Now, a brief bit on the bracelets, since they seemed to draw quite a bit of curiosity from those who followed the release. Apple offers both the Milanese Loop and the Link Bracelet in all three new colors, but they remain in stainless steel. The steel bracelets are PVD coated to match the titanium colors, but it’s a strange move for a brand that’s known for such perfect cohesion. Certainly, it’s hard to imagine a Swiss watch brand getting away with putting a steel bracelet on a titanium case.
Upon further thought and after wearing the Milanese Loop around, there are a few possible reasons that came to mind. First, machining. If you’ve gotten a chance to play around with both bracelets, you’ll probably agree that the mesh is the softest and most delicate in any modern watch, and that the Link Bracelet has an admirable amount of engineering in it (and was very much ahead of its time with tool-less link adjustment). I would suspect that to achieve both in titanium, while keeping the price even remotely reasonable, would be very hard to do. In addition, titanium is a non-magnetic material, unlike stainless steel. This means that Apple would have had to do away with the infinitely adjustable magnetic clasp on mesh, and it’s hard to imagine a suitably elegant solution for a wide range of wrists.