Apple Watch Series 3 Costs More Than $10/Month on Most Carriers, Can't Be Reactivated Without Fees

[OneMike]

and until you actually own one, it only seems cool
Being able to leave your house without your iphone, or mow your lawn, shovel your driveway whatever without bringing along your iPhone..priceless.

I can leave my house without my phone now but don’t. Not practical.

 

[nt5672]

They are in business to make money while providing a service. I love Capitalism even if I don't like everything company X may do while engaging in Capitalism.

Yep, I agree. Don't like it don't buy it. Let the phone companies make an economic decision. If nobody buys it, the fees will all of a sudden drop.

 

[tjrchka]

I was really exited about getting my son an AW3-LTE until I found out what the carriers were charging, or charging at all.

It's complete and unadulterated highway robbery... it's the SAME number and the SAME data plan you're already paying for. What the hell is it costing them?!

Same thought here. With the announcement of the LTE AW with your same number I believed there wouldn't be any additional costs. $2.99/month is the max this is worth, if anything at all.

I know some people would love to just have the watch, not an option.

So the watch is roughly $400 outright, service comes in at $120-$150 a year before any additional taxes.

For anyone that doesn't know all Apple watches can make phone calls over WiFi. Works for me even if my iPhone isn't on the same network, ie I have my phone at home and I'm at work on WiFi.

 

[nt5672]

While the Apple watches are neat, i don't see them giving me anything i (or anyone else) needs to have to live in this modern world. They are nice very expensive toys. I like my solar powered analog watch. I paid a fee once for it, and it will many last years without any other expenses popping up on its use.
Saving Money is Not A Crime.

Yep. I quit wearing a watch with my first portable phone. My wife and I only have two smart phones, no land line, and we take our phones everywhere, no need for a watch even when we run or hike.

 

[Nicksd84]

I see this a lot on this thread. Please tell me, how exactly do you think that Apple is going to force carriers provide more service to customers at no additional charge, increase Apple profits all while decreasing their own profits?

Please explain why Sprint would incur additional unrecovered expenses so that Apple, the worlds most profitable company, can make even more money?

To clarify. I meant the simplicity of turning coverage on and off without incurring a $25-$35 fee not the regulatory charges that the carriers pass on.
[doublepost=1513691823][/doublepost]

The problem is that some of the fees are unavoidable taxes. Each SIM requires its own account. Granted, the carriers pass through some fees and pretend they are taxes, but given that there is such wide disparity between locality I’m guessing most of them are legitimate taxes or surcharges. So even if the carriers charged $0, we’d still get hit with fees.

Yea I didn’t mean the regulatory fees but the bs of charging fees to activate and reactivate without incurring additional fees when you already have a line.

 

[RightMACatU]

Bah... I'm sure that their super smart marketing people have done advanced studies on this and recommended that an additional monthly fees would not have a significant impact on our other 10 to 12 monthly subscriptions /s

 

[Michael Scrip]

I’m blown away by the reaction over a couple dollars.

This stuff isn’t free. Lot of poor or cheap people here.

Well... it can be up to $15... every month.

That's a little more than "a couple dollars"

I think the biggest problem is when you compare it to supplemental plans for other devices. You can pay $10 to $15 a month for an LTE iPad... and it could function as your primary computer.

Yet they're charging the same for a smartwatch. I dunno... it just seems like the iPad does more than the Apple Watch.

Yes... the LTE Apple Watch would be undoubtedly valuable in an emergency if you break your leg while hiking. No argument there.

But it just seems crazy that the data plan for a watch can cost the same as a tablet.

If anything... iPad data plan should be $10/mo... Apple Watch $5/mo

Or something like that.

Let me be clear... I'm not against the idea of the carriers charging for an additional device on your plan. I understand why they do that.

I just think the pricing needs some work.

 

[Guidonculous]

Real world answer: People who run long distances and don't want to carry their (increasingly larger) smartphones with them, but must have a method of communication with them for safety reasons.

