OnePlus won’t say why its Watch 3 suddenly costs $170 more than promised

The OnePlus Watch 3 present costs $499.

If you were hoping to bull a OnePlus Watch 3, you tin yet bargain 1 starting today. The occupation is it’s nary longer the $329.99 terms that was primitively intended erstwhile OnePlus announced the instrumentality a fewer months ago. It’s present $499, a $170 oregon astir 52 percent markup.

The terms hike was spotted by a number of Android blogs, but what makes this unusual is simply a deficiency of authoritative connection from OnePlus itself. Normally, companies volition alert property and long-time customers arsenic consumers mostly don’t respond good to unexplained terms hikes. However, nary specified hint came from OnePlus earlier the smartwatch went connected sale. When asked astir the terms increase, OnePlus spokesperson Spenser Blank told The Verge, “We don’t person immoderate further remark to stock astatine this time.”

The evident explanation, though unconfirmed by OnePlus, would beryllium tariffs. Unless you’ve been hibernating nether a rock, you’ve astir apt seen headlines astir President Trump’s ever-increasing tariffs against products shipped from China. (As of this writing, they’re presently sitting astatine 145 percent.) While astir wearables and gadget makers I’ve spoken to person acknowledged tariffs volition person an interaction connected pricing, immoderate person opted to instrumentality a much wait-and-see approach. This is, however, 1 of the archetypal examples of a smartwatch really expanding successful price, fto unsocial by specified a melodramatic amount.

It’s besides antithetic fixed that galore gadget makers attempted to hold specified terms hikes by increasing inventory up of the tariffs taking effect — keeping consumers from really feeling the interaction of tariffs connected their wallet arsenic soon. Others, similar Framework, temporarily opted to halt immoderate sales successful the U.S.

But OnePlus whitethorn not person been capable to stockpile units successful the US aboriginal due to the fact that of an ironic mistake. The OnePlus Watch 3 was primitively acceptable to motorboat backmost successful February but was delayed due to the fact that of an unfixable typo engraved successful the backplate.

That typo: ‘Meda successful China.’