Shame they dropped support for a bunch of iPads rather than giving them that performance and bug fix update. Isn’t it?
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Don't buy an Apple Watch
- Thread starter Astuces iOS
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- apple watch
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baconcat_8964
macrumors 6502
I have an series 0 bought in 2015. It stopped receiving updates and stucked at watchOS 4. I kept wearing it until 2021. No an single issue for me. Basic timing, notifications, and health tracking work all fine.
No new features for sure, but if I am going to keep up with the trend, I'll buy a new watch every year.
No new features for sure, but if I am going to keep up with the trend, I'll buy a new watch every year.
TechRunner
macrumors 68030
That's how my son-in-law felt about his. He wore it for a brief time and now it sits in a drawer while he moves about his day wearing an inexpensive digital watch.
Luftkopf
macrumors 65816
And here I am still wearing my Series 2. They're not for everyone, but they're great for those who like them. I've got it set up exactly how I want it. I get the right mix of notifications on my wrist or phone, so I'm alerted to what I want, and unimportant notifications are ignored.
I would like to upgrade though. I want the better sensors, and the always on screen.
Dex762
macrumors regular
Luftkopf
macrumors 65816
Once you get it set right, you don’t want to go back do you.
Matsamoto
macrumors 65816
Do they really get security updates after watchOS 26 is ended in September?
Is this a new thing from Apple that I have missed?
Or do you count the current watchOS 26 updates as security updates?
BigMcGuire
macrumors G4
They actually get years of security updates - usually around 2 years. So when Watch OS 28 is out they’ll still be providing security updates for 26.
Tdude96
macrumors 6502a
Honestly, I didn't have a use-case for Apple Watch when I first bought a Series 4. It was a vanity purchase to celebrate a promotion at work. After the first couple days, the excitement of "new device" wore off, and by the end of the first week I thought I'd return it at the end of the 14 day return window. In the second week it clicked: I wasn't touching my phone all the time or feeling like I had to carry my phone everywhere, because I was getting what I needed unobtrusively and right on my wrist without my phone anywhere nearby. Apple Watch is very freeing. No need to lug a phone around everywhere. Use cases have just piled up since then. It's my favorite mobile device. I'd have a really hard time giving it up.
BigMcGuire
macrumors G4
Agreed! This feeling is difficult to explain to those who have not experienced it.
I can walk outside my house without my keys, only a few things in my ridge wallet, and do everything I need. People can call me, I can access texts messages, I can start/drive my car, pay for my groceries, listen to music with my AirPods, and then open my front door with my watch - all without a phone.
I can go exercising (run 2-4 miles) and my wife can contact me if needed, I can listen to music, call 911, and open the doors/gates to my apartment complex all with my watch.
Setting verbal alarms while cooking when my hands are dirty - priceless. Being able to sleep with earplugs and have haptic alarm while allowing those I care and love to call me while I sleep (favorites list) - even more priceless (I've never slept better (light sleeper)).
My phone is being left at home more and more - doesn't help it pulls down my pants/shorts due to its size.
aliensporebomb
macrumors 68000
What is "the series 8 case"? I had my series 8 until about a month ago and it worked fine.
BigMcGuire
macrumors G4
I ran across some older threads by the OP with similar messages in the past - at least they're consistent!
Jumpthesnark
macrumors 68000
So many pearl-clutchers here who are desperate to find things to complain about. Outside of the teeny tiny sample of people that make up this forum, few notice or care.
EDIT: I had OP blocked for making ridiculous statements long ago, but now I see they've been suspended. So much for this thread.
deckard666
macrumors 65816
I regret not buying one sooner as the best tech I’ve bought in the last decade - bulletproof and perfect to buy my post ocean swim coffee every day at my local beach - my awu2 is still absolutely perfect after well over a year of constant physical use
jz0309
macrumors P6
Agree 100%. Part of it is self-inflicted by Apple for providing free OS upgrades, gone are the days where you had to shell out cash for the next OS.
And then there is this sense of entitlement that some/a lot of people have nowadays ...
