I finally received the LDFAS new titanium band 15 days after ordering it (which included it sitting in a depot 60 km away from my house for three days… man, shipping in NZ is terrible).
This band is similar to another titanium band that LDFAS makes, which I got last year. That band was designed several years ago, and it’s nice enough that it’s still part of my collection. However, the new/more expensive version of the titanium band looks and feels more premium due to the bevelling on the links, the much higher-quality clasp, and the fact that it’s a full titanium construction throughout (the older version uses a stainless steel clasp and watch connector lugs).
The new titanium band has thicker links — anywhere from 1.5 to 2x thicker than the old version — and the links are also wider by about 1 or 2mm, with much less taper from the watch connector down to the clasp. The clasp itself is a diver-style clasp that has a much smoother action than the older version and does not stick out from the rest of the band at all. The only higher-quality clasp I’ve had on an Apple Watch band is the one on Apple’s own link bracelet.
In fact, “the only higher quality is Apple’s own link bracelet” is one that applies to just about every aspect of this band. Unlike the earlier version, this new titanium band feels like it was deliberately designed with the Apple Watch Ultra in mind. The match in both fit and finish to the Apple Watch Ultra is about as good as you’re going to get in the market right now, especially at this price point — I paid about NZ$160 all up, including shipping. Compared to what some other manufacturers are charging for titanium bands, and especially compared to how much Apple’s link bracelet costs, that feels like an absolute bargain.
There’s no question whether it’s real titanium, by the way — its weight comes midway between my aluminium Juuk Vitero and Apple’s space black stainless steel link bracelet, which is exactly what you’d expect from titanium, which sits midway in density between steel and aluminium. Also, an enterprising LDFAS customer from Japan took a blowtorch to one of the links, and it displayed the same sort of rainbow discolouration you’d expect from titanium.
This is a very comfortable, high-quality band that really elevates the look of the Apple Watch Ultra and, more than any of the bands that Apple designed for the Ultra, makes it look like the premium tool watch that it actually is.
