Apple did a clever thing with how it designed the way that straps or bands connect to the Apple Watch and it did a really smart thing by putting magnets in its Milanese Loop but other companies haven't been so helpful. We're seeing a lot of third-party bands that look nice, are bargain prices, but which need tools, eyesight, a protective cloth – and instructions. You'd think you would get instructions with the band, but no. Here's what to do if you've got a non-Apple metal mesh style band and not a clue what to do.
Let us get something bad out of the way about the word 'eyesight' there. It wasn't until we had figured out this Pointers, did it half a dozen times to check and only then photographed the steps that we saw a helpful arrow. It is plain as day in the photographs below and now we know it's there, we can't miss it in real life either.
What you'll need
You'll have to have the band and it'll be good if you also have an Apple Watch. Then even if your metal mesh strap came without any instructions, it may well come with a small screwdriver. You don't actually need to screw anything for this job, you need a small tool with a metal tip. So if you haven't got one with the strap and you do have something like a strong nail file, that'll be fine.
Put the Watch and band on your wrist to see how loose it is or wince at how tight. This is the only way to estimate how much you'll need to adjust the band and it couldn't be less precise if you tried. So be prepared that you may have to go through all this a couple of times as you get closer to snug.
Lay the Watch out flat on a clean, clear surface with the face down. Press Apple's neat little button to release the band and take out the longer of the two. It's the longer one and it has part of a buckle around halfway down. For comparison, the shorter one has nothing on the strap until the clasp at the end.
Put the Watch aside and lay out the band with the buckle face up. Get your screwdriver or nail file and press the tip into the top slot.
With it pressed, now use the screwdriver as a level. You need to press down firmly and tilt the screwdriver toward the end of the band where that usually connects to the Apple Watch. This is where we finally discovered the arrow that says which direction to lever up the buckle.
What happens is that the buckle releases: the metal bridge across the strap tilts and you can freely slide it up and down the strap. You are going to have to guess how far but there are some guides.
These may be clearer when you're looking in real life but even in this photograph you should see faint horizontal lines at intervals along the length of the strap. This is on the underside of the strap, the side that goes against your skin, so you'll have to turn it over to find them. Move the buckle to above one nearest how far you estimate you've got to adjust it, then turn the band back over and with your thumb press firmly down on the plate. It should snap back into place.
Putting the band back together
Now reattach the band to the Apple Watch and appreciate anew how clever and easy Apple's design is. This Pointers does apply specifically to the mesh kind of metal band and you're on your own with the others. Unless you spring for Apple's version, the Milanese Loop which does away with all of this and just lets magnetism keep the band closed on your wrist.
-William Gallagher (
@WGallagher)
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