In Australia Telstra are charging just $5 a month for LTE AW3 service (that’s about US$4!). One advantage of LTE is not having to leave a phone on the beach when surfing.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
LTE vs GPS on Apple Watch
- Thread starter HALE101
- Start date
-
- Tags
- apple watch 3
- Sort by reaction score
Here in America , they nickel and dime us for everything. $10 is a joke. Wish we could get rid of all these monopolies. I’m so sick of them
Can I afford the $10 for both my wife and myself, sure. Do I feel having the LTE is worth that much. Not when I have my phone with me almost all the time. I'd probably pay the $4 equivalent but still not get the full value from it. The watch just doesn't do as much on LTE as say an iPad. Unless you're streaming music or making calls on it constantly, you aren't using much data at all. I'd love to see a breakdown on Watch data usage because I'd bet a usage based fee would be much cheaper.
When I’m paying £17/month for unlimited data and 200 texts & phone minutes (each- and I hardly use any as mostly FaceTime/iMessage/WhatsApp), it doesn’t make much sense to spend another £10/month for the AW.
I always carry my iPhone with me when I’m out, as I like to be able to do stuff the AW can’t do when out and about. If I was out running etc I wouldn’t be answering any calls anyway
I always carry my iPhone with me when I’m out, as I like to be able to do stuff the AW can’t do when out and about. If I was out running etc I wouldn’t be answering any calls anyway
Oh, i thought it was a tenner. Still not worth it though (in my case). Although i'd have to move mobile provider to get it connected too....
I was lucky as moved to EE about 9 months before the watch came out. I use 4G all the time while running and at the gym. Worth the £5 for me.
I used to be with O2 and the speed difference was crazy; getting about 10 times faster in central London.
Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned this. Telstra might review their pricing to align with other countries
Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned this. Telstra might review their pricing to align with other countries
Oh no, sad times!
OK - it looks like the Telstra service has a serious limitation.
I have paired my Apple Watch with my iPhone using One Number. I can send and receive phone calls on the watch when it is out of range of the iPhone. However if the iPhone is switched off then the watch does not send or receive phone calls. I am currently conversing with the Telstra help line to see if this is unique to my iPhone (update: not resolved)
More info here:
https://crowdsupport.telstra.com.au...hone-is-turned-off/m-p/761681/highlight/false
I can understand this happening when the phone is turned to airplane mode (ie the watch also goes into airplane mode) but not when it is fully turned off - say due the battery being drained. No backup from the watch!
Update: This may be because I have an iPhone SE and Apple recommends iPhone 6 or higher!
I have paired my Apple Watch with my iPhone using One Number. I can send and receive phone calls on the watch when it is out of range of the iPhone. However if the iPhone is switched off then the watch does not send or receive phone calls. I am currently conversing with the Telstra help line to see if this is unique to my iPhone (update: not resolved)
More info here:
https://crowdsupport.telstra.com.au...hone-is-turned-off/m-p/761681/highlight/false
I can understand this happening when the phone is turned to airplane mode (ie the watch also goes into airplane mode) but not when it is fully turned off - say due the battery being drained. No backup from the watch!
Update: This may be because I have an iPhone SE and Apple recommends iPhone 6 or higher!
Last edited:
Only just got my S3 watch today and after today's fiasco, the watch was a life saver as my phone died but my Nan was able to reach me due to a massive blackout at home to tell me she was alright.
Optus in Australia (My telco) still has a 6 months free deal going to the end of the year and I can always cancel at the end of the trial before been charged $5AUD P/M but after todays fiasco, It's more then worth the cash per month
Optus in Australia (My telco) still has a 6 months free deal going to the end of the year and I can always cancel at the end of the trial before been charged $5AUD P/M but after todays fiasco, It's more then worth the cash per month
Keep working with Telstra since your watch does not require your iPhone to be on to send or receive phone calls. Some other features yes but not phone calls.
It might be possible that your watch was trying to connect to Wi-Fi before powering up LTE. A quick test is to turn off your iPhone, Toggle LTE off / on on your watch and see if it then can make / receive calls.
No this is not part of your issue since your iPhone SE is newer than an iPhone 6 and it is fully supported with the watch. The iPhone SE looks like an iPhone 5 but has newer guts and is faster than the iPhone 6.
Dave
Last edited:
I have heard the same information stated in my country as you have, IE that the phone needs to be switched on for the watch to have LTE access, but posters here on this forum have said this is not an universal truth, and apparently only SMS/text messages should need the phone to be on.
Anyway this is a weird and illogical limitation, which hopefully will be removed in the future (not too far flung one hopes), as these devices and eSIM become more commonplace. Roaming with a watch should also be possible some day I'm hoping.
Right, the SE is the 6S generation, A9 chipset. The LTE version requires a 6, while the GPS only requires a 5S. Using an SE, you should be fine for either.