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Apple Watch gets fashion push with Vogue China cover

The model-fuelled photoshoot suggests Apple wants its Watch to be seen as a fashion item -- and a fashion item in China.

Luke Westaway Senior editor
Luke Westaway is a senior editor at CNET and writer/ presenter of Adventures in Tech, a thrilling gadget show produced in our London office. Luke's focus is on keeping you in the loop with a mix of video, features, expert opinion and analysis.
Luke Westaway
2 min read

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The Apple Watch is the star of November's Vogue China. Vogue China

Apple wants its newest product to be seen as more than just a gadget, putting the Apple Watch on the cover of fashion magazine Vogue China.

The Apple Watch isn't expected to hit shop shelves for months yet, but can be seen on the wrist of 26-year-old model Liu Wen, in the November issue of the fashion publication, Business of Fashion reports.

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Vogue China

"It is becoming increasingly clear that Apple is putting substantial effort into positioning its watch as a premium fashion item," Ben Wood, analyst at CCS Insight told CNET. "This is reflected in the people it has hired and the launch strategy, that has seen the Apple Watch appearing at events like Paris Fashion Week and gracing the cover of Vogue and other fashion publications."

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Model Liu Wen tries out the Apple Watch. @liuwenlw/Instagram

Smartwatches and wearable tech are tipped to be the next tech frontier, but not every wearable to date has offered much fashion appeal. Apple has form when it comes to pushing its products out of the tech sphere and into the mainstream consciousness, and will be hoping to repeat the trick with the Apple Watch.

Making the cover of Vogue China -- which has a readership of 1.3 million, The Guardian reports -- seems like a good start for Apple in terms of showing off its smartwatch to the Chinese market.

China offers a huge territory for Apple to woo, with early signs suggesting that the iPhone 6 may be a hit in the region, with the 4.7-inch smartphone reportedly hitting 4 million reservations as of last week, ahead of going on sale in China on 17 October.