Apple refreshed the Apple Watch bringing one key new feature: Cellular. In addition to a battery, OLED display, and a processor (among other things) Apple managed to cram inside a cellular chip, all without making the chassis larger. I think from a design standpoint, that’s pretty amazing.
This is the box and as you can see here, I went with the silver aluminum case with seashell sport loop. It was one of the base models that starts at $399. I am a fan of the box’s shape as it’s easier to stack and store away in a closet. I know it’s a bit of a weird thing to mention. The long, rectangular box of the previous models were iconic but they were a bit more tough to store away.
Now we can open this box up by removing the plastic wrap and sliding off the top of the box. Inside, we’ll find the Apple Watch Series 3. My unit, it wasn’t securely fastened in the box. It was actually knocked off the cradle. It might have been disrupted in shipping but there doesn’t really seem to be many mechanisms here to keep this watch securely fastened in the box.
Underneath, we’ll find some basic Apple paperwork. There’s also a standard Apple wall wart and USB charging cable. The model I have selected looks pretty darn clean with the silver aluminum case. I decided to opt in for a white model since I selected the gold Apple Watch Series 2 last year. The seashell sport loop consists of velcro and to be honest with you guys, I was in a hurry ordering it and I thought the sport loop consisted of some sort of metal when in reality it’s just cloth and velcro. It feels very cheap and looks decent, at best. I’ll probably swap this out with a black sport band at the very least.
The top of the digital crown is colored red, which is really the best way to tell if the Apple Watch is cellular. The chassis is the same thickness as previous models but the heart rate module on the underside of the watch is ever so slightly thicker than last year’s model. Apple says it’s no more than two sheets of paper thicker so it really shouldn’t be too noticeable and I haven’t noticed much of a difference on my wrist.
The process for setting up cellular on the S3 is very neat. All you have to do is open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone and then navigate to the cellular section, tap on setup cellular, and it will automatically detect your carrier and give you a plan. The option that I was presented was unlimited data for $15 per month. However, I received a $5 monthly discount if I enroll in autopay and there is a 3-month free trial offer included, which should help carriers work out all the kinks with communications.
But generally speaking, you can expect to pay $10 per month for service on your Apple Watch from one of the four major carriers in the US.
I have already noticed some unsent messages via my cellular Apple Watch. I’m going to have to keep monitoring this to see if these unsent messages and other communications issues can be expected with regular use. I hope they’ll be worked out and updated and ultimately fixed.
The Apple Watch Series 3 starts at $399 and goes up from there depending on which model you select. The ceramic model costs over $1000. Let us know what your thoughts are of this device in a comment down below.