How an Apple Watch Mistake Could Cost You $346

During this video demo of the Apple Watch, a man trying to show off the watch’s apps accidentally buys an Xbox One from Amazon. The Xbox One retails for $346 from the online retailer. After just three days the video already has half a million views on YouTube.

The video features a CNET reviewer demonstrating the Apple Watch’s interface. He starts out by showing how the Fandango app works, or rather, doesn’t. The reviewer says there aren’t any “menus or anything like that” on the app, but that you could in theory buy movie tickets with it. He says he thinks you may have to order the tickets from your phone and then the app would send them to the watch. A friend asks, “So you can’t actually buy movie tickets from the watch.” The CNET reviewer then admits that he hasn’t set the app up yet, so it was a bad demo. He goes on to accidentally order an Xbox One.

In fact, according to Apple’s website, the Fandango app does seem to require users to purchase the tickets from a phone or other device. The watch’s only contribution is then displaying the movie time, along with the theater location and phone number.

Not to be deterred, the reviewer moves on to a better demo.

“Amazon’s is pretty neat,” he says. “It uses the dictation.”

Apple Watch App Blunder

When the reviewer says, “Diapers,” he expects the app to load options for purchasing different diaper offerings from the online retailer. Instead, the watch’s voice recognition function apparently includes the last two syllables of his previous sentence and searches for “…tation diapers.”

Frustrated, the reviewer tries another search.

“Xbox One,” he says.

After a brief search, the watch at last delivers success, showing him the Xbox one Assassin’s Creed Unity bundle. Excited, the reviewer goes on to demonstrate the awesome power of the app.

“I could buy it now with one click,” he says. “I have to be very, very careful. I’m just going to add it to my wish list.”

But then something goes horribly wrong.

“Not hit, NO! NO!”

A Click Too Far

As his friend bursts into laughter, it becomes plain the CNET reviewer has accidentally ordered a brand new Xbox One.

“Wait. How do I cancel that? Um…”

It’s not immediately plain whether there’s a way to cancel accidental orders from the Apple Watch’s Amazon app. The reviewer stops the video there, telling the viewers he’s on his way to cancel the Xbox One order, apparently from his laptop, visible in the background.

Thanks to Amazon’s stellar cancellation and returns policy, the man probably had no trouble reversing the mistaken order. But the momentary cost of $346 perhaps forms a cautionary tale: with great wrist-based power comes great shopping responsibility. Be careful out there.