It’s quite interesting to speculate about the pricing of the various Apple Watch models. Later today, we’ll know if we’re right or wrong.
One thing I’ve noticed, however, is that a lot of people are pricing the Apple Watch as though it were a standalone device. John Gruber, on Daring Fireball, posted his final, revised pricing predictions a few hours ago, and he thinks the Apple Watch (without modifier) will start at $749.
I would be surprised if it costs this much for the basic model (i.e., without a fancy watchband). We need to remember that the Apple Watch is a slave device; you can’t operate it on its own. It also needs an iPhone. For the base price of a slave device to cost more than a master device – and, one that can make phone calls, surf the internet, and much more – would be illogical.
I think that, no matter what, the Apple Watch (steel) will be cheaper than the base price for an iPhone 6, which is $649 (for the unlocked model, of course). And it can just be a bit cheaper, which is one reason I think that the $499 price point makes sense.