I sure hope this update quashes some bugs. (I feel like an early adopter even though I waited until Series 5 to jump on the Apple watch bandwagon!)
I came across this article through Google after receiving a notice to upgrade the watchOS on my Apple Series 5 GPS watch. (The on-screen software update notice wasn't very explanatory so I was hoping to learn what the update might do.) At this moment I am crossing my fingers that the update will provide for better reliability/performance.
Unfortunately, my first impression of the Apple watch hasn't been good. I'm actually on my second Series 5 since mid October. I returned the first one thinking there was a defect because even with the WiFi router, iPhone and watch in the same room, the use of Siri and sending/receiving calls was more "miss" than "hit". The problem initially presented as Siri reporting "Uh, oh. I've lost the network connection. Let me try that again" and "I'm sorry but I can't place a call right now. Please try again in a bit".
I tried to report what I thought was a bug-related problem via Apple Chat support and phone support but came away with only the usual troubleshooting steps (make sure the watch and phone are updated, re-pair the watch, reset the network settings on the phone, reset the watch, restore from a clean install vs. the iCloud backup, etc.).
Although I'm new to Mac Rumors, my use of Apple products goes back to the pre-Apple store days. My take on the problem is that the watch doesn't hand off cleanly between Bluetooth and WiFi. Even though WiFi is reported as connected in the watch Control Center, when you go into Settings>WiFi it has at some point during the day — usually more than once — moved the home network down to the list of other area networks (i.e. all the neighbor's).
I found a
support doc on the Apple website that states "Only Apple Watch GPS + Cellular models can disconnect from Wi-Fi networks", which if true would mean that my GPS watch has an issue because it reports it is connected to my high-speed network — the same network that runs all the smart devices in my house without an issue — but in reality the watch seems to be disconnecting at will. (This seems to be associated with a period of inactivity and it takes a series of restarts to the watch, the phone, the WiFi and so forth to try to get Siri working again.)
I've done my best to isolate the problem, including making sure everything else in my household is connected via 5G so as not to interfer with the watch on the 2.4G band. My impression is that when the Bluetooth signal is obstructed by walls or just going out of range, rather than hand-off to WiFi the watch either no longer has actual WiFi access *or* it is programmed to remain connected to the phone via Bluetooth at all costs — even when the quality of the connection doesn't justify it). A related issue is the fact that both watches have had significant trouble executing on "Find my Phone". Typically in response to a "Find my phone" request I get the following message: "I can't tell if the phone is nearby.…" This is true even when the phone is sitting in the same room!
I assumed the first watch was defective for the reasons indicated, but having had the same experience on the second watch I can only speculate that the watch and/or iPhone combo (SE) are suffering a network timeout (standby/sleep related?) bug in which the watch cannot successfully activate the connection to the phone. (At one point, I even asked Apple phone support if I would have had better luck with the GPS model and they said that regardless, the user needs to be within Bluetooth range.)
I read another
Apple support document indicating that even with the phone off, even the non-Cellular models should be able to dial out over WiFi. With the watch connected to the 2.4G band and the Phone powered up with WiFi enabled, there is maybe a 40 percent success rate with the use of Siri, placing calls, dialing via the keypad and similar. With the phone powered on and the Bluetooth on the watch turned
Off (WiFi-only connection), I can sometimes get the watch to perform about 60 percent reliably for a brief period. Within an hour or so the watch will go back to reporting "Call failed" and that I need to "try again later".
Long story shorter, I just applied the update. I hope Apple made some BIG bug fixes otherwise the watch will have to go back.😠
Oh, and on a final note, my current watch has the battery drain issue. My watch simply died on my wrist with less than 12 hours of use and no warning the other day. If my experience is any indication, a lot of these Series 5 watch Christmas gifts will end up being returned. If Apple doesn't fix this soon, they will be making headlines in another month for all the wrong reasons.