Apple Watch 6 nickel allergy Protector

Q: Which Apple Watch is best for nickel allergy?

Its called the Solo Loop. Its an infinity silicone loop without any closure mechanism. A great option for my nickel allergy friends. My watch is the Apple Watch Series 5 GPS, 40mm Silver Aluminum Case.

I have a confession to make. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, I lost the ability to wear anything “foreign” on my body. This included any kind of chain, ring, or even a watch. It was the hardest to stop wearing watches, but I did that for a long time.

Table of Contents Show

Can I wear an Apple Watch if I'm allergic to nickel?
Does the Apple Watch Series 6 have nickel?
How do I stop the rash under my Apple Watch?
Which Apple Watch is best for nickel allergy?

So I received my 42mm Space Grey Apple Watch Sport in the first week of May and wore it every day until mid-July, when, after a busy day of not really noticing anything wrong I noticed an itching/burning sensation in my wrist.

I took off the watch and noticed it had caused a massive blister and had somewhat burnt my skin, the rubber strap had reacted with my skin in some way.

Shocked I rang Apple immediately, they answered instantly and the lovely lady at the end of the phone (Irish, as I was calling from the UK) asked what the problem was. I informed her that my watch had caused a rash on my skin and actually exposed raw skin below. Shocked and somewhat speechless, she asked if I didn't mind holding for a minute. True to her word, a minute later she was back and told me that she was transferring me to the safety support team in Cork. They answered and took me through a process of questions...

1) What happened?
2) Did I wear the watch in a different way that day (any tighter etc)?
3) Did it hurt?
4) Did the rash have any yellow mucus?
Along with a few more questions I can't remember! They had obviously seen this before as the questions that followed were very specific. They also asked me to email the photos of my wrist, there are several but I only attached one above! Here's the culprit watch!

The very nice lady then informed me that they were going to go away and assess the information and the photos overnight (I rang at 7pm) and that they'd get back to me the next morning.

Sure to their word, the next day, I got a phone call from the same nice lady. Apple had looked at my information and also the same model in their lab and had come to the conclusion that my watch strap had most likely got a high level of nickel in it, more then there should be as it caused such a bad reaction. They told me that they would like to 'capture' the watch and that they were going to send a 'capture kit' out to me so they could assess my watch. I was absolutely fine with this and was extremely happy with how it had been handled so far, efficiently and apologetically! I understood that on a massive supply chain, things like this unfortunately happen! What happened next however was simply amazing!

The lovely lady informed me that they'd love to get a new watch out to me, but to ensure I didn't have the same problem and to apologise for what had happened, they would love to send me a stainless steel model of my choice (excluding the link bracelet as that also contained nickel)! I was shocked and also over the moon! I chose the milinase loop and was told it would take a week to get to me and that they were so sorry and they'd keep me up to date on the delivery of my new watch and what was happening with the old one (as I was interested!)

I then went away for smooth on an expedition to Malaysia & Borneo to complete volunteer work with endangered animals so just missed the delivery of my new watch! However a month later when I returned, there it was! & here I am wearing it!

I was so impressed by the way apple handled everything, it was so professional and the good will gesture shows how Apple's customer service is second to none! A UK newspaper 'The Sun' contacted me asking if they could use the story and offered me money to do so, I declined this as I knew that a publication like 'The Sun' (anyone from the UK will know this) is not likely to show how well handled this was by Apple and would just make it out to be a horrendous experience, where as if this does come to light here on MacRumours, you guys will mention how well the handled it!

All images used in this post must have my permission to be used before they are published anywhere else. (I don't want certain publications using them if this is found, although unlikely!)

unobtainium said:
I have a nickel allergy too. Haven't ordered the watch yet. Quick question - why is there nickel in the sport band? Isn't it rubber? And did Apple actually specify that the stainless steel version is best for people with nickel allergies?

Thanks! And glad it worked out for you!
Click to expand...

The Sport band has stainless steel pin and there is trace amount of nickel in stainless steel. However, some members who are hypersensitive to nickel are able to wear the Sport band once they apply nail polish to the side of the pin where it comes into contact with the skin.

Even the stainless steel Watch also contains nickel. See https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204665 My guess is the OP's Space Gray sport band had a defective pin that contained an abnormal amount of nickel. However, the OP appears to be able to tolerate the trace amount of nickel in both Apple Watch and the space Gray Apple Watch Sport as they fall below the strict nickel restrictions set by some regulatory body.

JakeCoupland said:
So I received my 42mm Space Grey Apple Watch Sport in the first week of May and wore it every day until mid-July, when, after a busy day of not really noticing anything wrong I noticed an itching/burning sensation in my wrist.

