Titanium-cased wristwatches aren’t new. In the 1970s, watchmakers first experimented with titanium as an exciting metal that could avoid some of the problems associated with heavier metals. Titanium was expensive as a material and hard to manufacture at the time. In the 1980s and 1990s, titanium in lower-grade form became available for wristwatches, though rarely for luxury wristwatches. This is, for example, when Japan’s Citizen Group began utilizing titanium for relatively affordable sports watches. Titanium didn’t really hit its stride for more high-end timepieces until the late 1990s and early 2000s when titanium metal started to become useful to mechanical watch movement makers. The non-magnetic and lightweight metal was starting to be much easier to manufacture and an array of new shapes and forms were possible. Watchmakers loved all the things that titanium could do inside of watch that steel and other metals were not appropriate for. Titanium, then, became increasingly interesting as a watch case material. Grade 5 titanium started to supplant Grade 2 titanium (there are many grades of titanium), and manufacturing techniques caught up with titanium and allowed it to be formed and polished nearly identically to steel. Let me recap that the primary advantage of titanium is that it is about 30% lighter than steel. It is also more rigid, but it’s actually softer than steel. Titanium has a large number of advantages, but since it is prone to scratching, manufacturers need to be careful when using it in high-end applications. Solutions to the soft-surface nature of titanium has led companies that rely on the material to experiment with various finishes, as well as surface coating techniques. Some of the most sophisticated titanium material on the market is still offered by Japanese Citizen and is referred to as “Super Titanium.” We also see titanium making a very strong showing in very high-end watches. In addition to titanium being a popular case material for ultra-luxury watches costing over $100,000, it is also very popular with mainstream luxury watchmakers such as Omega and now Rolex. It wasn’t until 2023 that Rolex decided to release its first all-titanium watch with the Rolex Yachtmaster 42 in RLX titanium. Consumers can easily spend $10,000, $20,000, or even much more, for a watch with a titanium case.   The proliferation of titanium in the consumer zeitgeist has extended beyond the metal’s industrial benefits. Titanium as a term is now heard as a value-adding feature in the minds of many consumers. It is a perfect time for Apple to lean heavily into titanium, even if using the material corresponds to its larger product goals. The Apple Watch Ultra and Ultra 2 sport an all-titanium case. It is formed featuring a mostly matte surface treatment, a wise choice both in terms of style and aging (polished titanium can visually wear the fastest). Given that the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is the largest smartwatch produced by Apple to date, it makes perfect sense that the watch is made out of a metal designed for weight savings.