. The entire watch presents a “sophistication” that is rare in electronic products.
This generation of Apple Watch Edition also adds a gray precision ceramic watch, and also embellishes the digital crown with a red crown cap. Compared with the bright and eye-catching white ceramic, the gray ceramic is more calm and low-key, which also gives the two watches a completely different style.
But the good times didn’t last long – just when Apple’s ceramic craftsmanship was getting better, precision ceramics suddenly disappeared on the next generation Apple Watch.
Where did Edition go?
The 2018 Apple Watch Series 4 is one of the most important generations of products in the entire history of Apple Watch products.
Significantly narrowed bezels, significantly increased display area, new S4 chip, digital crown that supports tactile feedback, electrocardiogram app, fall detection… Such an important generation of Apple Watch does not have an Edition model.
Apple Watch Series 4 is only available in aluminum and stainless steel case materials. There is another interesting detail here – although the precision ceramic case has disappeared, the entire Series 4 series is equipped with a watch back made of precision ceramics and sapphire glass to improve cellular network performance.
So strictly speaking, “ceramics” have not left Apple Watch. It just changed from an expensive shell material to a functional material that serves internal engineering needs.
Just when everyone thought Apple had given up on the Apple Watch Edition, it came back the next year. And two models are back.
Titanium metal is new and precision ceramics are on the scene again
In 2019, Apple Watch Series 5 was released.
Excluding the all-weather Retina display, the Apple Watch Series 5 looks almost identical to the Series 4. But the Apple Watch Edition is back.
Starting from Series 4, Apple Watch uses a black ceramic back. Therefore, although the Edition Series 5 has restored the white ceramic case, it no longer has the sense of integration that seamlessly extends from the case to the back of the Edition Series 3. The digital crown also uses the red ring design of the new generation of cellular network watches.
At the same time, Apple began experimenting with another advanced material: titanium.
Titanium metal has an excellent strength-to-weight ratio and good corrosion resistance. After special surface treatment, titanium metal presents a delicate frosted texture, which is more low-key than stainless steel and closer to the aesthetics of traditional high-end tool watches.
If ceramics represent Apple’s pursuit of “difficult material processing,” then titanium represents a completely different set of ideas – high-end, which does not necessarily mean more dazzling or expensive, but can also mean lighter and more durable.
By the time we reach Series 5, the route for Apple Watch Edition is actually quite clear——
In the golden age, the expensiveness of the material itself was used to prove “high-end”; in the ceramic age, the difficulty of material processing was used to prove “high-end”; and what titanium began to emphasize was the actual use value brought by the material itself.
Apple Watch Edition has become further and further away from its original “luxury” self.
Goodbye ceramics
In 2020, Apple Watch Series 6 was released.
The Apple Watch Edition is still there, but the ceramic is gone.
Edition Series 6 is only available in natural or space black titanium cases. This means that precision ceramics, which has just returned for a year, has once again withdrawn from the stage of history. And this time, we were separated for six years.
Titanium’s performance is much more stable. It is special enough to differentiate itself from aluminum and stainless steel watches, but it does not require a very complex and costly production process like ceramics. More importantly, “lightness” is an advantage that can be felt when you wear it on your wrist.
last dance
In 2021, Apple Watch Series 7 was released.
Edition Series 7 continues to be made of titanium and continues to provide titanium and space black titanium watches.
Later we learned that this was the last generation of Apple Watch Edition.The “Edition” series never appeared again at subsequent Apple conferences.
Ultra is not Edition
The Apple Watch Series 8 launched in 2022 will only retain two materials: aluminum and stainless steel. The titanium Apple Watch Edition has since been retired.
However, another titanium Apple Watch was unveiled at the same time – Apple Watch Ultra.
Apple Watch Ultra uses a 49mm titanium case and a flat sapphire glass. It has a larger case, longer battery life, a sturdier design, and operation buttons specially added for outdoor scenes.
In terms of product positioning, Apple Watch Ultra is completely different from Apple Watch Edition. But if you think about it carefully, there is some kind of inheritance relationship between the two. Titanium is light in weight, high in strength, and resistant to corrosion. Although these properties are good for daily watches, they are hardly irreplaceable. But if it is placed on an outdoor watch that needs to go up the mountain and go to the sea, it is much more reasonable.
Apple did not abandon titanium because of the discontinuation of the Apple Watch Edition. Instead, it gave this material originally used for “high-end watches” to another product line that really needs it.
On the Apple Watch Ultra, titanium is no longer just to prove that this is a more advanced Apple Watch, it begins to directly serve the tasks that this watch is to complete.
The material left behind by the Apple Watch Edition is still going forward.
Titanium comes out of Edition
In 2024, on the tenth anniversary of the debut of Apple Watch, Apple launched Apple Watch Series 10.
