iApple Products

With demo versions of the Apple Watch beginning to show up in stores this week, few actually showed up in Apple Stores around the world to examine the new wearable – but online buzz for the device continues unabated.

The official street date for the Apple Watch is April 24th, which is the date that delivery of pre-ordered devices should begin to arrive. However, orders for the higher-end versions of the wearable device have been so high that some of the more expensive models – like the $17,000 Executive version – have had their ship date delayed to as late as June or even July in some cases.

According to Apple's US website, shipments of the $349 entry-level Apple Watch Sport are now scheduled to hit in June. Middle-tier Apple Watch versions are said that they will ship in anywhere from four to six weeks, with a select few stretching into early July. The vote of confidence on the part of consumers has helped the Cupertino company's value soar on the stock market; in fact, with projections for Apple Watch sales expected to reach nearly 14 million units by the end of September, Apple stands poised to have a major success on its hands.

The first truly innovative product to come from Apple after CEO Tim Cook took the reins from former chief executive Steve Jobs is certainly going to be watched very carefully by industry pundits. The idea that Apple had regarding taking orders for the Apple Watch online exclusively, and only invite customers to try out the Apple Watch in-store after making an appointment, has been referred to as a strategy to avoid overly-long lines of consumers spending hours or even days camping out in tents outside Apple Stores, events that have unfolded with some regularity in the past with the sale date of new iPhone versions.

Meanwhile, there seems to be little demand for the opportunity to try an Apple Watch at a local Apple Store. Customers at the flagship store in Manhanttan's Fifth Avenue could walk in without having a prior appointment.