Apple Watch Series 3 Reviews: Connectivity, Battery Issues Are Problematic

It’s been a week since the Apple Watch Series 3 was revealed, and reviews of the wearable device have poured in -- pointing out the good and bad.

Here’s a roundup of the Apple Watch Series 3 reviews.

Wall Street Journal: Bad Connection

The Apple Watch Series 3’s major boost from previous models is its support for cellular LTE. However, the Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern said there were issues with connectivity during the week in which she tested out the new models. Stern also said there were problems with Series 3’s battery life.

Stern wrote:

“You’re lucky if the battery allows you to roam on cellular for longer than half a day—especially if you’re making calls. And only a limited number of third-party apps work without the phone close by. (No Instagram, Twitter , Uber.)

Most worryingly, my colleague Geoffrey Fowler and I experienced cellular connectivity issues on three separate pre-production models, in two different states, on two different 4G LTE carriers.

On the AT&T -connected models, the cellular connection dropped, calls were often choppy and Siri sometimes failed to connect. On the one that ran on T-Mobile, I experienced several dropped connections.”

An Apple spokesperson told her Apple hadn’t seen problems with connectivity during any of its testing and that it is “looking into it.” Stern said the price of the Series 3 is high for it not to properly work when making calls.

The new Watch has a $399 starting price for the cellular and Wi-Fi model, while the standard version is priced at $329. Besides the price for the device, users also have to pay $10 a month to their carrier for connectivity, plus activation fees.

Although Stern detailed issues with the device’s connectivity she said that when the Watch was performing as it was supposed to she “discovered the enjoyment of being untethered from my iPhone.”

The Verge: Bad Connection, Heart Rate Feature A Plus

Lauren Goode from the Verge also had issues with the Apple Watch Series 3’s connection, and saw the device’s battery drain fast.

Goode wrote:

“In one of my initial tests, I went for a walk with the phone on airplane mode, and tried to send text messages and use Siri to initiate phone calls through the Watch. Those didn’t work. I tried asking Siri basic questions. That didn’t work. Siri also wasn’t ‘talking back’ to me, something that’s supposed to be a new feature on the Series 3 Watch.”

Apple ended up replacing her Watch, which allowed Siri to speak back. However, connectivity issues persisted. Goode also tried to replicate the video Apple showed at the event last week in which a person is surfing in the ocean when a call comes in.

Goode said:

“I wasn’t very far from shore, but the Watch vacillated between one bar of service and being disconnected entirely. I did manage to make one phone call from a surfboard. That was kind of wild.”

There were some positive things to about the Series 3.

“I was able to hike, spin, swim, surf, and test out a couple other activities on the Series 3 Watch, which, like last year’s model, has GPS. I liked the daily and weekly notifications that the Watch now sends,” she said. “But the watchOS 4 updates to heart rate tracking are really the most noteworthy.”

Wired: “The Next iPhone”

David Pierce from Wired said the Apple Watch Series 3 “is the next iPhone.”

Pierce wrote:

[...] the Apple Watch would replace much of what we do on our phones now—the calls and texts, the smart-home and music controls, the constant back-and-forth with our virtual assistants. On a Watch, you could do all those things without the nasty, attention-sucking side effects. It separates all the iPhone’s tools from its toys.

It’s a nice idea, one that’s not quite finished yet. But for the first time ever, I love the Apple Watch. And I’m going to keep wearing it.

Pierce, like Goode, said the performance on the Series was much better than the previous models. However, Pierce also said the battery life was affected by LTE connection.

TechCrunch: “Liberating”

Brian Heater from TechCrunch said the Series 3’s new LTE feature is a way to get freedom from an iPhone.

“It’s a bit liberating, and feels like taking baby steps toward curing a 24/7 smartphone addiction.”

Heater added that Siri’s upgrade makes the device better.

“Talking to the watch is just way easier than typing a letter at a time — and while the software does a good job converting finger scribbles into letters, writing anything but a quick text is a chore. I’m also surprised to say that I didn’t find the act of talking to my watch super awkward.”

New York Times: Series 3 “Excels”

Brian X. Chen from the New York Times said the Apple Watch Series 3 “excels,” even if customers buy the standard version without LTE.

Chen said:

“After testing the cellular watch for a week, I found it to be an excellent smart watch that is a significant improvement over the first Apple Watch, which was slow, confusing to use and deeply flawed.

People who want a wearable device for things like fitness tracking and a quick glance at mobile notifications will probably be happy with the Series 3 without cellular, which costs $329.”

Chen added that features like Siri, Calendar and the stopwatch were quick and reliable.