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mfram

Contributor
Jan 23, 2010
1,353
397
San Diego, CA USA
The Sport band has been great for me. I have 6 different colors. None of them are showing any color issues. And they wipe clean with a little water. Comfortable, too.
 
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sean000

macrumors 68000
Jul 16, 2015
1,628
2,346
Bellingham, WA
I've had my blue Sports band and aluminum Sport for about 10 months now and both the watch and the blue band still look new. I don't wear the blue sport band as much as I wear my other two bands, but when I do it's usually because I know I will be getting sweaty. I wear it a lot for bike rides where it gets sweaty and dusty. I also wear it sometimes just because I do like the look and feel of it, but I probably wear my third party brown leather band or my third party leather loop most of the time.

I have read about some peeling issues with the black sports band, but fortunately I haven't had any problems with the blue one. I like it quite a lot. I would also like to try one of Apple's new nylon bands.

Sean
 

BarracksSi

Suspended
Jul 14, 2015
3,902
2,664
Mine looks good. Had it since August of last year. It's the only strap I have (so far).
a098cdfb938b23a9ad66e29dbe93f7bf.jpg
 

choreographics

macrumors 6502
Apr 23, 2015
384
1,777
Berlin, Germany
Most of them are, well, "good as new"—even after more than 12 months. No issues with color or shape.

The only thing I noticed—and only because I bought a new one few days ago—is that, the material feels a little different. Don't get it wrong, it's still great and comfortable, but not that soft and extraordinary as on the first day right out of the box. Not sure how to describe it, its like the surface gets a little rougher through time, but that's something happens with daily use. Nothing to complain about, and I observed the same phenomenon with iPad's cover and silicon case.
 
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jgelin

macrumors 6502a
Jul 30, 2015
905
1,073
St Petersburg, FL
Mine is doing well! After a weird moment in time where the Black Sports Band was shedding like it had a sunburn... I rubbed is shedding off and it has been normal ever since. It really was odd, like a snake shedding its skin when it were time.
 

CaptMarvel

macrumors 68000
Sep 20, 2014
1,738
2,145
North Carolina
Mine is doing well! After a weird moment in time where the Black Sports Band was shedding like it had a sunburn... I rubbed is shedding off and it has been normal ever since. It really was odd, like a snake shedding its skin when it were time.

My black sports band was chaffing like it had a rash, so I wiped it down with some flushable wipes. Hopefully that weird texture feeling my band has goes away soon too.
 
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Bbqthis

macrumors 6502a
Apr 12, 2015
935
1,844
Bay Area, CA
Black sport band from day 1 still looks pretty much brand new. Minimal wear marks where the band loops in on itself. Wife's day 1 white sport band also basically brand new. No discoloration.
 

Mac2me

macrumors 6502a
Jun 10, 2015
965
446
White, midnight blue, Product Red, stone--all look and feel great. No discoloration or other issues. I just wipe it down with a damp paper towel when I go to charge my watch at night. No other care required.
 

myrtlebee

macrumors 68030
Jul 9, 2011
2,677
2,242
Maryland
Most of them are, well, "good as new"—even after more than 12 months. No issues with color or shape.

The only thing I noticed—and only because I bought a new one few days ago—is that, the material feels a little different. Don't get it wrong, it's still great and comfortable, but not that soft and extraordinary as on the first day right out of the box. Not sure how to describe it, its like the surface gets a little rougher through time, but that's something happens with daily use. Nothing to complain about, and I observed the same phenomenon with iPad's cover and silicon case.

Mine is doing well! After a weird moment in time where the Black Sports Band was shedding like it had a sunburn... I rubbed is shedding off and it has been normal ever since. It really was odd, like a snake shedding its skin when it were time.

The coating on the sports bands is awful. I guess most people aren't that astute to notice it wearing away very fast with normal use. It is on every color. The problem is, once it wears off through normal use or if you go ahead and rub it off with your fingers, the band loses its smooth silky feeling and becomes more rubbery in texture. For me, that was a problem because after it wore off when I moved my wrist up and down, the two straps would rub together creating a strange feeling like rubber catching on rubber. It's very annoying, but I am not sure if it is only noticeable if you have the band set to my specific size adjustment, or if it affects all sizes. Because of this the sports bands were not a good option for me when I had my Apple Watch. It's really a shame because out of the box, the band is amazing. Apple has never been good with coatings. I just returned my iPad silicone case a couple of months ago because its coating was wearing off quickly with normal use, making the texture and appearance unpleasant. A number of Apple products have had issues with coatings over the years. You would think they would have the money to figure out a better solution.
 
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Nightrich

macrumors regular
Jun 8, 2015
142
36
Tennessee
I've not had any problems with my OEM black sport band. I've heard of them peeling but I haven't had any issues like that myself.
 

BarracksSi

Suspended
Jul 14, 2015
3,902
2,664
I'll add that I rinse mine off almost every night. Maybe it keeps from getting nasty this way.
 

speedyyellow

macrumors member
May 22, 2015
84
24
Cambs/London
My wife's white sport band has pretty serious blue staining on it which doesn't seem to come off with a damp cloth. It's bad enough that she doesn't use it anymore.
 

ftlum

macrumors regular
Oct 24, 2011
168
37
White still looks great. Black shows a little scuffing where the band rubs against itself, though this is not visible when you're just wearing it normally.
 

srshaw

macrumors 6502
Aug 13, 2011
410
66
I have a black and white, I got the black last April and the White a month or so later, both look fine. To be fair with the black there are rub marks, but aren't visible when wearing it.
 

naasrd

macrumors 6502
Apr 30, 2008
459
169
Dublin, Ireland
Been holding up pretty well, picked up a knockoff Milanese loop on eBay just for a change, must say it looks fab so will stay with that for a while.
 

john991

macrumors 68040
Sep 30, 2014
3,904
2,538
Great White North - aka Canada
My wife's white sport band has pretty serious blue staining on it which doesn't seem to come off with a damp cloth. It's bad enough that she doesn't use it anymore.

Same with my white sports band. (Blue staining that doesn't seem to come off either)

I have the product red band and no problem
With this one. I wonder if the original white didn't stand up to much for wear and tear?
 

broadbean

macrumors 6502a
Jun 10, 2007
782
333
I suppose the more bands you have, the less time you'd spend wearing each particular band. In addition to four other bands, I have the green Sport Band from launch day, and an orange one shortly after that colour came out. I had been waiting for the yellow one but I think I've given up and will just get an el cheapo.

Both Apple's green and orange Sport Bands have held up very well. I even used to swim with the green one. It's also felt a little softer now, but not sure if it's stretched.

They also used to be my lightest bands, until the new Woven Nylon.
 

Blueline29

macrumors 68020
Jun 16, 2009
2,469
969
Saint Augustine, FL
Mine all look great, but TBH I have so many bands that no single one accumulates much wear. But I've never noticed staining or anything else on any of them (I have the Apple white, light pink, turquoise, mint, lilac, stone, green, vintage rose, and antique white sport bands). They all look and feel identical to the day I got them.
 

ladytonya

macrumors 6502a
Oct 14, 2008
924
198
I have the lavender sports band that came with my rose gold watch and it looks terrible! I wear it every day because it is my only band and it's stained blue all over. I have tried cleaning it but nothing works.
 
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