For example, I run multiple marathons a year and am training year round. I go on long runs all the time. I also live in the middle of a very large non-pedestrian-focused city with a lot of drivers who are generally oblivious to pedestrians, and have had several close calls over the years. Additionally, I'm an asthmatic and while problems are rare–there's always the threat of something bad happening. I have to have a way to call in case of an emergency. For people like me having a watch that can do emergency calls (or allow you to receive messages while you're on a 3+ hour run just in case someone else is having an emergency worth cutting your run short for) without having to carry a large device with you is very appealing.

Edit: Clearly this isn't a need that isn't covered by a phone. It is, however, a substantial quality of life improvement for some.

There’s a lot of people who also just like going out with their family and not having their phone. They get Apple Music to their car stereo, pay for dinner with Apple Pay, have access to maps, can quickly make and answer calls, can be aware if a crisis arises, all without having s device to distract them from the people they love.

It’s weird that people suddenly can’t see a use case for an internet connected device. I argued it wasn’t a feature I was dying for, but it clearly has value if you can pull it off without destroying battery life and making the watch huge (I.e. Android 2.0)

 

[cmaier]

I’m blown away by the reaction over a couple dollars. This stuff isn’t free. Lot of poor or cheap people here.

The cost to the carrier for supporting the watch is a lot less than the cost to support the phone. Carriers are gouging, as usual.

 

[Baymowe335]

The cost to the carrier for supporting the watch is a lot less than the cost to support the phone. Carriers are gouging, as usual.

Numbers to support your statement? The cost we pay the carrier for a watch IS less than a cell phone.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

"Administrative Fees". It used to be the cost of doing business, which was rolled into the price of the service. Now not only do we pay for the service, we are also paying for the cost of them doing business with these BS Administrative fees.

Airlines have been forced to sell their fares at a price that includes everything. What you see is what you pay. Other services should be forced to do the same. Take away the "hidden" from hidden charges.

 

[cmaier]

Numbers to support your statement? The cost we pay the carrier for a watch IS less than a cell phone.

Not much. I pay $20 per cellphone line (plus fees). Watch costs half that (plus fees). But bandwidth usage by iPhone is many times higher than that of the watch. Given unlimited data plans, what matters to the carrier is bandwidth.

 

[chiefsilverback]

Edit: Clearly this isn't a need that isn't covered by a phone. It is, however, a substantial quality of life improvement for some.

I might be wrong, but I would argue that you already have a quite a good quality of life if you are able to spend hours every week out running, and travelling round the country participating in marathons!

 

[Tinmania]

There's is literally no reason for another number other than maybe the cell carriers can't figure out how to do it.

That is absolutely convoluted logic. It's like saying there is "literally" no reason that we can't colonize the sun other than maybe scientists can't figure out how to do it.

Originally, add-on devices had to have their own plan entirely--including number (even if you couldn't make calls). AT&T and others started to move away from that model several years ago, in AT&T's case when they rolled out NumberSync. NumberSync, and its equivalent on other carriers, does exactly what you are seemingly wanting: lets you use one number.

Yes, your watch, tablet, etc., have their own phone numbers. So what? Would you feel better if they called it "account number?" You can't expect to just buy an add-on device that connects to the cell network, and not have it authorized and correctly billed. That's absurd.

You can argue about the price, for sure. But I'd say the bigger battle would be about the fees. I don't mind paying $10 to have my watch share my cell plan. But I do not think I should be paying fees on top of that for a device that is an add-on, not the primary.



Mike

 

[Baymowe335]

Not much. I pay $20 per cellphone line (plus fees). Watch costs half that (plus fees). But bandwidth usage by iPhone is many times higher than that of the watch. Given unlimited data plans, what matters to the carrier is bandwidth.

No way you pay $20/line without an anchor account that pays for the plan. I can add a line for $10/month, but the one line is more like $50/month.

 

[Tinmania]

It is a shame. I have an LG GizmoGadget for my kid. I can track her with GPS if she wears it. It's only $5 a month. In fact, all of the Android Wear LTE watches are only $5 a month.
I was hoping Apple Watch would also have been $5 (I even expected it,) but carriers know the Apple market will afford more and stick it to us. .

That is not true. Verizon is the only one of the big three in the US that charged $5 for an Android Wear watch and then $10 for Apple Watch LTE.

