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Resolved Thinking my Series 7 is dying, and quickly?

PinkyMacGodess

PinkyMacGodess

Suspended
Original poster
Mar 7, 2007
10,271
6,228
Midwest America.
I was playing with the skull memoji, and got up to go to dinner, and the screen was black, wouldn't wake up when I rolled my wrist. Then I saw the Apple (apple) logo, and it stayed on screen for a few seconds, and went black again. It did this over and over. I tried to wake it up, thinking it was in a funk, and nothing changed. By holding both buttons, it went to sleep, but when I woke it up again, it was back to the swapping screens. I got back and dropped it on the charger, and the normal screen came up, but it was all in red, and showed an exhausted battery indicator. I let it charge overnight, and it seemed pretty normal, yet there seemed to be a slight red line vertically through the screen that only was visible when something was already on that part of the screen. The battery went suddenly to 3% and the Watch basically went inert. Oddly without the 'black/logo/black' cycling this time, just 'out'.

Weird. It was a 'normal day', no extra drama. Not sure why it would freak out like this. I've never had it have any issues, up to now.

I threw it on the charger and left it there but put it someplace where it won't do much damage, hopefully, if it's a battery failure. Saw that video on the Spirit flight, and wow. Quite a lot of WOW! in that.

My somewhat educated guess is that the watch has a short in it somewhere. It had been HOURS since a shower, and a chance for it to get wet. I'd assume that it would have dried out long before that. I was headed for dinner. But I guess who knows.

Just curious if anyone has and input/ideas. Feeling depressed it's dying. Bummer...
 
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PinkyMacGodess said:
I was playing with the skull memoji, and got up to go to dinner, and the screen was black, wouldn't wake up when I rolled my wrist. Then I saw the Apple (apple) logo, and it stayed on screen for a few seconds, and went black again. It did this over and over. I tried to wake it up, thinking it was in a funk, and nothing changed. By holding both buttons, it went to sleep, but when I woke it up again, it was back to the swapping screens. I got back and dropped it on the charger, and the normal screen came up, but it was all in red, and showed an exhausted battery indicator. I let it charge overnight, and it seemed pretty normal, yet there seemed to be a slight red line vertically through the screen that only was visible when something was already on that part of the screen. The battery went suddenly to 3% and the Watch basically went inert. Oddly without the 'black/logo/black' cycling this time, just 'out'.

Weird. It was a 'normal day', no extra drama. Not sure why it would freak out like this. I've never had it have any issues, up to now.

I threw it on the charger and left it there but put it someplace where it won't do much damage, hopefully, if it's a battery failure. Saw that video on the Spirit flight, and wow. Quite a lot of WOW! in that.

My somewhat educated guess is that the watch has a short in it somewhere. It had been HOURS since a shower, and a chance for it to get wet. I'd assume that it would have dried out long before that. I was headed for dinner. But I guess who knows.

Just curious if anyone has and input/ideas. Feeling depressed it's dying. Bummer...
Click to expand...
If you were wearing it during the shower my guess would be water got inside. Did you do the water eject thing? Do you have AC+?
 
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No, I showered early that day, and it was past 6PM, like nearly 12 almost hours later, when this happened.

I do the water thing pretty religiously. (It's funny how many people believe it 'waterproofs' the watch. Nothing moves, no 'lids' or blocks slide into place) It's just the sound that causes the water to 'burp' out. It's funny how it works, and that it works (isn't physics great?). Some small amount of water is usually on the larger slot side of the watch. Pretty weird that it actually works. There s no outside visible damage to the watch other than some small dots where the surface color seems to have fallen off. I guess I'll have to take pictures of it before I return it. No scratches, gouges, other damage. There are some marks on the sensor on the back side which are surprising. They seem to run from side to side, not top/bottom. Weird...

So bummed it's freaking out. The remote diags said something about 'sensors' and the battery not 'reading right' according to the Apple Support engineer. 🤷🏻‍♂️
 
PinkyMacGodess said:
No, I showered early that day, and it was past 6PM, like nearly 12 almost hours later, when this happened.

I do the water thing pretty religiously. (It's funny how many people believe it 'waterproofs' the watch. Nothing moves, no 'lids' or blocks slide into place) It's just the sound that causes the water to 'burp' out. It's funny how it works, and that it works (isn't physics great?). Some small amount of water is usually on the larger slot side of the watch. Pretty weird that it actually works. There s no outside visible damage to the watch other than some small dots where the surface color seems to have fallen off. I guess I'll have to take pictures of it before I return it. No scratches, gouges, other damage. There are some marks on the sensor on the back side which are surprising. They seem to run from side to side, not top/bottom. Weird...

