Apple Watch Naysayers Misunderstand Apple Customers

"It looks better."

"I like the way it makes me feel."

"It shows people who I really am."

"Using it makes me happy."

These are all things that I've personally said and felt about every Apple product I've owned. This goes all the way back to the Apple //c we had in the house when I was a kid. It was true of the SE/30 I had in college, it was true of the first PowerBook 540c I had, it was true of Mac OS 6, it's true of OS X, it's true of the iPhone and it's true of iOS.

The Apple naysayers of the world know this and even love to point this out by saying that everyone who buys Apple products becomes an "Apple fanboy" (or fangirl). The terribly ironic thing is they seem to forget this when a new product comes around. Funny how the naysayers play both sides here.

A huge part of Apple's success is that it has always been able to charge a premium price for products because of how those products make users feel. Indeed, Apple has prioritized functionality and ease-of-use, too, and we Apple fans could always say that ease-of-use was worth the premium price. But in our hearts we also know we buy Apple products because of how they make us feel when we use them, even if we know we can get similar functionality for less money.

All of these things can be said about watch enthusiasts, too. Everyone knows you can spend between $10 and $1,000,000 (or more) to get the same functionality out of a watch, and yet not everyone chooses the $10 watch. Why? Aesthetics. Intangible factors. How it makes you feel.

The Apple Watch has plenty of tangible benefits, too. Apple is a technology company, after all, and the Watch will provide a significant boost in functionality and productivity for its users. But that's not all it provides. It's an Apple product, and there's little question that Apple is the most personal technology brand in the world. In fact, maybe that's the best way to describe what Apple has always been: a personal technology company.

For a personal technology company, I can't think of a better product for Apple to add to its collection than one you wear on your wrist. Well, except maybe one you drive.