Skip to main content

Most people don’t want the new Apple Watch, according to a new survey

apple watch to come with power reserve time only mode hands on 7
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Apple may still be basking in the glow of fame and glory since announcing its new Apple Watch on Tuesday, but not everyone thinks the smartwatch is so hot. A new survey by Tolunda QuickSurveys of 1,000 Americans suggests that, among other insights, that most people are “very unlikely” to buy the new Apple Watch.

Most don’t want the new Apple Watch

The highlight of Tolunda’s survey comes from its questions about Apple’s unveiling of the new Apple Watch during its iPhone 6 and 6 Plus keynote. While the 1019 respondents mostly said they were “impressed” by the Apple Watch, the majority said they were still unlikely to buy it. Some 36 percent said they definitely would not buy the Apple Watch, 20 percent said they would probably not, and only 10 percent of respondents said they’d definitely buy the new Apple Watch. This response is a far cry from the standing ovation that the Apple Watch received from its audience in Cupertino’s Flint Center.

Related: Hands on: Apple’s watch changes everything. Or does it?

The survey did not ask specifically why its respondents did not want the new Apple Watch, but there are certainly several possible reasons, including its price, square shape or that most people are not yet ready for smartwatches. Tolunda’s survey did note, though, that most people either have “no opinion” on the new smartwatch’s overall design, or that it doesn’t look “much different from other smartwatches.” No particular feature of the Apple Watch stood out as the best among respondents, though many said they did like the size of the device, its health features, and customization.

The iPhone 6 remains a hit

While the Apple Watch didn’t receive much praise from the survey, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus still impressed the survey’s respondents.  According to Tolunda’s Survey, 53 percent of respondents were impressed by their first look at the pair of smartphones, which will hit stores next week. Some 42 percent also said they were satisfied by the new features, feeling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are worthy successors to last year’s iPhone 5S and 5C.

When it comes to features, it seems the larger screen and faster 802.11ac Wi-Fi connectivity were the two most popular features on the new iPhones. Despite being one of the most popular features though, 63 percent would still buy the 4.7-inch iPhone 6, as opposed to its larger, 5.5-inch cousin. It seems in any case that customers like having a sense of choice in size.

Related: Apple makes it official, announces 5.5-inch iPhone 6

One final interesting piece of information from the survey is about conversion. Of the respondents who own an Android device, only 9 percent said they’d be willing to switch, suggesting that the majority who like and want the new iPhone are already iPhone owners themselves.

Tolunda’s survey went out less than 24 hours after Apple’s event, when it was fresh on everyone’s mind. Still that doesn’t mean the sentiment about either the iPhone 6 or Apple Watch will change once release day comes around. We’ll only know how well these gadgets sell once they hit the stores and we’re able to review the devices ourselves. It does seem that the Apple Watch, despite the hype, still has to prove its worth to consumers. Feel free to check out Tolunda’s infographic of the survey results below.

iPhone 6 survey inforgraphic
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Editors' Recommendations

Joshua Sherman
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Joshua Sherman is a contributor for Digital Trends who writes about all things mobile from Apple to Zynga. Josh pulls his…
I’ve been using iOS 17 for months. These 4 new things are the best
Spotlight on iOS 17.

Spotlight on iOS 17 Prakhar Khanna / Digital Trends

The rollout of iOS 17 is official, and it freshens the software experience on iPhones dating as far back as the iPhone XR. I’ve been testing it on my iPhone 14 Pro ever since the first public beta rolled out, at the peril of unreliable battery life and random stutters all across the board.

Read more
The iPhone 15 Pro’s Action button has a serious flaw
Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro.

Apple’s Wonderlust event brought us a revamped iPhone 15 lineup, including the iPhone 15 Pro, as well as the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2.

With the iPhone 15 lineup, the Dynamic Island and USB-C charging make their way to all models. The iPhone 15 Pro models got even more cool new hardware features — including the highly anticipated Action button, which was inspired by the Apple Watch Ultra.

Read more
10 colors I wish Apple made for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro
iPhone 15 Pro in a red color.

Apple finally revealed the iPhone 15 at its “Wonderlust” event on September 12. This lineup includes the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max. There were other products announced during the event as well, but the iPhone 15 series is the biggest of the bunch.

However, Apple’s really been dropping the ball lately in terms of device colors. This year is especially bad with the very pastel and muted colors of the iPhone 15 models, not to mention the various shades of gray for the iPhone 15 Pro variants.

Read more