On Apple Watch Series 10, Apple has canceled the high-end stainless steel model that has been used for many years. Replacing it is polished titanium.
The Series 10 features a polished grade 5 titanium case, available in raw, gold and slate finishes. Compared with the Series 9 with a stainless steel case, the Series 10 with a titanium case is nearly 20% lighter.
This is actually a very interesting change.The logic back then was “You want to buy titanium? Then you have to buy the Edition”; now it’s become “You want to buy the premium version? It’s already titanium.”
From materials to processes
The 2025 Apple Watch Series 11 continues the appearance of the Series 10 and continues to be available in three polished titanium appearances: primary color, gold and slate.
It doesn’t look like anything new, but the manufacturing method behind it is very “Edition”.
With Series 11, the case of the titanium Apple Watch has been fully 3D printed for mass production for the first time. Apple first prints the case layer by layer with 100% aerospace-grade recycled titanium powder, and then completes subsequent precision machining and mirror polishing. After using additive manufacturing, the raw materials required to produce a watch case are only about half of those of the previous generation.
Does it suddenly feel familiar? Back then, Apple spent dozens of hours sintering and polishing a ceramic watch case to prove that consumer electronics products could also use extremely complex processing techniques.
Many years later, Apple no longer labels it Edition, but it still does the same thing——Research new materials, research new processing methods, and then bring these processes that are originally difficult to mass-produce into the mass production of electronic products。
Ceramics, welcome back
The time has come to 2026.
Seven years later, the familiar material finally returned – ceramics.
Apple Watch Series 12 adds two new ceramic models, pearl white and night blue, which together with aluminum and titanium models form the Series 12 product line. The pearl white color can easily remind old users of the white precision ceramic watches of Series 2, Series 3 and Series 5, while the night blue color makes the blue ceramic case appear on Apple Watch for the first time.
What’s more noteworthy is not the color;It’s not called Apple Watch Edition Series 12. Just the Apple Watch Series 12.
Seven years ago, if you wanted to buy an Apple Watch made of precision ceramics, you had to choose a special series called Apple Watch Edition. Today, ceramic is just one of the Series 12 case material options, just like aluminum and titanium.
This change is more meaningful than the return of ceramics itself. Precision ceramics were once used by Apple to define “what is the most high-end Apple Watch”, but now it no longer needs to take on such a task.
Ceramic is just a material. It’s nice to look at, hard-wearing, difficult to work with, and not cheap at the same time. This is probably the most comfortable position for the ceramic Apple Watch.
The “Edition Easter Egg” hidden on the watch strap
The ceramic models of Apple Watch Series 12 also have a detail that is easily overlooked – the gravel and navy blue sports straps matched with the pearl white and night blue ceramic models use ceramic snap buckles that echo the case.
The gravel and navy blue sports straps currently sold separately are still equipped with metal snap buckles. In other words, if you want this small ceramic button, you must currently buy it with the ceramic Apple Watch.
Users who are familiar with the early Apple Watch will probably feel very familiar when they see this – the Apple Watch Edition of that year liked to do this.
The exclusive strap for the 18K gold Apple Watch Edition also uses 18K gold snap buckles or pins, and the sports straps for the precision ceramic and titanium Apple Watch Edition also use precision ceramic and titanium snap buckles respectively. These special editions are only available with the watch and are not sold separately as a regular strap.
Years later, the Apple Watch Edition is long gone. This small ceramic snap is like a time capsule left by Apple to old users.
postscript
Simply judging from the longevity of the product line, the Apple Watch Edition does not seem to be very successful. 18K gold has only existed for one generation, while precision ceramics and titanium have existed intermittently for five generations. The Apple Watch Edition series will also disappear completely after 2022.
But if you think of the Apple Watch Edition as Apple’s experimental field for researching high-end materials, it may not have failed.
The initial answer was 18K gold, which used the expensiveness of the material itself to directly establish a sense of value; more than a year later, precision ceramics shifted its focus from “how much the material is worth” to “how difficult it is to make the material.” Later, titanium metal further emphasized lightweight, durability and wearing experience, allowing high-end materials to truly serve the product itself.
When these explorations of materials and craftsmanship gradually entered the Apple Watch Ultra and Apple Watch Series, the Apple Watch Edition, which was specially designed to carry “high-end materials”, no longer needed to continue to exist.
In the end, Apple did not find a material that could make smart watches as “eternal” as mechanical watches, but gradually found another set of advanced logic for electronic products –The significance of materials is not to make electronic products more like luxury goods, but to make products have better appearance, texture and user experience, and at the same time, make manufacturing methods that were difficult to apply on a large scale in the past truly enter mass production.。
What remains of the Apple Watch Edition is not a material, but a way of making materials.
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