AppleInsider Staff
A rumor Thursday claims that bands for Apple's next-generation Apple Watch will be incompatible with current models, though it isn't clear if old bands will work with the new watches.
In August, leaker "Uncle Pan" suggested "Apple Watch Series 7" will come in 41mm and 45mm case sizes, a 1mm increase over today's models. Subsequent reports have reiterated those claims, but questions about the wearable's specifications remain.
While a larger chassis is expected to facilitate bigger screens and, potentially, more capacious batteries, the shift could make existing band and strap accessories obsolete, at least for upgraders.
"Uncle Pan" believes "old" bands will fit the new models, but didn't mention compatibility between "Apple Watch Series 7" bands and previous Apple wearables. However, on Thursday, a new rumor from leaker Max Weinbach appears to suggest that new bands won't fit old Apple Watch models.
"[For what it's worth] I've heard from an Apple store employee that they're not getting anymore 40/44mm bands in and expect the new Apple watch to use different bands that won't be compatible with old watches," Weinbach said in a tweet.
The assertion is questionable at best, as Apple Store employees are typically not informed of the company's future product plans. Additionally, a 1mm size increase is negligible, so the incompatibility would likely stem from a case redesign.
That said, a pair of leaks last week claim to show bands for as-yet-unannounced 41mm and 45mm Apple Watch models. Whether the supposedly unreleased bands fit current devices is unclear.
Apple Watch currently comes in 40mm and 44mm case sizes, dimensions that were last changed when the device grew from 38mm and 42mm with "Apple Watch Series 4" in 2018.
"Apple Watch Series 7" is expected to debut alongside "iPhone 13" at a special event this fall.
Update: A previous version of this story suggested that old Apple Watch bands wouldn't fit the "Apple Watch Series 7."
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
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Malcolm Owen
21 Comments
If true I know a few people that will be unhappy that their current Watch band collection won’t have much longer life. One of my friends easily has 35 bands for her Apple Watch, most purchased from Apple.
If old bands don’t fit the Series 7 my guess is it isn’t simply due to the supposed 1mm increase. Perhaps there is a significant enough change to the body, as well (which has also been rumored). I mean, I don’t see any difference in the way my bands fit my 44mm watch over my 42mm watch and that was twice as big a change as this rumor.
I don’t buy it. The width difference is so miniscule. I don’t think they’ll do this until there’s a very significant redesign of the chassis and connectors. They know how much people
have invested in bands.
I think this is sketchy for the reasons stated in the article. My bands that fit my Series 3 fit the Series 6 fine. But I have 15 bands including a double tour so I’ll be very angry if they’re obsolete.
No worries – there will be an adapter fitting the old band to the new watch. If there is one thing, Apple can do, it is adapters.
If true, this would be hilarious.