First, you probably meant "analog" watches. There's nothing unreal about the Apple Watch.

Second, one can be an analog watch aficionado AND fascinated/converted to a digital watch like the Apple Watch.

You don't suddenly become a "gadget guy" just because you've stopped wearing the analog watches in your collection in favor of something more practical.

That seems like a No True Scotsman :)

If non-fashion, non-mass market brands targeted at the mid and high tiers of in-house haute horlogerie don't constitute "real watches" for you, what does? Your comment reads like I mentioned the widely recognizable "status" brands like Rolex and Tag Heuer. Nomos (entry-mid) and Lange (high-ultra high) are two of the most well-respected watch houses in the world right now, and probably the most well-respected from Germany (as opposed to Switzerland).

You're right that I'm a "gadget guy", though. I just appreciate both, and my original point is the Apple Watch's raw utility is capable of displacing my passion for mechanical timepieces and their craftsmanship.

Well, a Lange & Söhne watch (which is a real watch) goes for 10-200k. I'd say having such a watch qualifies you as a "watch guy".

No, it qualifies you as Lange & Söhne watch owner. We don't know if he bought it himself or why he did it. Not every Porsche owner is a petrolhead either.

Having said this, I am not disputing that he is a watch guy. I believe he is because he says so. As far as I am concerned this is enough.

Considering he references "my mechanicals" in the very first point of his post, I would guess that he is both a "gadget guy" and a "watch guy".