Does anyone have any good websites they can recommend locally for watch straps. I’ve seen Hoco but it seems to be a little hit and miss as to legitimate suppliers with a lot of fake copies of them.
Any other suggestions would be good as well.
Yes! I’m getting a Watch when I return from Vietnam and would like to find some nice straps too 
I just purchased my Hoco bands off eBay. I am pretty sure they are genuine (they look and feel pretty good).
There are 3 different types of Hoco bands from what I have seen. I purchased 2 different ones (the 3 bead with traditional clasp and 3 bead with a more modern clasp).
I paid about $40 for each of them.
Yup, 30 in Perth today and I’ve got a wrist sweat problem. What do the other sweaty wristed people of AppleTalk recommend?
I’m giving this one a shot: http://www.hellonomad.com/products/strap
May write a review for the front page when it turns up
I’m wary of Nomad. I pre-ordered their Apple Watch dock when it was first announced and paid in full. They kept missing their delivery deadline (moved from April, then to May, then June and finally in July). When they finally had a product to release, they gave the first batch to retail stores rather than people who had pre-ordered.
In effect they used the pre-order process as a cash flow mechanism to fund their production and then shafted those who pre-ordered. It felt like it was a kickstarter project (but it’s not!).
I ended up getting a refund and a waste of 3 months. I was not happy with their business practice and would not buy from them again (despite the fact they have great looking products)
Ah man, that sucks 
Will see what happens with the Strap, hopefully they’ve cleaned up their act…
Hopefully Nomad has learnt from that experience. The CEO was in active damage control with the people who pre-ordered. I received a personal email from him apologising for what happened, and he even gave me his phone number if I wanted to discuss it with him.
It was a nice attempt to win back customer support and loyalty, but it was still very frustrating.
I think that says something about the ethics of the people involved and I would be unlikely to buy their product out of principle. The reality is if they did that, they clearly were only looking at the money and their perceptions of the ethics of the situation were clearly distorted.
Bump. The Bexar Goods one looks good but is completely sold out for my Watch (42mm stainless steel) anyone got any others?
Check out southern straps for great nato style bands for the Apple Watch.
I purchased one and its become one of my fav bands. Feels good on the hand and looks great. I was pleasantly surprised.
I’ve just stumbled across this place that sells adapters to turn normal watch straps into Apple Watch straps. You can probably get them locally or on eBay I imagine. http://www.clockworksynergy.com/shop/product-category/accessories/apple-watch-adapters/
Good thread revival. I had been thinking about another Sport strap, but now I’m thinking of a few…
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From the link above I picked up a Midnight Blue and the “Fog” colour. They arrived today, so it’s definitely something I wouldn’t pick up if I wanted something new in a hurry, but for a tenth of the cost of a real thing I’m super happy.
Very minor differences between the two. I can’t tell if the material is different than the original because my black band now has a slightly worn feel to it, but it certainly feels very similar. Second photo below shows that the real thing has the size stamp, while these particular non-genuines don’t. Clasp “action” is also slightly harsher on the non-genuines, due to a slightly less rounded pin/thing that inserts into the band, but otherwise they’re identical.
Still awaiting my 42mm modern buckle leather band, which Apple don’t actually offer. That one should be interesting, but it was about US $28.
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Ultimately, you get what you pay for it!!!
Picked up a cheap hoco replica. It’s not bad overall, but quality definitely isn’t on a par with the hoco originals.
Wow talk about trademark infringement the replica even has the name Hoco on it.
And when did China ever respect trademarks?
Just be wary. Personally Watch straps that don’t use Apple’s official MFi lugs are a deal breaker for me. Risk of potential breakage is too high.