We noted a couple of days ago that you didn’t have to look far at CES to find the Apple Watch knock-offs, but for those desperate enough to pretend they have one some two months before it’s even launched, they don’t have to dig very deep into their pockets. Mashable’s Karissa Bell was able to buy one for the grand sum of $27.
It even works, kind of. Bell reports that it did, after a few attempts, pair to her iPhone 6 and allow her to make phone calls and play music through the watch. She said that it looks almost like the real thing – “for about three seconds.” Looking at the photo, I think she’s exaggerating by about two-and-a-half seconds …
Digitimes is reporting that Samsung has received orders for the CPU for the real thing.
As ever, the less than reliable source cites only vague “industry sources.” Each wafer would generate anything from tens to hundreds of chips, making it broadly in line with analyst estimates of year-one Apple Watch sales range from 10M to 37M units.
Samsung Electronics’ 28nm process technology has reportedly obtained orders for the Apple Watch set for launch in March 2015. The orders call for 3,000-4,000 12-inch wafers monthly.
We reported a few days ago that Apple is planning an extensive familiarization program for retail store employees, with initial training set to take place between 9th and 16th February. Apple has so far only revealed the ‘from’ pricing of the new wearable, but it has been rumored that the steel model will sell for around $500 while the gold version will run into thousands of dollars.