So bummed it's freaking out. The remote diags said something about 'sensors' and the battery not 'reading right' according to the Apple Support engineer. 🤷🏻‍♂️
Click to expand...
yea, the "water thing" is definitely not meant to keep water out of the watch, just there's a big opening and it pushes it out, sometimes, not all the time. I would guess this was not b based on the morning shower but a long time effect, I've been showering with AW on for years, my S4 SBSS speaker died snd I'm positive it was from the water, got it replaced thru AC+. For me, the Ultra was an instant buy due to it's water resistivity for diving ...
Do you have AC+, if so, you'll get a refurb, if not, well, look st your options.
 
jz0309 said:
there are many places where water could get into the watch, incl the slot in front of the speaker ...
Click to expand...

And the gasket for the crown. It's a good idea to NEVER push buttons or twist knobs of anything electric while it's either wet, or directly in water.

I had a Casio watch that was a 'dive' watch, but the instructions said to never push the buttons when IN water. Kind of a cheeky thing to call it a 'dive watch', and forbid pushing buttons.

I'll have to wait for the 'postmortum' and see what they say once they diagnose it. Maybe an Ultra does look like a better idea, but I'm sure it has issues with shampoo and 'body wash' over time if that's what killed my AW7. Thinking the statement that the AW is 'water resistant' isn't meaning it's okay to shower with them in the long, or medium, or maybe short run. *sigh*
 
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PinkyMacGodess said:
And the gasket for the crown. It's a good idea to NEVER push buttons or twist knobs of anything electric while it's either wet, or directly in water.

I had a Casio watch that was a 'dive' watch, but the instructions said to never push the buttons when IN water. Kind of a cheeky thing to call it a 'dive watch', and forbid pushing buttons.

I'll have to wait for the 'postmortum' and see what they say once they diagnose it. Maybe an Ultra does look like a better idea, but I'm sure it has issues with shampoo and 'body wash' over time if that's what killed my AW7. Thinking the statement that the AW is 'water resistant' isn't meaning it's okay to shower with them in the long, or medium, or maybe short run. *sigh*
Click to expand...
Well, I’ve been exposing my S4/7/Ultra to the shower, I even clean the band on the inside with soap, every day, rinsing any remains off right away…I’m rather hard in my watches, bang them and everything…
That, the showering and then the battery health dramas you read about here make me get AC+ for them, piece of mind for me, ymmv
 
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PinkyMacGodess said:
I was playing with the skull memoji, and got up to go to dinner, and the screen was black, wouldn't wake up when I rolled my wrist. Then I saw the Apple (apple) logo, and it stayed on screen for a few seconds, and went black again. It did this over and over. I tried to wake it up, thinking it was in a funk, and nothing changed. By holding both buttons, it went to sleep, but when I woke it up again, it was back to the swapping screens. I got back and dropped it on the charger, and the normal screen came up, but it was all in red, and showed an exhausted battery indicator. I let it charge overnight, and it seemed pretty normal, yet there seemed to be a slight red line vertically through the screen that only was visible when something was already on that part of the screen. The battery went suddenly to 3% and the Watch basically went inert. Oddly without the 'black/logo/black' cycling this time, just 'out'.

Weird. It was a 'normal day', no extra drama. Not sure why it would freak out like this. I've never had it have any issues, up to now.

I threw it on the charger and left it there but put it someplace where it won't do much damage, hopefully, if it's a battery failure. Saw that video on the Spirit flight, and wow. Quite a lot of WOW! in that.

My somewhat educated guess is that the watch has a short in it somewhere. It had been HOURS since a shower, and a chance for it to get wet. I'd assume that it would have dried out long before that. I was headed for dinner. But I guess who knows.

Just curious if anyone has and input/ideas. Feeling depressed it's dying. Bummer...
Click to expand...
I would take it to apple and see if they’ll replace it
 
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Clamjuice65 said:
I would take it to apple and see if they’ll replace it
Click to expand...

It arrives tomorrow, but the sword hanging over my head (I think) is that they will diagnose the failed watch, and *could* bill me for any damage they find that they declare isn't 'covered'. So who knows what they might find, and how much they might demand. It makes ownership an expensive proposition potentially. Maybe the option of a 'dumber' watch that would be more 'disposable' might be my next choice if this goes expensive. I love, and have loved/enjoyed my Apple Watches. I bought my first one fully expecting to not end up using it much, and it's just so damned usable that I feel like I'm missing my left arm.

Fingers crossed...
 
I’ve been in water hundreds of times with my 4 different AWs. 7 is rated to 50m. If you’re still under warranty and determine water damage then they should replace it no question. Out of warranty I don’t know?
 

What should I avoid while wearing my Apple Watch?​

Water resistance isn't a permanent condition and can diminish over time. Apple Watch can't be rechecked or resealed for water resistance. The following can affect the water resistance of your Apple Watch and should be avoided:
  • Dropping Apple Watch or subjecting it to other impacts
  • Exposing Apple Watch to soap or soapy water (for example, while showering or bathing)

About Apple Watch water resistance - Apple Support

Learn about water resistance on your Apple Watch and what to do if your device gets wet.
support.apple.com support.apple.com
 
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jz0309 said:
They wouldnt quote you 499 if you had AC+, but sorry for making assumptions, won’t happen again
Click to expand...

