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Antonio G. Di Benedetto

Antonio G. Di Benedetto

Commerce/Deals Writer

Antonio is a commerce writer for The Verge, covering tech deals and trying to save you [and himself] money. He comes from the world of photography and gets very obsessive about lenses and the discourse over "bokeh." When not deal hunting, he does wedding photography on the side, plays lots of video/tabletop games, collects vinyl records, and professes his love for the great state of New Jersey.

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“People don’t appreciate the kind of artistry of what we did here.”

The artistry of watchmaking is pretty obvious with luxury brands like Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Omega. But in exploring the Apple Watch’s band release buttons — our latest Button of the Month — we learned from ex-Apple engineers just how much went into its strap system and how Apple bought up the same CNC machines used by Rolex to do it.


A side-view render of the Apple Watch strap system, showing the internal springs and band release button assembly.
A cutaway render of the Apple Watch’s strap system. This little assembly opened up a $1 billion accessory ecosystem of straps alone for Apple.

The unsung heroes of the Apple Watch are its hidden buttons

Changing watch straps isn’t new, but Apple’s hidden little buttons simplified it and took it mainstream.

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Suddenly, cameras! Cameras everywhere!

Sometimes the photo industry goes months with no major announcements. Then, suddenly, four companies introduce new cameras within just a few days of each other — despite no trade show or unifying event.

In case you missed it: Sony, Canon, Fujifilm, and now Leica all have new cameras this week. Any of these new models got you excited? Or are you hyped for something else still being rumored?


The Sony ZV-1 II is one of four cameras announced over the last two days.
The Sony ZV-1 II is one of four cameras announced over the last two days.
Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge