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Apple Watch Series 3 battery service

mj_

mj_

macrumors 68000
Original poster
May 18, 2017
1,618
1,281
Austin, TX
Has anyone taken their Apple Watch S3 for a battery service with Apple recently? Is Apple replacing the battery itself or are they replacing the entire watch with an refurbished model? I need mine to be 100% waterproof as I regularly use it for lap swimming, and I fear it might lose that ability once the display has been removed and reapplied.
 
I've been trading in my watch every two years to upgrade to the latest model, so the battery never degrades to the point where it needs to be replaced, but I'm not throwing away the old one, and I'm keeping the cost down on buying the new one. For me, this has been the best solution.
 
my understanding is Apple won't replace a battery unless the health is below 80% and you can check that on the watch.
Apple Watch is not "waterproof", never has been, its water resistant with IPxx (forget the exact rating), if you're planning to replace the battery contact Apple about water resistance after the replacement ...
 
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Since no one is answering you why don’t you call Apple? Let us know what they say
 
They don't replace the battery. They simply replace it with a new watch (same model, same color). Your battery needs to be below 80% health to qualify for it.
 
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The 80% battery health threshold only applies to batteries replaced for free under warranty, doesn’t it? My S3 has been out of warranty for years so I’m prepared to pay full price for it, which should be $79 plus shipping.
 
mj_ said:
The 80% battery health threshold only applies to batteries replaced for free under warranty, doesn’t it? My S3 has been out of warranty for years so I’m prepared to pay full price for it, which should be $79 plus shipping.
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I see your point but I understand for watches apple can be strict on 80% even when paying out of warranty. Because they are out right replacing the Watch. It’s just something I’ve read though so no proof of it.
 
mj_ said:
The 80% battery health threshold only applies to batteries replaced for free under warranty, doesn’t it? My S3 has been out of warranty for years so I’m prepared to pay full price for it, which should be $79 plus shipping.
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Apple applies the 80% across the board, even if you are willing to pay.
 
Wait so if my battery is obviously broken and behaves erratic in every conceivable way yet the software incorrectly claims a 97% health then Apple might refuse to service the battery even if I’m paying full price? :oops:
 
mj_ said:
Wait so if my battery is obviously broken and behaves erratic in every conceivable way yet the software incorrectly claims a 97% health then Apple might refuse to service the battery even if I’m paying full price? :oops:
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Apple has their own tool for checking the health of the battery etc. They don't solely rely on what WatchOS battery health is showing.

If I had a series 3, I would not spend the $80 dollars on a new battery. I would put that money towards a newer watch.
 
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Apple_Robert said:
If I had a series 3, I would not spend the $80 dollars on a new battery. I would put that money towards a newer watch.
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Can I get a newer watch for $80?

Apple_Robert said:
Apple has their own tool for checking the health of the battery etc. They don't solely rely on what WatchOS battery health is showing.
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I see, thank you. Guess I will have to bite the bullet, send it in and see what happens.
 
mj_ said:
Can I get a newer watch for $80?
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No, you get the same model, same color, etc. Only apply if your battery is 79% or lower and you pay the $80. If it's 80% or above, they will refuse to service it (even if you pay, because for them they need to provide a new series 3 watch which is obviously more than $80).
 
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hmorneau said:
No, you get the same model, same color, etc.
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I don’t expect Apple to give me a newer watch. My inquiry was in reference to @Apple_Robert ’s suggestion to not get the battery replaced but to put that money towards a newer watch. I was curious where and how I could get an S4 or newer for the same amount of money as I would have to pay for a new battery.

hmorneau said:
Only apply if your battery is 79% or lower and you pay the $80. If it's 80% or above, they will refuse to service it (even if you pay, because for them they need to provide a new series 3 watch which is obviously more than $80).
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Great. Since my watch reports a battery health of 97% I doubt Apple’s tools will see things that much differently. If they did it would render their battery health indicator completely moot. In my case this effectively means the watch is bricked as its behavior is getting increasingly erratic by the day. This morning it shut itself off at around 25% and refused to take a charge for quite a while before it finally powered up again. I will have to call Apple this week and ask what to do but if they refuse to service the battery this will be my last Apple Watch.
 
mj_ said:
I don’t expect Apple to give me a newer watch. My inquiry was in reference to @Apple_Robert ’s suggestion to not get the battery replaced but to put that money towards a newer watch. I was curious where and how I could get an S4 or newer for the same amount of money as I would have to pay for a new battery.
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Obviously, he didn't mean you could get a newer watch for $80. He just meant that he didnt think it's worth it spending $80 to fix a gadget with 4-year old technology. You could spend that $80+whatever to get a new watch. That's what "putting that money toward" means. It doesn't mean $80 will cover the entire cost of a new watch.
 
