Unboxing review: Ottm hard wood Apple Watch bands

26 July 2016, 03:54

We first mentioned Ottm hard wood bands here on Mac Kung Fu in April this year. Crowdfunded via IndieGoGo, and significantly beating the funding requirement, Ottm offered a choice of three types of wood: Maple (straight grain and light cream color), Zebrawood (striking grain, native to Western Africa) or Sandalwood (deep earthy hues).

I decided to go for all three as part of the incredible $99 early bird deal and they arrived today, just one month after the projected date (note that I live in the UK; as an international backer, I got my delivery somewhat ahead of US backers).

And the straps are just as I anticipated – very nice indeed. In the end Ottm chose a butterfly clasp for each and, although there was talk of swapping the Maple option for Bamboo, it appears that they stuck with the former.

Each strap comes boxed with a pushpin remover, plus two extra links (and one extra pin) in order the expand the size. In fact, I ended-up using the pushpin remover to actually remove two links in order to make the straps fit my (abnormally thin) male wrists. The large size of each individual link meant I couldn’t get the size quite as I’d like, and my Apple Watch sits maybe half an inch higher up my wrist than when using my regular Milanese loop strap. But this is simply the nature of link-based watch straps.

Alas, the clasp of the zebrawood strap is faulty in that it won’t remain closed. I’m hoping to arrange a replacement. Other than that, though, I’m very happy. The straps look terrific and unique. I love the 100% natural vibe they give off, especially considering Apple’s existing range of straps focusses largely on artificial materials.

I’m not sure whether the straps are to become retail products following the IndieGoGo launch. I’ve enquired with Ottm and will report back as soon as I know. In the meantime, check out the photos below.

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