I’m going to hold off on talking too much about the watch this week because I’ve actually not been testing as much as you would have thought I would. That’s because Steve’s watch didn’t come right away and out of solidarity I’m waiting on a bunch of stuff I want to try. The good news is that he’s getting his watch on Monday so we should be able to have some fun. I did want to tell you one thing this week though.
I really drooled when I first saw the Milanese Loop in the Apple Watch announcement. When I went to my try-on appointment the first day after the watch went on sale, I liked the Milanese Loop but it was a bit more industrial looking than it was in the pictures. While the side views in the advertisements makes it look super shiny and elegant, it’s actually a darker grey than I had hoped. I ordered it anyway, shelling out $150 for the privilege.
I got the band on Thursday and I have to say, I like it even less after wearing it for a few hours. It is darker than I wish it was, but it also isn’t terribly comfortable. Like I said last week, the fluoroelastomer band feels like it’s part of my body, but I’m very conscious of the material of the Milanese Loop. The other thing that bothers me is that the band doesn’t stay straight. It’s a lovely piece of engineering that has a magnetic closure so wherever you drop the end of it, it sticks to the rest of the band so in theory it would comfortably meld to your wrist diameter. After wearing it for a bit though, the end sort of slides sideway so that it doesn’t lay straight any more.
I also found that it felt to me like it was going to scratch my MacBook Pro when using it in my lap. The metal hitting metal bothered me a lot. I tried to loosen the band so it would slide up my wrist a bit but it felt really weird there and made me even more uncomfortable with it.
I know I’m being pretty picky here because it doesn’t slide sideways THAT much, and it’s not THAT uncomfortable, and it’s not THAT dark of a grey…but for $150 don’t you think I should REALLY love it? That’s what I think anyway, so the Milanese Loop is going back to the Apple Store tomorrow. I’m toying with the idea of the pink modern buckle band, and I know that sounds seriously icky because I am SO not a pink type of girl, but it looked beautiful on when I tried it back on day one. This one is $250 though so I’m going to have to REALLY REALLY love it for it to get to live at my house! Maybe I’ll wait out those third party bands instead, we shall see!
Milanese loop works fine for me. You must have a lot of free time. You surely wasted mine.
This is a hilarious comment on so many levels. I feel compelled to ask, if I’d agreed with your assessment of the Milanese Loop, would it then have been a good use of your time?
But seriously I’m not saying it’s not a beautiful band and won’t be great for other people. I only said that for me it wasn’t what I wanted. In fact, our friend Barry came over yesterday wearing the 42mm stainless steel with Milanese Loop while wearing a dress shirt. It looked FABULOUS on him. Definitely suited his look and size and clothing.
I bought a car once that I liked, but did not love. I regretted that decision for the 8 years I owned that car. I swore to never make that mistake again on something for which I paid a lot of money.
And yes, I do have a LOT of free time!
Alison: I really liked your “real-world” feedback about the Milanese Loop. Sounds like the magnet closure was either faulty in some curious way (here begins “Loop-gate”) or the design doesn’t quite work for all wrists. Looks aside, I want a watchband in-use to be both unnoticeable and extremely reliable, and even minor band-slippage doesn’t instil confidence. The potential for scratching the MBP case is off-putting too. It’s all very interesting to see how the Apple Watch v1.0 is going to turn out, and your article was, as usual, far from a waste of time.
My wrist must be a lot smaller because I can’t see that end of the band to see if it has slipped unless I purposely turn my wrist and look. I love this band because I can adjust it the way I want it…tight. I had a little problem with the sport band,closing it to the correct fit. Awkward. But I did order a black one just for kicks. The band I really love is the blue leather but ti isn’t in 38.
Apple wisely knew that one casing, one size, one band would not be to everyone’s liking. So just buy another band.
As it turns out, my milanese band started looking pretty ratty with long dark stains down the outside part of the band. I called Apple and they sent me a new replacement. I imagine it will probably do the same thing. I wanted to try the leather one that also has the magnet type closure but it only comes for the 42″.
Thanks for the comment. U saved my money.. I am in the Apple app now to order my Milanese loop but buying Blue buckle band instead.. Much Appreciated..
i decided to order the 42″ watch so I could try the blue leather magnet band. The band was way too long. There was about an inch left over hanging beside the watch face. But I did love the 42 watch face. Returned both however.
I know the original posting is old but.
I’m a guy.
I have the classic Apple leather buckle, and two new Coach leather bands, one black, one tan, in the TRex dinosaur style.
I prefer the much lighter Apple leather band. The Coach are high quality bands, but have that heavier feeling that makes them less comfortable. I was considering the black Milanese, but comments on the damage they do to the watches, and even to clothing and fabric furniture, changed my mind.
As the Milanese loop is made of polished stainless steel it will look different in each environment. If I’m under a lot of bright fluorescent lighting or in direct sunlight then it’s quite light, but when I’m in a dull lit room then it looks darker, the same goes for my stainless steel Apple Watch.
I felt compelled to comment that you’ve got the band upside down and it DOES impact how comfortable it is.
It obviously won’t fix your concerns with the shade.
Does anyone have ever had the issue that the milanese band would ruin a silky fabric or sweater by simply touch or rub? Already did that to 2 favorite items!
I tried two different brands of milanese bands and both of them snagged my clothing. I love the look, but it’s a nuisance to keep fixing snags.
Black Milanese Loop DOES scratch the back of the watch (Series 3 LTE version with Ceramic / Sapphire sensors at the back!) when it just touches it, for example, once you take off the watch and lay it down on the table, the loop gets “glued” to the back of the watch immediately due to both being magnetic. Just after a few days of very careful wearing the brand-new watch I’ve noticed the back covered in micro scratches, and a lot of them! The Milanese loop is going back to the Apple store, it is a shame they charge $199CAD for the thing that damages your expensive watch. Sticking to my sport black band in the meantime.