Want an Apple Watch? Prepare to Wait

(AP photo)

When the Apple Watch drops on April 24, you’d better have an April 10 pre-order in already:

If you want to buy the Apple Watch model of your choice at an Apple Store at launch, you should consider pre-ordering online or through an Apple Store reservation, sources have told 9to5Mac. Due in part to the number of different models, Apple Watch inventory at many Apple Stores in the United States will be heavily constrained at launch, with priority given to reservations, meaning that Apple Watch availability for random walk-in purchases on day one will be noticeably tight.

As one source at a flagship Apple Store said, “we’re told to treat launch day as if there will be no walk-in stock.” That doesn’t necessarily mean there will be absolutely zero Apple Watch units to buy at launch if you don’t have a reservation, just that the specific Apple Watch variant a person wants will be far harder to come by at launch than some previous iPhone models.

I’ve window-shopped the stainless steel version with both the link and Milanese loop (drool) bracelets, but I’m definitely in wait-and-see mode on Cupertino’s new wearable device. Without having tried one on yet, I’m still pretty sure I’d like something thinner and perhaps with more health monitoring sensors. At this early date, Apple Watch 3 (or whatever they end up calling it two years from now) seems like the best bet.

Then again, those things are so pretty and smartly engineered that it’s a sure thing Melissa and I will end up at our local Apple Store sometime in May or June — you know, just to try on one or two models.

And I make no promises that the Amex will remain in my wallet the entire time.