Four reasons the Apple Watch might fail, and one reason why it won't
There's the battery life and high price among other signals the smartwatch could be a flop. But then again, the company has designed spectacular successes from the iPod to iPhone.
Here's why it could flop:
It needs to be charged every day
Latest reports from insiders suggest the device will last around 19 hours on one charge, based on "average use". Heavy use of apps and other functions will cause the battery to drain in around five hours.
This is broadly similar to battery life on the iPhone, but users may be a great deal less forgiving in this case: most watch batteries last around four years.
It's too expensive
Of course, watch owners regularly spend thousands of dollars on their wrist bling, but they're making an investment in a device which will last for years, if not decades.
You need an iPhone for full functionality
While most of the people who rush to buy an Apple Watch in the next weeks will be loyalists with a house full of Apple products, not everyone has an iPhone.
The infrastructure isn't there
One of the most exciting features of the Apple Watch is the potential to use its built in near-field communication (NFC) chip for wireless payments in the manner of an Octopus or Oyster card.
That said, there's one very good reason why even the most pessimistic critics of the Apple Watch might be wrong...
Here's why it could succeed:
It's Apple
Apple has had its flops: the Newton, Macintosh TV, the Apple Pippin (yes, Apple once made a games console).
But for all its failures, the company has had spectacular successes. The iPod, iPhone and iPad, despite not being revolutionary products in and of themselves, were all market changing devices, confounding critics and making Apple one of the largest companies in the world.
While the criticisms of the Apple Watch are legitimate, and it could most definitely flop, there's at least as good a chance that critics will be left with egg on their face.