That is correct. I also have AC+ - more for the accidental damage coverage - so that has me covered for the third year should AW8 not entice me into an upgrade.
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Apple Watch Battery Replacement for $79 Story
- Thread starter rillrill
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Just FYI, I don’t believe your battery must be under 80% to purchase the battery replacement service. I complained about rapidly dropping battery health and poor battery life on my S4 watch and was given the option of battery service. Battery health was about 82% at the time. You might have to be nice to get this option.
I took my S4 to an Apple Store for battery replacement today. They sent it off to the service center and will be shipping it back to me. Was that your experience as well? Curious if they are just shipping out a refurbished unit or actually repairing it?
From my Genius Bar work auth form:
Issue:
Customer reports battery life is too short
Steps to Reproduce:
Verified battery percentage is 77%
Cosmetic Condition:
no noticeable sign of physical damage
Proposed Resolution:
sending device to the repair facility for 3-5 business days.
I don’t remember getting any form, but it was my wife’s watch, so she may have gotten the email. Nevertheless, I dropped off the watch at an apple store on a Saturday, they ran the diagnostic, took the watch, and on the next Thursday we received her new, probably refurbished, but looks and acts brand new watch. They might send the old device there to test it for their own reasons. Did you get a shipment conformation of the new watch? We got that within a few days.
My SS S4 is at 84%. I wil gladly pay $79 to replace the battery/watch when the battery health dips below 80%. This will even make more sense if S8 turns into another mediocre update.
Good to know. I haven't gotten a shipment confirmation for the watch but its too soon. I just took it to the store yesterday. Thanks for creating the thread!
S3 -> No AOD, smaller screen = longer between charging cycles.
My old S3 had perfectly adequate battery life for me, I struggle with the S5 I have now.
My suspicion is that it's down to variations in usage and the luck of the draw with the physical chemistry of the battery. Li-Ion batteries are degraded simply by using them as intended. I had a suspicion and just confirmed it: the S3 has 15% higher capacity battery (341 mAh vs 296 mAh), so that too would help. (Interestingly, the battery shrunk in S4, and then got small bumps in each subsequent series)
Regarding optimized charging: did it tell you it was only charging to 100% every other day? Typically, the device waits to top off to 100% in anticipation of your daily use pattern (each day). I would be surprised if the logic works over several days. You could also easily test this by checking battery level early. Perhaps you have.
Valid points.
Never use the AOD.
Also somewhat disappointed with the battery life on the S5
I try not to use Watch Faces with too many complications.
Typically it is Weather based ( which I assume will refresh at some rate) and the principal use is for workouts.
Interesting dynamics about the battery amperage = never bothered to check that.
The optimized charging with AW seems to be different than other devices in the eco-system (at least for mine). The charging tends to slow down once it gets above 80%
I suppose all under the category of FWP (First World Problems)!
This is good to know I have the same problem but i did not know they'll replace it if it dips 80 percent
I took my stainless series 4 watch to the Apple Store last Friday for battery replacement and my replacement shipped today Fedex overnight from Reno NV. I got an email from apple saying the following:
So it does appear to be a new/refurbished replacement as the OP experienced and it does appear for those that have engravings that they will engrave the replacement as well.
I will post pics when it arrives.
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So it does appear to be a new/refurbished replacement as the OP experienced and it does appear for those that have engravings that they will engrave the replacement as well.
I will post pics when it arrives.
I have read of many posts by people whose devices (not just watches) degrade to just above 80%, and then apparently stop degrading further, and thus don't qualify for a low cost battery replacement.
I sure hope Apple's measurement of battery health is honest and fair, and it does not artificially stall the reading at just above 80%. It is not very transparent how they determine the health. We just have to trust Apple, I guess. Is there any independent way of verifying the battery health?
I sure hope Apple's measurement of battery health is honest and fair, and it does not artificially stall the reading at just above 80%. It is not very transparent how they determine the health. We just have to trust Apple, I guess. Is there any independent way of verifying the battery health?
I hope not. Though, honestly it’s Apple’s design choices. They should design the watch’s battery to be replaced more easily. Though, I’m sure that the majority of people would sooner just buy new watches.
My series 0 battery lasted less than 2 years. With AppleCare+, they replaced it for free. The replacement quickly degraded, similar to what those posting here described of their own watches.
My series 4 battery is at 93% after 2-1/2 years. I try to not charge it past 90%, and always turn it off at night. On my next watch (some day), I'll charge it twice a day, to not past 80%. That seems to be the point most experts agree is ideal. It doesn't matter how many times you charge it. What matters most is how many hours it's running, and how fully it's charged.
