Reserve Strap for Apple Watch ships 3rd November

Apple Watch accessories, particularly chargers, aren't that varied. Apple has somewhat constrained the design of chargers to its own specific design. One startup, however, has dared to go against the flow and do something rather differently, and now it's close to seeing its completion. Reserve Strap has hunkered down on the final design of its strap-cum-charger for the Apple Watch. And with that part finally crossed out, it can say somewhat with finality when pre-orders will finally start shipping, which is scheduled for November 3.

Reserve Strap started innocently enough. It aimed to be a smartwatch strap that doubled as a charger while still attached. Though functional, the define left something to be desired. As if by good fortune, the Apple Watch's diagnostic port was discovered. Reserve Strap investigated it and found out that it could be used to not only charge the smartwatch but also charge it faster. This led to a redesign of the whole strap into something that more closely resemble a conventional, though still thicker strap.

The embedded Lithium Polymer cells account for the added girth, which is advertised to extend the Apple Watch's battery life up to 2.7 times. The strap it self charges via a micro USB port but, when attached to the Apple Watch, the wired connection can be used to charge both at the same time. The new design still fits both 38 mm and 42 mm Apple Watch sizes but is now just 25 mm wide itself.

Unlike a regular strap, however, you will need to pry the diagnostic port open first before using Reserve Strap. The package will include such a tool for it. Reserve Strap claims that it complies with Apple's guidelines for smartwatch bands, though the document probably never foresaw that the diagnostic port will be used in such a way. So far, however, Apple has been silent on this matter, and hopefully it will remain that way.

Those who pre-ordered the Reserve Strap will naturally be the first to get theirs once the November 3 shipping date arrives. The Reserve Strap is also on sale for $249,99, available in White, Grey, and Black and in 38 and 42 mm sizes.

SOURCE: Reserve Strap