I took off the watch and noticed it had caused a massive blister and had somewhat burnt my skin, the rubber strap had reacted with my skin in some way.

Shocked I rang Apple immediately, they answered instantly and the lovely lady at the end of the phone (Irish, as I was calling from the UK) asked what the problem was. I informed her that my watch had caused a rash on my skin and actually exposed raw skin below. Shocked and somewhat speechless, she asked if I didn't mind holding for a minute. True to her word, a minute later she was back and told me that she was transferring me to the safety support team in Cork. They answered and took me through a process of questions...

1) What happened?
2) Did I wear the watch in a different way that day (any tighter etc)?
3) Did it hurt?
4) Did the rash have any yellow mucus?
Along with a few more questions I can't remember! They had obviously seen this before as the questions that followed were very specific. They also asked me to email the photos of my wrist, there are several but I only attached one above! Here's the culprit watch!

The very nice lady then informed me that they were going to go away and assess the information and the photos overnight (I rang at 7pm) and that they'd get back to me the next morning.

Sure to their word, the next day, I got a phone call from the same nice lady. Apple had looked at my information and also the same model in their lab and had come to the conclusion that my watch strap had most likely got a high level of nickel in it, more then there should be as it caused such a bad reaction. They told me that they would like to 'capture' the watch and that they were going to send a 'capture kit' out to me so they could assess my watch. I was absolutely fine with this and was extremely happy with how it had been handled so far, efficiently and apologetically! I understood that on a massive supply chain, things like this unfortunately happen! What happened next however was simply amazing!

The lovely lady informed me that they'd love to get a new watch out to me, but to ensure I didn't have the same problem and to apologise for what had happened, they would love to send me a stainless steel model of my choice (excluding the link bracelet as that also contained nickel)! I was shocked and also over the moon! I chose the milinase loop and was told it would take a week to get to me and that they were so sorry and they'd keep me up to date on the delivery of my new watch and what was happening with the old one (as I was interested!)

I then went away for smooth on an expedition to Malaysia & Borneo to complete volunteer work with endangered animals so just missed the delivery of my new watch! However a month later when I returned, there it was! & here I am wearing it!

I was so impressed by the way apple handled everything, it was so professional and the good will gesture shows how Apple's customer service is second to none! A UK newspaper 'The Sun' contacted me asking if they could use the story and offered me money to do so, I declined this as I knew that a publication like 'The Sun' (anyone from the UK will know this) is not likely to show how well handled this was by Apple and would just make it out to be a horrendous experience, where as if this does come to light here on MacRumours, you guys will mention how well the handled it!

All images used in this post must have my permission to be used before they are published anywhere else. (I don't want certain publications using them if this is found, although unlikely!)
Click to expand...

I had the exact same experience as you, with the same outcome. I received my Sport watch in April and within 2 hours of wearing it I developed much the same rash as you. Contacted Apple and they too arranged a collection of the watch so the engineers in Cork could investigate. I have no idea what they found TBH. The senior advisor I was dealing with asked me if I wanted a replacement and as i reacted so badly to the Sport asked me if I would be happy with a SS version (at no extra cost). I opted for the same band as I had with the sport as i didn't want to stretch my luck as Apple were already being very generous. I was so shocked by the experience and was shocked farther still when the senior advisor arranged for a transfer of my Applecare+ (at no extra cost).

Fortunately, I didn't get contacted by The Sun, there's an advantage of not being on social media such as Twitter and Facebook.

Can I wear an Apple Watch if I'm allergic to nickel?

However, they all fall below the strict nickel restrictions set by European REACH regulation. Therefore, while nickel exposure is unlikely to be a problem, you should be aware of the possibility in case you're susceptible to nickel-related reactions.

Does the Apple Watch Series 6 have nickel?

There is no model of Apple Watch that has no metal or nickel touching the skin; the magnets in all models of Apple Watch contain some nickel. If you are highly allergic to nickel, then is certainly possible that Apple Watch and/or a band may cause a reaction.

How do I stop the rash under my Apple Watch?

Keeping your Apple Watch and bands – as well as your skin – clean and dry maximises comfort and prevents long-term damage to the watch. This is especially important after workouts or exposure to liquids such as sweat, soap, sunscreen and lotions that can cause skin irritations.

Which Apple Watch is best for nickel allergy?

It's called the Solo Loop. It's an infinity silicone loop without any closure mechanism. A great option for my nickel allergy friends. My watch is the Apple Watch Series 5 GPS, 40mm Silver Aluminum Case.

apple watch nickel allergy protector