Apple Watch Price Rumors for Gold Edition Heat Up

If you’re thinking about buying the Apple Watch Edition, which is the 18-karat gold version of Apple’s new wearable, prepare to pay a pretty penny for it, as the gold on the Apple Watch Edition itself could cost around $900.

The entry-level Apple Watch price will be set at $350, but the gold version will cost considerably more. Unfortunately, Apple hasn’t revealed pricing for its other two Apple Watch models, though.

Luckily, Greg Koenig of Luma Labs did some calculations of his own and came up with the approximate weight of the gold contents in the Apple Watch: 29.16 grams. This is his very rough estimate and he used “basic assumptions” to come up with this number, but if he’s close to the real number, that means that the Apple Watch Edition will come with about $900 worth of gold.

Considering that the current price of gold is hovering around $1,200 per ounce right now and 29.16 grams equals about one ounce, $900 worth of 18-karat gold on the Apple Watch Edition seems pretty accurate.

What’s more to consider is that this is just accounting for the gold and not other parts of the watch, as well as the internals and display. All of that could easily be another couple hundred of dollars. Plus, Apple needs to make a profit off of the Apple Watch Edition, so we could easily see the higher-end model sell for at least $1,200, and that’s being generous for the frugal shoppers reading this.

The Apple Watch is set for release at some point in April. The announcement came during Apple’s Q1 2015 earnings call, and while no specific release date was provided, April is later than what many past rumors have suggested.

When the Apple Watch was first announced back in September during the iPhone 6 event, the company provided a vague “early 2015″ release timeline, and since then, many potential buyers have been wondering when Apple will release its smartwatch to the masses.

The most recent release rumor for the Apple Watch suggested a March launch timeline, but earlier than that there was a leaked internal document that suggested “Spring 2015” was the agreed-upon release window, which came from Apple retail head Angela Ahrendts herself.

In that message, Ahrendts said that Apple Store retails employees should be prepared for a “new watch launch coming in the spring.” Considering that spring starts on March 20 this year, Ahrendts was right on target.

Apple is usually known for launching big new products ahead of an upcoming shopping season, but the Apple Watch will be an exception, and it will be the first time in several years that the company will release a new product this early in the year.

The Apple Watch will start at a steep $349 and will come in three different styles: Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, and Apple Watch Edition. There are still quite a few details about the device that we don’t know about yet, including the obvious release date. Also, no word on exact battery life, although Apple CEO Tim Cook said himself that users will probably be charging the thing every day, and recent reports claim that the watch will last 19 hours with normal use.