I see, and I understood what he meant. I was being a bit (overly?) sarcastic, and I apologize if that was conceived rude or inappropriate in any way. I really appreciate all the input so far as it’s been incredibly enlightening. Thank you everybody.

Personally, I don’t think it’s worth to spend (much) more than $80 on a newer model instead. Despite its admittedly advanced age the S3 does everything I want, and I honestly don’t care for any of the bells and whistles the newer models offer over the S3. I absolutely understand that some people might consider these additional features useful and worth their money but I don’t.
 
mj_ said:
I see, and I understood what he meant. I was being a bit (overly?) sarcastic, and I apologize if that was conceived rude or inappropriate in any way. I really appreciate all the input so far as it’s been incredibly enlightening. Thank you everybody.

Personally, I don’t think it’s worth to spend (much) more than $80 on a newer model instead. Despite its admittedly advanced age the S3 does everything I want, and I honestly don’t care for any of the bells and whistles the newer models offer over the S3. I absolutely understand that some people might consider these additional features useful and worth their money but I don’t.
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No, it's worth it to get it fix. Some people don't understand that it's not necessary to get the latest and greatest to enjoy something. If yours is shutting down at 25%, contact Apple first and see what they say. If you have an Apple store close by, just go in person.
 
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mj_ said:
Despite its admittedly advanced age the S3 does everything I want, and I honestly don’t care for any of the bells and whistles the newer models offer over the S3. I absolutely understand that some people might consider these additional features useful and worth their money but I don’t.
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I totally understand how $80 might be worth it if you could get some more use out of a gadget that does what you want. I'd point out that even if you have no use for the fancy sensors on the newer models, the newer watches are a lot speedier, if you use any apps or complications. Also, if you listen to music from the watch, I believe the newer models have more storage.

I do hope Apple agrees to fix your battery for $80, because it does sound like the battery is acting up, even though it is still reporting 97% health. If not, it sounds like you might need to consider what other options are available. I was about to suggest that a lower-end Fitbit might suit your needs and budget, but then remembered you said you needed it to be waterproof/water-resistant, and I don't know if those are waterproof.

Sometimes we just have to pay for options and features we don't need, in order to get the feature we do need, that's the downside of mass-produced products.
 
I've called Apple and they basically told me to not even bother sending it in for a battery service. It is highly unlikely that their internal tools will report a difference as substantial as is required for a service if the software still reports a battery health of 97%. They also confirmed that Apple will only accept watches with a battery health of less than 80% regardless of whether it is covered under warranty or not. I could in theory make an appointment at an Apple Store and have it inspected on-site but even then the genius will have to use Apple's internal analysis tools on the device in order to determine battery health and eligibility. My only chance would be if the genius takes pity on me and authorizes the service nevertheless.

Despite better knowledge I've attempted the recalibration voodoo (desperate times call for desperate measures) of letting it drain completely until it turns itself off and recharging it to 100% again. Unsurprisingly it didn't help much. As soon as I took it off the charger it dropped to 94%, then 91% a minute later, and down to 82% after less than five minutes. At least it stopped shutting down at 25%, which is definitely a step in the right direction.
 
No, I have not yet. I will probably have to sooner or later when a new major watchOS update comes around that cannot be installed OTA anymore (to my surprise, watchOS 8.1, 8.2, and 8.3 installed without any issues) so it's just a matter of time. Right now I honestly can't be bothered as I have very little free time and I'd rather spend what little time I have with my daughter.

I think I will just leave it as is and use it until it falls apart. Thank you for the suggestion though, it is much appreciated.
 
HEUREKA! I've solved the issue! Not a particularly good solution, mind you, but one that definitely means I won't need a new battery anytime soon ?

IMG_7357.jpg IMG_7358.jpg
 
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I dropped it accidentally this morning ? Not the first time this happened, and since my wooden floors are fairly soft nothing happened until now. I knew immediately something was horrible had happened when it hit the floor because the sound it made was different.

It does still turn but the display doesn't respond to input anymore. I am going to unpair it from my phone and start looking for a new Watch.
 
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