As was noted during Apple’s barrage of press releases on Tuesday, you can now purchase Nike’s Apple Watch Sport Bands separately. Previously, customers had to purchase the Apple Watch Nike+ hardware itself in order to score one of the breathable bands with compression-molded perforations.
In this post, we go hands-on with all three of the Nike Sport Bands, which include Pure Platinum/White, Anthracite/Black, and Black/Volt. Watch our hands-on video for a look at each individually packaged band.
Instead of walking into an Apple Store, I placed my Nike Sport Band orders online. The bands arrived early this morning, and came packaged individually in boxes quite a bit larger than the band boxes themselves.
The boxes are the familiar size and color that we associate with other Apple Watch bands. After peeling off the green sticker and sliding out packaging that contains the bands, you’ll notice three pieces neatly housed inside.
Like other Apple Watch bands, the Nike Sport bands come with three pieces. There’s the piece with the clasp, along with a small/medium piece for smaller wrists, and a medium/large piece for larger wrists.
Video walkthrough
The bands are comprised of the same fluoroelastomer material that other Sport bands are made out of, but the perforations seem to make the bands feel slightly more malleable.
Since I don’t own an Apple Watch with a black case, I wasn’t sure how the Volt and Anthracite bands would pair with my stainless steel and silver aluminum casing. However, I was quite surprised that I enjoyed the look of all of the pairings. I’m especially fond of the Pure Platinum band when paired with the silver case, but thought highly of the stainless steel+Anthracite combination as well.
Of course, looks are nice, but the real point of these bands is to provide a breathable surface for those who are active. The perforated holes allow moisture to escape, which prevents the soggy wrist syndrome that may be associated with running with a standard Apple Watch Sport band.
What do you think about the Nike Sport Bands for Apple Watch? Would you consider buying one now that they are sold separately?