*They* didn't quote ME anything. I got that off their website. *They* do also warn that the Watch 'repair' may not be 'free' if there is 'non-covered damage' to the unit on inspection. Given the chances for those 'non-covered damages' to occur, it seems possible that someone, from my reading of *their* website, could incur a rather large 'fee' at some point down the road after getting it repaired/replaced under AppleCare+.

Maybe I'm worrying over nothing, but it just seems too sketchy for me. What killed my 7, and will I end up being forced to pay a large fee for it. I will not shower with it, and definitely try harder to not get it wet while washing my hands. It's a complicated device. An expensive complicated device. One that seems to open the owner up to potentially high charges for service. I hope it's not the case...

What's driving my concern is that I also have an issue with my car. There is a rather loud and unexplained noise under the dashboard that no one has experienced before (or so they claim). No one knows if it's a safety issue, but no one also knows what it will take to identify the problem, and what it will take to fix it. I will have to drop the car off (soon) and they will start a (simulated) clock and charge me by the hour to disassemble my car to find the problem. I asked for an estimate, and they said it could take 'days' to get to the cause, and then nearly the same amount of time to get it all put back together again. Suddenly my life is filled with rather unexpected and potentially massive costs... This car excursion *could* end up costing well over a thousand dollars in just labor! And my sick/dead Apple Watch *could* end up costing me between $500 and $750!! The suspense is killing me... :oops:
 
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If you have AC+ then I would imagine they would just charge the replacement fee (£49 here in UK), or they might just replace it for free. If they determine that you have 'abused' it then they might take a different view of course, I guess that is open to their interpretation. Let us know how you got on with them.
 
bricktop_at said:
That's exactly what I would also assume, otherwise paying for AC+ would be quite useless.
Click to expand...

True. That was what I was thinking as I typed that last comment. It would seem to be kind of a waste of time/money, but people do insane things with their stuff. The teenager in an Apple Store for a MacBook issue that spilled soda on her second MacBook Pro hopefully learned a good lesson after being told by mom 'Hell no! I'm not buying you another notebook! You have proven to be incapable of not destroying yours so far, I think you need to suffer for a while!'. And that was after the genius denied their repair/replacement.

Brava!! Well played mom!!
 
PinkyMacGodess said:
True. That was what I was thinking as I typed that last comment. It would seem to be kind of a waste of time/money, but people do insane things with their stuff. The teenager in an Apple Store for a MacBook issue that spilled soda on her second MacBook Pro hopefully learned a good lesson after being told by mom 'Hell no! I'm not buying you another notebook! You have proven to be incapable of not destroying yours so far, I think you need to suffer for a while!'. And that was after the genius denied their repair/replacement.

Brava!! Well played mom!!
Click to expand...
Yeah but that’s exactly what AC+ is for - accidental damage is covered. You only pay the replacement fee and that’s it. Without AC+ you pay full
 
bricktop_at said:
Yeah but that’s exactly what AC+ is for - accidental damage is covered. You only pay the replacement fee and that’s it. Without AC+ you pay full
Click to expand...

But there are limits to the number of times someone can declare 'accidental damage', and apparently since the careless spawn had done the same thing before, they said 'Nope, this isn't happening. Thanks for stopping by though'. I did think that rather than being angry, the mom was enjoying that. The spawn was all teary and near meltdown, but was unable to get the upper hand. Possibly finally being held accountable? I guess I'd enjoy that too, but the number of parents who are afraid to confront their spawn is disturbing.

But the old AW will go back today. I have yet to shower with the new one, and wondering if I should take it off when exercising when I get way beyond 'glistening'. Maybe Apple should be injecting the finished watches with resin making the whole thing a monument to 'closed box' engineering. It's not like they are all that repairable to begin with. At least resin would insure waterproofing?
 
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PinkyMacGodess said:
But there are limits to the number of times someone can declare 'accidental damage', and apparently since the careless spawn had done the same thing before, they said 'Nope, this isn't happening. Thanks for stopping by though'. I did think that rather than being angry, the mom was enjoying that. The spawn was all teary and near meltdown, but was unable to get the upper hand. Possibly finally being held accountable? I guess I'd enjoy that too, but the number of parents who are afraid to confront their spawn is disturbing.

But the old AW will go back today. I have yet to shower with the new one, and wondering if I should take it off when exercising when I get way beyond 'glistening'. Maybe Apple should be injecting the finished watches with resin making the whole thing a monument to 'closed box' engineering. It's not like they are all that repairable to begin with. At least resin would insure waterproofing?
Click to expand...
They were looking into force press buttons a while back so I would imagine a ‘solid state’ version is not too far off.
 
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