Apple Watch with Non Activated iPhone?

[Woodcrest64]

My son has a Apple Watch SE2 on my family connected Apple Watches though my iPhone.

However this limits him on what he can do with the watch.

I have a spare iPhone SE original kicking around . Can I use that with with his Apple Watch and have the phone only act as a Wifi device?

He doesn’t want the phone just wants to control his lights in the house a few other items all of which require a iPhone and Apple Watch to be paired together .

 

[Saturn007]

We have one of our Apple Watches (an SE) connected to a 2016 iPhone SE that is NOT activated on any cellular network or with any cellular company.

Works like a charm. Goes on line via WiFi, gets the weather, does all the fitness stuff, etc. We don't use it to control house lights, so don't know about that, but can't see why it wouldn't work, especially if the control is over WIFi.

The good thing about setting up the Apple Watch with its own iPhone rather than under Family Plan is that it removes the Plan's restrictions on Watch features. (See Apple's web pages on those.)

Now, you'd want to give him the iPhone SE as one does need to use the phone to record health and fitness history, control various settings, OS updates (IIRC), etc. Just setting it up (pairing it) with your spare phone and keeping the phone at your house would be too limiting for him.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

He’d gain HomeKit and a few other features - but he’d lose cellular connectivity.