Apple Watch Debut Nears With Invites to March 9 Showcase in San Francisco

Late last week, Apple (AAPL) did what’s become standard-fare for the company when it’s on the verge of a major product showcase as it is with the Apple Watch–it sent out a cryptically-worded invitation to an event. Ho hum.

The invitation to the March 9 Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco event offered only a pastel graphic with the line, “Spring forward,” a double entendre referencing the switch to Daylight Saving Time that occurs the day prior to the scheduled event and a nod to the Watch itself.

March product showcase events aren’t too frequent for Apple–the last time was the unwrapping of its third iPad in March, 2012. At this one, Apple is expected to provide more details about the Watch’s features, including apps, pricing, and release date.

In addition, Apple is said to be constructing a tented outdoor add-on to the Yerba Buena Center most likely to serve as a demonstration area for the Watch, 9to5Mac reported.

No doubt the whiz-bang details surrounding the Watch, including some anticipated hot-shot apps, are set to wow the industry. Indeed, with Apple chief executive Tim Cook promoting the Watch at basically every corner, there’s no shortage of salivating to see the device actually operate in a setting designed to convince customers that they can’t live without one, no matter the price tag.

Cook began in earnest to whip up interest in the Watch late last year and steadily has ramped up the anticipation ever since. At a Goldman Sachs in February, Cook said he uses the device to monitor his activity levels, as Bloomberg reported.

“If I sit for too long it will actually tap me on the wrist to remind me to get up and move because a lot of doctors believe that sitting is the new cancer,” he said. “It’s something that you’re going to think, ‘I can’t live without this anymore.’”

Expectations for the Watch’s sales are running at a feverish clip. Bloomberg reported that Morgan Stanley expects the Watch to rack up $1.35 billion in sales in the March quarter and $8.1 billion for the fiscal year, while RBC Capital Markets projects it could do $6.5 billion.

Apple reportedly has ordered up to six million units of all three models of its new device, with the $349 Apple Watch Sport accounting for up to half of the supply. And, the vendor reportedly is mulling opening dedicated Apple Watch stores and already is sampling the idea by constructing special displays for the upcoming smartwatch in a few high-end Paris retail locations.

In late January, Cook said development for the Watch is “right on schedule and we expect to begin shipping in April. Developers are hard at work on apps, notifications and information summaries that we call Glances, all designed specifically for the Watch’s user interface. The creativity and software innovation going on around Apple Watch is incredibly exciting and we can’t wait for our customers to experience them when Apple Watch becomes available.”