Are you wary of shelling out $350 to $17,000 for Apple Watch? Well, you can now rent Apple’s latest gizmo and try it for a week before you commit. Lumoid, a San Francisco startup, will let you try Apple Watch for just $45, and $25 of that will go towards the final purchase should you choose to buy a new Watch.
Try up to five wearable devices
Lumoid has a ‘Home Try-on’ program for other wearable devices too, such as Samsung Galaxy Gear, Jawbone UP24, Fitbit Surge, and the Pebble smartwatch. The tech gear rental site will start offering Apple Watch when it goes for sale in April. Lumoid has confirmed that you can choose up to five wearable devices for Home Try-on box, but just one Apple Watch per order.
Lumoid told Amanda Schupak of CBS News that it was offering trial programs because wearable devices were “intensely personalized.” What works for your friend may not work for you. It charges $25 to have up to five wearable devices delivered to your doorstep for a week-long trial. At the end of the trial period, if you choose to buy one of the devices, Lumoid will replace the trial product with a new one and put the fee towards the purchase price.
Lumoid offers only Apple Watch Sport and Steel
However, the Apple Watch trial costs a tad more. A week-long trial of Apple Watch Sport will cost $45, with $25 going towards the final purchase should you buy it. The Steel version can be availed for trial for $55, with $35 going towards the final purchase. The trial package will also include any four devices of your choice. That means, for $45 or $55, you can compare Apple Watch with other wearable devices.
Lumoid will not offer the premium Apple Watch Edition that costs between $10,000 and $17,000. According to TechRadar, Lumoid has partnered directly with the Cupertino-based tech giant to offers its smartwatch. However, Lumoid is offering rentals only in the U.S., at least for now. The startup already has a waiting list.
There is a cheaper alternative as well. Fake Apple Watch is selling in China for just $40. But you may not want to own that.
