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Comment by darkstar999 | Hacker News Reader

Those "dumb" watches will still work in 5 years. Hell, they will still be nice in 100 years. Smart watches won't hold up for 5 years.

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Most "dumb" watches that cost over $350 will retain the majority of their value well past those 5 years, too. Apple's first generation watch will be ~$50 in 5 years.

Android gear can't sell for $50 now.

The first Samsung Gear watch was only announced a year ago (Sep. 2013), and you can get it for <$150 new. Pretty sure it will be well under $50 for that model in 4 years.

I think the Swiss watchmakers would be more concerned about the label "dumb watch" than any threat to their sales.

Maybe, but I doubt people buy a $500 watch just because it will still be nice in 100 years. That might be the case for $10000 watches.

> Maybe, but I doubt people buy a $500 watch just because it will still be nice in 100 years.

They're generally intended to last a lifetime, however long that is, and possibly be left to heirs.

A $500 watch will certainly still have much use 10+ years from purchase.

It might have minor scratches but that's it.

A smart watch will probably not even power on 5 years from purchase (due to bad battery); or be able to pair with your phone (new phone OS might not be backwards compatible).

> It might have minor scratches but that's it.

And chances are that's just the glass face, which takes minutes (and a few bucks) to replace.

Actually any watch over a few hundred will have a sapphire glass, so even after 10 years it's unlikely it has scratches.

The body may have some minor scratches, but I think it only adds to the charm.

>Smart watches won't hold up for 5 years

This will be interesting to watch (sorry!) over the coming years.

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