It’s impressive watching Apple sell people virtually the same Apple Watch design year in and year out, adding a feature here and there but changing precious little about the way it looks. It’s also fine — nobody actually needs to buy a new watch annually, but it does make the yearly refresh sort of ho-hum.
But there’s something rumored on the horizon that might invigorate things: the plastic Apple Watch SE. I found the rumor intriguing last month when Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman set it loose, but haven’t thought much of it since. However, today he wrote to his Power On newsletter subscribers that Apple is using plastic to make the watch “more kid-friendly,” adding that this “could allow for a better array of colors.” Then it clicked. There’s a chance of this being the most exciting Apple Watch update in years.
Look, the Apple Watch is a great-looking device. I even like the colors Apple uses for it. But I’ve gotten a little tired of the same variations on a muted palette theme for years. Something black-ish. Silver. Maybe one that’s kind of pink. And Starlight (aka silver, but tinged with a noncommittal shrug of yellow). Product Red is the only option if you want something bolder.
Elsewhere Apple has been tinkering with colors, resulting in a great-looking iMac. And some of the more colorful non-pro iPhones have been a delight — consider the seafoam green iPhone 12 mini I had this phone, and I still think about it, more than I care to admit. Imagine what could flow from Apple deciding to make the Watch SE more kid-friendly. I’m sure it won’t be the eye-searing greens, oranges, and yellows of 90s Nickelodeon (oh my, would I buy that, though), but something like those mid-cycle purple or banana-yellow iPhone refreshes may not be out of the question at all.
The only catch is that this is the SE we’re talking about; it’s a great smartwatch in a lot of ways, but it’s missing things that are hard to say goodbye to once you’ve boarded the mainline “Series” watch train. I’d mostly take or leave the extra health sensors, but I don’t think I can give up my Series 9’s faster on-device Siri or double-tap gesture. But add one or both of those features to the Watch SE and toss in some bold color choices, and who knows — I might just be on the market for a cheaper wearable.