AT&T and TMobile charged $10 extra for Android Wear and the same for Apple Watch. I know because I have AT&T and TMobile and before my Apple Watch 3 LTE I had an Android Wear LG Sport. I paid the same for it as I do my series 3 LTE.

I can stomach the $10. But the $4 in fees added onto it, really bothers me.



Mike

 

[imola.zhp]

Wow, somehow I had not even considered taxes and fee's in addition to the $10/month.

No thanks!

 

[Tinmania]

The watch has a SIM. It's it's own cellular phone that can be operated on it's own, and all cellular devices have their own number including iPads.
The carriers have a number bonding feature that will make all calls from the watch look like they're coming from the iPhone's number rings on both as if you only have one number, but the watch can be called separately with it's unique number.

Very good summary. One thing, my Apple Watch 3 LTE on AT&T cannot be called or texted using its assigned number: it is literally married to my iPhone's number (via AT&T's NumberSync). Prior to this watch, I had an LG Sport Android Wear watch, also with LTE (and also on AT&T using NumberSync). That watch DID allow calls to the watch's own number--I often got robocalls to my watch. In fact I hated how NumberSync worked on that watch, such as not receiving texts, but that is a story for a different day. Suffice to say NumberSync with my Apple Watch LTE is exactly how I expected it to work. I leave LTE on all the time, wear the watch to sleep for tracking, and by the time I charge it each morning it has a good 70% battery left. I could easily go two or, if I was careful, three days. This is Vs. like 7 hours if I left LTE on with my LG Sport.



Mike

 

[macguru212]

LOL at the the 25$ reactivation fee, considering you're attempting to pay them more money to access data you've already paid for since it's tied to your existing phone number. At that point I would just tell them to F off and keep my money.

The whole wireless industry needs a good swift kick in the you know what.

 

[Tinmania]

Wow, somehow I had not even considered taxes and fee's in addition to the $10/month.

That was the entire point of the article you commented on.

 

[jdawgnoonan]

I’m blown away by the reaction over a couple dollars. This stuff isn’t free. Lot of poor or cheap people here.

Of course it is not free, nor should it be. But it will be interesting to see whether or not the current pricing structure lasts. For myself, the price of the data plan is too high for the added value of the LTE model. However, if the battery technology was dramatically better than it is and the LTE watch could make it through 8 hours of moderately heavy music, texting, and talking without having to carry a phone I might feel differently.

 

[jeffu]

Honestly, I was somewhat ok with the $10 fee, I get it, they want to make money and if I want the extra feature then I get that I'm going to have to pay for it - I do think it's closer to a $5 value, but ok, whatever. What's not right in my book is to be charged for all the other taxes and fess on this "line". I think it's one of those situations where the technology has outpaced the current structure - I shouldn't have to pay the same taxes and fees as if it's a new phone, that's where it gets crazy.

In Chicago with the increase in 911 fees, my $10 bill will be $17.48, close to doubling the $10 fee, that's just insane and not even close to worth it. I'll be shutting mine off.

 

[artfossil]

As to the medical issues people, no doubt the ability to call for help saves lives. However, that could be covered at a much cheaper cost with one of those "I've fallen and can't get up" devices.

LOL. Those medical alert devices are $30-$70 a month for mobile/GPS (plus varying device fees/activation fees).

The LTE Watch is a multi-function bargain and could literally be a lifesaver.

Now that I’m in my 70’s this connectivity is becoming a priority for me.

 

[USAFA2008]

On Verizon in California, for example, there's an additional $1.55 in fees on top of the $10 per month charge.

On AT&T in North Carolina, fees and surcharges add an additional $4.39 to the $10 per month charge, bringing the total to almost $15 per month for an Apple Watch. In some states, these fees on Verizon and AT&T are even higher.

​

Did people really think it would be a flat $10 without fees and taxes? They need to blame the government and not the carriers.

 

[sevvere]

wait Til Qualcomm Windows all day laptops arrive with sim support, the carriers are going to gouge that even worse to include these laptops on your phone plan. I refuse to pay a fee to use the service I already paid for on a separate device. And for all of you who are paying this extra charge on you Apple Watch, your the problem. No regulations from the State is needed to fix this issue ... the free market can and will if people chose not to buy the lte watch to begin with