Just purchased the Apple Watch Sport for my wife and it was dead on arrival. Would not power up even after charging all night. Tried holding both buttons in for 10 seconds or so and still would not power up. Took it back and got a new one. This one powered up but after selecting the language, it gave a message saying battery was low and it need to be charged in order to continue. We charged it for 12 hours and still got the same message. Tried holding both buttons for 10 seconds or so and after it did a reset, got the same message saying it needed to be charged. Enough is enough. Took it back for a full refund. My wife is an ardent Apple fan and this was a birthday gift for her, but even my wife said "no more". Come on Apple, haven't you heard of quality control!
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Dead on arrival - Twice
- Thread starter Brummmie
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This is unusual. This is unfortunate. Glad you made an account today to join our forum.
Could it be a power supply issue? Have you tried a different power outlet in your home or another location all together?
There's been instances of people's watches (and subsequent replacement watches) not charging.
The chances of getting a dud watch twice in a row are extremely low, but they've used the same plug socket each time.
Could be worth a shot?
There's been instances of people's watches (and subsequent replacement watches) not charging.
The chances of getting a dud watch twice in a row are extremely low, but they've used the same plug socket each time.
Could be worth a shot?
This is INCREDIBLY statistically unlikely. Much more likely that there is something you guys were doing to cause this. Here are a couple of options:
1. Faulty outlet
2. Using an old faulty charger (like, one from an old iPhone)
3. Forgetting to remove the clear plastic sticker from the surface of the induction charger.
4. Not plugging the USB end of the charging cable in.
5. Not completely seating the induction charger on the Watch.
6. Dropping the Watch in water and then trying to charge it with car jumper cables hooked directly to it.
Sorry for the trouble though. I will say, the Watch is totally worth it. Go grab another one... It is COMPLETELY STATISTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE for this to happen a 3rd time ;-)
1. Faulty outlet
2. Using an old faulty charger (like, one from an old iPhone)
3. Forgetting to remove the clear plastic sticker from the surface of the induction charger.
4. Not plugging the USB end of the charging cable in.
5. Not completely seating the induction charger on the Watch.
6. Dropping the Watch in water and then trying to charge it with car jumper cables hooked directly to it.
Sorry for the trouble though. I will say, the Watch is totally worth it. Go grab another one... It is COMPLETELY STATISTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE for this to happen a 3rd time ;-)
We are not Apple so it's possible your voice won't be heard but I can feel your pain. Usually the battery should be above 50% when you get it. I can't imagine that it runs down near to zero during shipping as the devices are not stored long enough after production for this to happen. Most certainly the first one was a dud but the chances of the second to show the same problem is very small.
If you or your wife want to give it a third shot, try setting it up in store, or at least powering it on. It takes just a few minutes to verify its condition. You then can do the real setup at home.
I got a new replacement for my watch (after waiting 16 days, wasn't happy). When I picked it up at my local apple store, it was dead, wouldn't even power on. It simply needed a charge. This isn't typical of apple, usually they are partially charged. It is weird, because I'm sure they can charge them through the box, with some type of more powerful charger...
EDIT: Oh, and not only was it dead, it had watchOS 1 on it, not even 1.01... So, right away I had to upgrade it to 2.0 and then wipe it and restore from my previous 2.0 backup.
EDIT: Oh, and not only was it dead, it had watchOS 1 on it, not even 1.01... So, right away I had to upgrade it to 2.0 and then wipe it and restore from my previous 2.0 backup.
I'm going to have to agree ... the chances of two BNIB watches being duds is very unlikely IMO.
Then again, back in the day when I had a Samsung Impression phone, I had to go through two replacements because the screen died on both of them. Go figure
Then again, back in the day when I had a Samsung Impression phone, I had to go through two replacements because the screen died on both of them. Go figure
Both watches were tried in a different outlet. I have a feeling it may be the plastic everyone is referring to. I certainly didn't see any plastic on the back of the watch nor on the magnet side of the charger but from what I read, it's hard to tell there's any on there. If there is plastic on the watch and charger, then the instructions should say to remove it OR the plastic should have a tab saying "Remove before use" or something like that. Very bad on the part of Apple either way. I'm also surprised that a thin piece of plastic would prevent it from charging since it charges through induction, but I imagine it creates an air gap that the induction field can't pass through. Strange though, because the magnet didn't have any trouble snapping to the back of the watch.
That makes no sense. You're saying you forgot to remove the plastic film on the magnetic charging cable, making it an user error? But this can't be the culprit because there are members who've been charging the AW with the plastic film still on and were slightly embarrassed to admit this.
I think he was saying or asking if this is a possibility for his problems.
Yeah, it can't be the culprit because some members have overlooked the plastic film and were embarrassed to find out they've been charging their AW all along with it on.
I'm saying that I did not see any plastic film on the watch or the charger magnet and therefore did not remove any film. If there was a film on either the watch or the charger, then it's not easy to see and there's nothing that tells you to remove a film(s). I did read a post somewhere that someone was able to charge the watch after removing the film and therefore, I thought this could be the problem, but if others have been able to charge without removing any film, then that should not have been the problem in my case.
Is this a Sport model, which comes with the plastic magnetic charging puck? The film that sits on the outside of the steel magnetic charging puck (included with the SS models) has a clear tab and is pretty difficult to miss.
Yes, this is a Sport model that comes with the magnetic charging puck. If it has a clear tab, then either my wife removed it before charging, or it was never on in the first place because I looked at the puck after detaching it from the watch. This was the case with both watches in that there didn't appear to be any plastic film on the watch or charger puck. It's all very unlikely to have 2 bad watches in a row, but it does appear to be the case.
Does seem very odd that you're having this bad luck.
I would do as someone mentioned above, purchase a third Apple Watch in store and have the staff open it up and charge it in front of you.
Good luck!
I would do as someone mentioned above, purchase a third Apple Watch in store and have the staff open it up and charge it in front of you.
Good luck!
My first watch had a battery problem, second one was running so hot i couldn't wear in on my wrist. Third one arrived with a scratched case. 4th one was perfect. Apple gave me £50 to spend in the Apple store for the inconvience