I've been reading a lot about Apple batteries during the past few months. My MacBook Pro started bulging, which got me to pay more attention to the subject. At first I chastised myself for cancelling AppleCare+ a few months after I bought it. (Apple closed all their local stores, so I saw no reason to keep it.) But then I realized AppleCare+ on my Mac would have expired before my battery went bad. Paying $200 for a replacement was less than what I saved by cancelling AppleCare+ on it, so I'm still ahead. I know $200 sounds like a lot, but there is much to consider. Apple also replaces the keyboard and trackpad when the battery is "serviced". More importantly, after-market batteries are substandard. Most go bad quickly. A warranty isn't of much help, since you'll get another substandard battery when the first one goes bad. Not to mention how dangerous these batteries can be. You don't want one of these in your house, let alone in your pocket or on your wrist. Manufacturers like Apple have reputations to uphold, so they try to get quality batteries. Even so, many MacBook batteries have gone bad like mine. Some even caught fire. Luckily for Apple, that happened at the same time Samsung was getting all the bad press for their phones catching fire. The lesson is clear: If you plan on keeping your device for a lot longer, you want a quality battery in it. Don't scrimp.
P.S. The reason I'm keeping my old MacBook is because it's my all-time favorite computer, and it's likely to last a whole lot longer. I just got through upgrading the storage when the original storage died. (Newer MacBooks have permanent storage which cannot be replaced–just throw your whole computer away when it dies.) I also took the opportunity to upgrade to 2TB when I did. Storage tends to last much longer if there's a lot in it not being used. That's likely one reason my original 256GB went bad so quickly. I kept it almost full.
My series 4 battery is at 93% after 2-1/2 years. I try to not charge it past 90%, and always turn it off at night. On my next watch (some day), I'll charge it twice a day, to not past 80%. That seems to be the point most experts agree is ideal. It doesn't matter how many times you charge it. What matters most is how many hours it's running, and how fully it's charged.
I've been reading a lot about Apple batteries during the past few months. My MacBook Pro started bulging, which got me to pay more attention to the subject. At first I chastised myself for cancelling AppleCare+ a few months after I bought it. (Apple closed all their local stores, so I saw no reason to keep it.) But then I realized AppleCare+ on my Mac would have expired before my battery went bad. Paying $200 for a replacement was less than what I saved by cancelling AppleCare+ on it, so I'm still ahead. I know $200 sounds like a lot, but there is much to consider. Apple also replaces the keyboard and trackpad when the battery is "serviced". More importantly, after-market batteries are substandard. Most go bad quickly. A warranty isn't of much help, since you'll get another substandard battery when the first one goes bad. Not to mention how dangerous these batteries can be. You don't want one of these in your house, let alone in your pocket or on your wrist. Manufacturers like Apple have reputations to uphold, so they try to get quality batteries. Even so, many MacBook batteries have gone bad like mine. Some even caught fire. Luckily for Apple, that happened at the same time Samsung was getting all the bad press for their phones catching fire. The lesson is clear: If you plan on keeping your device for a lot longer, you want a quality battery in it. Don't scrimp.
P.S. The reason I'm keeping my old MacBook is because it's my all-time favorite computer, and it's likely to last a whole lot longer. I just got through upgrading the storage when the original storage died. (Newer MacBooks have permanent storage which cannot be replaced–just throw your whole computer away when it dies.) I also took the opportunity to upgrade to 2TB when I did. Storage tends to last much longer if there's a lot in it not being used. That's likely one reason my original 256GB went bad so quickly. I kept it almost full.
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Im trying to decide if I should upgrade mine to the 7 now... or just wait the few months out for the next one. Battery isn't great but just about lasts the day (with raise to wake and wifi off)
How are so many S3 owners with 4+ year old AWs have battery health close to 100%?!?!?!?! Even with optimized charging, slowest charging (not that you have much choice in the matter), and keeping the battery between 20% and 80% most of the time without ever doing a complete charge (0–>100%), it makes no sense for any Li-based battery to not deteriorate.
Last time I checked, my AW3 (4G model) was at roughly 75%, which is, to be honest, where I’d expect it to be. I’m not disappointed. It has served me very well. ??♂️ It still lasts me for 2 days: One full day + night (24h), and then the next day, but not a 2nd night. I need to charge it before I go to bed the 2nd night if I want to use it as an alarm.
Meanwhile, my wife’s SE lasts for 2 full days (2 days, and 2 sleeps). Better, but it’s 2.5 years newer, so I’d certainly expect it to last longer. ??♂️
Last time I checked, my AW3 (4G model) was at roughly 75%, which is, to be honest, where I’d expect it to be. I’m not disappointed. It has served me very well. ??♂️ It still lasts me for 2 days: One full day + night (24h), and then the next day, but not a 2nd night. I need to charge it before I go to bed the 2nd night if I want to use it as an alarm.
Meanwhile, my wife’s SE lasts for 2 full days (2 days, and 2 sleeps). Better, but it’s 2.5 years newer, so I’d certainly expect it to last longer. ??♂️