Can someone help me understand these ATT terms?

[TheRealFiremonkey]

hello - new member here. Made the account just to ask this.

I got a new AW 4 for myself and my son today. Both with cellular. I activated my own watch and got a confirmation email with the following footnotes from ATT:

MPORTANT NOTICE: To send or receive SMS/MMS messages on your Apple Watch Series 3:

1. It must be synced to an HD-voice activated iPhone using AT&T NumberSync;
2. It must be added to an eligible wireless service plan on the same account as the iPhone;
3. Your iPhone must be connected to the AT&T network through a cellular or Wi-Fi connection (if on Wi-Fi connection, Wi-Fi Calling must be activated on your iPhone); and
4. Your iPhone must be powered on (if power is lost, SMS/MMS messages will not be delivered

So does this mean that even if I’m miles away from my phone, it’s going to try and relay through the cellular connection in the phone? Seems pointless to have the LTE service to me if this is true, but it is ATT so any absurdity is possible.

(btW - it’s a series 4 AW, they’re just too confused to recognize the difference.)

 

[dave006]

Yes it is a requirement, part of the AT&T NumberSync feature. A more important note is that your watch can't roam outside of the AT&T Network. It is not an AT&T thing but an Apple thing.

Link with details: https://www.att.com/shop/wireless/features/numbersync.html#tab5

Dave

 

[TheRealFiremonkey]

Thanks for clarifying. The roaming I can get. But if my battery dies on the phone, then the LTE on the watch becoming worthless is exactly the absurdity I’d expect. The value prospect in having LTE on the watch is that it may continue to operate if the phone dies.

So if it doesn’t - where’s the value in the $10+tax/fees? I got a stainless watch so paying for the radio is what it is, but my son got an SG aluminum so his may get returned for a non LTE variety.

 

[porkrind]

A more important note is that your watch can't roam outside of the AT&T Network. It is not an AT&T thing but an Apple thing.

It's not even an Apple thing. It's an industry wide issue. There is not yet agreement about the standards that would have to be implemented to allow all of the different carriers' versions of the Number Sync-like functions to be cross compatible.

 

[dave006]

Before you go that far consider that even with your iPhone off or dead battery, You can still use LTE on your watch for calls and for iMessages. Only SMS / MMS require your iPhone to be online and connected to the AT&T Network.

Dave

 

[TheRealFiremonkey]

Ah... thank you for that.

This was the detail that i was missing; As long as iMessage and calls work there is value in the LTE service.

 

[porkrind]

Thanks for clarifying. The roaming I can get. But if my battery dies on the phone, then the LTE on the watch becoming worthless is exactly the absurdity I’d expect. The value prospect in having LTE on the watch is that it may continue to operate if the phone dies.

So if it doesn’t - where’s the value in the $10+tax/fees? I got a stainless watch so paying for the radio is what it is, but my son got an SG aluminum so his may get returned for a non LTE variety.

The cellular part of the watch works just fine even with the phone off. Phone calls, streaming audio, news, mail, all of that too. Anything that uses data. The only thing that doesn’t work with the phone off is SMS text messages. The phone in that specific case is doing the heavy lifting of passing texts to your phone number along to your watch's number.