Did you pre-order the Apple Watch 2? If you picked up one for Best Buy, I have both good news and bad news. Make sure you're sitting down for this one.
Which do you want first: the good news or the bad news? Well, to keep things on a positive note, you'll have to endure the bad news first. The bad news is that Apple Watch 2 pre-orders are delayed at Best Buy. America's favorite retailer intended to start shipping Watch 2 pre-orders today, but unfortunately, has been making rounds via email to inform customers that the updated shipment date is extended from September 16th to September 28th:
"Thank you for your recent pre-order for the Apple Watch Series 2. Unfortunately, we've learned from Apple there's been a shipping delay for this item."
The company also lists September 28th in the email or letter it's been sending Apple Watch 2 pre-order customers. If you receive this email from Best Buy, please feel free to write in and let us know.
Okay, now that the bad news is out of the way, there's some good news: to make up for the delayed shipments, Best Buy is giving $50 off for a future Best Buy purchase (beyond this Apple Watch 2 pre-order, mind you) that must be used between now and October 14th (there's not much time to lose, considering that the expiration date on the rebate is only valid for the next 3.5 weeks or so). If you haven't purchased the Apple Watch 2 yet, Macy's may have a surprise for you just before the holidays.
The Apple Watch 2 is Apple's best smartwatch to date, featuring 50-meter water resistance, a speaker that lets out water after you swim or dive, along with a 25% brighter display, slightly larger battery (which may not have much of an effect on battery life), and in-built GPS, and new features in WatchOS 3 such as a Breathe app, SOS messages (seen in WatchOS 3 beta 6 alongside of Auto Unlock and Activity Sharing), instant app launches, an app dock for your favorite apps, doodle messages, and Swim Workouts, part of Apple's intent to appeal to swimmers, runners, and athletes -- alongside of a new Wheelchair Mode that provides challenges for the most challenged among us.
The Apple Watch 2 is selling for $369, with the price of the first-gen. Apple Watch reduced to $269. For those who think the first-gen. price is still too expensive, Apple has decided to provide an updated first-gen. model with new innards such as a dual-core processor to match that of Apple Watch Series 2 models. For those who are content with their current first-gen. smartwatch, you should've received WatchOS 3, the major update that Apple released to its smartwatch-wearing users on September 13th.