Corrosion resistant stainless steel band with butterfly folding clasp.
Similar to our iPhones, numerous companies provide accessories to add a touch of flair to our Apple Watches. You can choose to leave your watch au naturel or you can choose among numerous accessory straps, bezel guards, or full armor style cases. Most of the time my Apple Watch Series 4 exists securely within an Impact Catalyst Case or within the Waterproof Catalyst Case. Similar to my daily attire, these cases cover nearly every need. I love sport bands but find that they do not adequately match fancier venues. For those occasions, a stainless steel band, like the one from Sup Watch, would work amazingly well.
The Sup Watch Band arrived in an 8 3/4 inches long by 2 inches wide by 3/4 inches thick retail package. The two-part packaging was made of a clear outer slipcover and an inner white box. At the top of the box, you will find a 1 1/4 inches long by 3/8 inches wide nylon pull loop. Gripping the outside of the slipcover and the pulling upward on the loop, the inner white cardboard tray easily slid upward. The front panel of the slipcover had a 1/8 inches wide grey metallic border and a generic “WATCH BAND” title across the top. The back panel and side panels were left unadorned except for “WATCH BAND” typed onto the back panel. Within the inner tray, you will see the black metallic band resting like Snow White upon her pedestal. This image was even clearer when viewed through the outer slipcover and surrounding silver border. Upon each of the side panels, you will find “High Quality Strap * Designed For You.” I loved the ability to directly visualize the watch band and that the company did not overthink the simple, yet elegant, packing.
Removing the watch band from the packaging, I found the lack of product manual, instruction manual, etc. to be quite odd. There was no mention of product size, watch band parameters, installation instructions, warranty information, website information, or Facebook/Twitter information. Located on the small lower panel of the box, there were a few of the typical manufacturing safety/product labels. The 2.99-ounce, stainless steel, watch band measured 7 3/8 inches long in the closed configuration. To install the band onto the watch, I found it best to extend the watch clasp first. Slide the 1 3/8 inches wide strap attachment points into the groove on the Apple Watch until they click into place. I would discourage you from fully locking one side before proceeding to the other. Instead, slide both of the attachment points into the watch simultaneously and then slide the watch onto the straps.
Out of the box, the case did not work for my body type because my wrists were too thin. There were 7 links on each band that could be removed with a watch tool. I was able to identify these links by the small hole along each side. With the proper tool, you can remove the pin and thus take out links. Luckily, I already had a link removal tool/replacement band tool. Inserting the band into the vice, I was able to compress the link pin and to remove links from each side. When the links were removed, the product weight decreased from 2.99-ounces to 2.8-ounces and the length decreased from 7 3/8 inches to 6 7/8 inches long. I reinstalled the watch band onto my Apple Watch and unfortunately, it remained too long. Thus, I removed an additional link from each side. The 6 3/8 inches long watch strap fit my wrist perfectly. With four links removed, I was pleased with the added 0.16-ounce weight reduction.
In this instance, the watch tool was the products saving grace. The average customer does not have a watch band tool lying around. Without this tool, customers could not customize the length and would likely return this product as defective. One could theoretically take it to a watch store/jeweler but that would incur additional costs. Having tested other stainless steel bands for the Apple Watch, I knew how to customize the fit to my wrist. The butterfly locking clasp was secure and yet it was easily opened by compressing the sides. The vacuum plated stainless steel was well designed and held up to daily wear over the last two weeks. I did notice that the band tugged at the hair on my left wrist, but this was not any different than other cases. To summarize, I was aware of the compression pins and had the correct tools to exact the necessary changes. If you already have the compression pin tool and the knowledge to remove them, this band will provide a cost-friendly visual upgrade to the standard sport bands. Navigate to the supwatch.com website and choose among gold, black, silver, and rose gold bands.
Enjoy a 15% discount with the coupon code: sup15.
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