4 ms·

Why would you buy a watch from them anyway? It's really lame business practise, but hardly surprising from a "luxury" brand. The good news is that there aren't

by Y_Y 3y ago

Why would you buy a watch from them anyway? It's really lame business practise, but hardly surprising from a "luxury" brand. The good news is that there aren't proprietary electrons yet so if you can get something that fits and gives the right voltage you should be fine.

sschueller 3y ago
It's actually a good watch. Vanilla WearOS and a nice design. A crown that let's you navigate and it's made out of titanium with sapphire glass. I have a battery that fits but the connector is different. It is too small for me to replace and the risk of destroying the connector in a such tiny flex pcb is very high.
- illwrks 3y ago
  Could you not cut the wires and connector from the existing bad battery and solder it onto the new one?
  - sschueller 3y ago
    It's not wires but a flex pcb. The connector is microscopic and plastic. If I nudge it with the iron it's destroyed.
    - illwrks 3y ago
      Ah, such a shame.
- hammyhavoc 3y ago
  Is it? It's a grand, and it isn't repairable once the battery goes. I'd say that's a pretty shitty smartwatch (not priced to be disposable), and an even worse general watch.
  - sschueller 3y ago
    I wasn't aware of that. I didn't want an apple watch and the other android watches all felt cheap. I also didn't want to spend what a TAG Heuer Connected would cost (which I believe has much better service). Yes, CHF 1000 is a lot but compared to an iPhone or a Samsung Fold which I do not own, I didn't see this watch as being too crazy.
mikestew 3y ago
The good news is that there aren't proprietary electrons yet so if you can get something that fits and gives the right voltage you should be fine. The battery maker is under NDA, I'm sure Mont Blanc made sure you're not going to find something on AliExpress. And, yeah, I hate to blame the victim here, but who buys high-tech electronics from a maker of...fountain pens? (And maker of fine fragrances, too. sigh)
- pavel_lishin 3y ago
  > And, yeah, I hate to blame the victim here Then don't.
- syntheweave 3y ago
  Mont Blanc's pens have been quite competently cloned by Chinese firms. I have a Jinhao x159 which performs well at a fraction of the cost. So I can see how this is a way of making a moat for themselves, it's just also a terrible way of doing so.
  - bluesquared 3y ago
    Yes, the Jinhao's of the fountain pen market make pretty decent pens, but that's not a fair comparison. That's like saying a Timex and a Rolex both tell time just as well, so why does Rolex exist?
    - znpy 3y ago
      > so why does Rolex exist? So rich people can show off their wealth.
      - lozf 3y ago
        As the saying goes: "You don't buy a Rolex to tell the time, you buy a Rolex to tell others."
  - hammyhavoc 3y ago
    Relative to what you can buy from other more reputable brands for a similar price point, it's actually not great. Nib usually needs work due to poor QC, they creak, and they're just generally a lacking experience. I'm also not endorsing spending a grand on a mass-produced pen, but there's a sensible middle ground of not buying junk nor overpaying for something that doesn't enhance your writing experience. Equally, price isn't a reliable indicator of quality.

by Y_Y 3y ago

sschueller 3y ago

It's actually a good watch. Vanilla WearOS and a nice design. A crown that let's you navigate and it's made out of titanium with sapphire glass. I have a battery that fits but the connector is different. It is too small for me to replace and the risk of destroying the connector in a such tiny flex pcb is very high.

illwrks 3y ago
Could you not cut the wires and connector from the existing bad battery and solder it onto the new one?
- sschueller 3y ago
  It's not wires but a flex pcb. The connector is microscopic and plastic. If I nudge it with the iron it's destroyed.
  - illwrks 3y ago
    Ah, such a shame.
hammyhavoc 3y ago
Is it? It's a grand, and it isn't repairable once the battery goes. I'd say that's a pretty shitty smartwatch (not priced to be disposable), and an even worse general watch.
- sschueller 3y ago
  I wasn't aware of that. I didn't want an apple watch and the other android watches all felt cheap. I also didn't want to spend what a TAG Heuer Connected would cost (which I believe has much better service). Yes, CHF 1000 is a lot but compared to an iPhone or a Samsung Fold which I do not own, I didn't see this watch as being too crazy.

mikestew 3y ago

The good news is that there aren't proprietary electrons yet so if you can get something that fits and gives the right voltage you should be fine. The battery maker is under NDA, I'm sure Mont Blanc made sure you're not going to find something on AliExpress. And, yeah, I hate to blame the victim here, but who buys high-tech electronics from a maker of...fountain pens? (And maker of fine fragrances, too. sigh)

pavel_lishin 3y ago
> And, yeah, I hate to blame the victim here Then don't.
syntheweave 3y ago
Mont Blanc's pens have been quite competently cloned by Chinese firms. I have a Jinhao x159 which performs well at a fraction of the cost. So I can see how this is a way of making a moat for themselves, it's just also a terrible way of doing so.
- bluesquared 3y ago
  Yes, the Jinhao's of the fountain pen market make pretty decent pens, but that's not a fair comparison. That's like saying a Timex and a Rolex both tell time just as well, so why does Rolex exist?
  - znpy 3y ago
    > so why does Rolex exist? So rich people can show off their wealth.
    - lozf 3y ago
      As the saying goes: "You don't buy a Rolex to tell the time, you buy a Rolex to tell others."
- hammyhavoc 3y ago
  Relative to what you can buy from other more reputable brands for a similar price point, it's actually not great. Nib usually needs work due to poor QC, they creak, and they're just generally a lacking experience. I'm also not endorsing spending a grand on a mass-produced pen, but there's a sensible middle ground of not buying junk nor overpaying for something that doesn't enhance your writing experience. Equally, price isn't a reliable indicator of quality.