I wonder how many people actually buy a tech product and expect that certain features will be added or not in the future. For me, I buy products for what they offer when I buy them, not in anticipation of unannounced features (Apple Intelligence might be an exception here)
Matsamoto
macrumors 65816
I didn’t know this.
Is this a new?
Because when I was using the first gen AW SE, Apple announced that it wouldn’t get watchOS 11, and that the current watchos 10 was the last.
And when watchOS 11 released in September I didn’t get any more security updates for my SE.
BigMcGuire
macrumors G4
I'm not an expert but fairly standard.
Series 1, 2, 3, 4 all got a security update March 24, 2026 (Watch OS 5.3.10)
Series 3 got an update June 21, 2023 (Watch OS 8.8.1). And on March 24, 2026 it got 8.8.2.
Series 4, 5, SE got Watch OS 10.6.2 on February 2, 2026.
Series 1-5 got an update February 2, 2026 Watch OS 6.3.1.
Series 4 and newer got Watch OS 9.6.4 February 2, 2026.
So theoretically it's much more than 2 years for security updates but I think that's the accepted "norm" of expected security updates. There's a lot of unsupported Apple Watches out there being used so Apple has an incentive to keep them "secure" and working.
Series 1 came out what, 2015? 11 years old and got a security update this year. And the threads here are full of people claiming Apple doesn't support things... 😛
Matsamoto
macrumors 65816
That was a lots of good info so thanks to you sir😊
And as I mentioned I didn’t know this.
So I’ve learned something new today👍
I have turned off automatic updates on all my Apple devices just because I want full freedom to update when I want or even if there is a “faulty” update.
Maybe it was because of that I didn’t received any new updates?
I don’t know if that the case.
Anyhow I haven’t used the AW SE for 2 years now because I bought a Series 8 LTE 45 mm, which I’m very happy about.
It was a really good update coming from an old SE😅
I just received a new one through Apple Care+ because of an accident, so now I have a completely new Series 8 with 100% bh.
But knowing now that my Series 8 still and hopefully gets security updates for a couple of years ahead make my mind at peace.
But I will definitely turn on automatic updates.
rosie.macEvans
macrumors newbie
If Apple releases a major upgrade with the Series 12, fair point. But buying tech based on what might come next year can leave you waiting forever.
Kon_P
macrumors newbie
II suspect that the topic starter’s aim was clickbait and nothing else.
Congrats, mate—you achieved it.
Congrats, mate—you achieved it.
S4 user here. Time, calendar, Fitness tracking and timers is all I use it for. The iOS dependency is what annoys me about these devices. You can be blocked from upgrading watchOS if you’re iPhone isn’t able to run the required iOS version. It’s basically a remote iPhone screen.
Want better battery life? Turn off wifi. The watch defaults to Bluetooth to use your iPhone connection 99% of the time and you probably have your phone within 10m of you 99% of the time you’re wearing it.
Want better battery life? Turn off wifi. The watch defaults to Bluetooth to use your iPhone connection 99% of the time and you probably have your phone within 10m of you 99% of the time you’re wearing it.
Loved my SE, then S7 (went to swim in pool, first time since I got it, died, probably bad luck), then switched to a Garmin. Different experience, less integrated but not in a bad way. Each one his own uses though.
Ever since it first debuted, the dependence that Apple Watch has on the iPhone has been the one thing that always keeps me from getting one. Admittedly, the dependence in some aspects has decreased over time, which has made the watch a little bit more attractive as it matures and occasionally tempts me to open my wallet.
There are definitely some features and functions that benefit from offloading watch data to the iPhone for more substantial and complex computation. However, I think Apple has shown that, if they wanted, they could make the Apple Watch a completely stand alone product, independent of being tethered to anything, and still able to provide a wide array of functionality.
What I would love to see, and it will be the first Apple Watch I’ll buy, is an untethered device that can perform a whole range of functions, while additional beneficial and more complex/enhanced functionality can be accessed/unlocked with the *optional* pairing of the watch to a secondary device capable of providing more computational power, like an iPhone, iPad, iPad Mini, MacBook, etc. Sadly, I doubt this will ever happen, though.
I am going to avoid the obvious pun when I compare your username and the highlighted statement...
But I agree. I only wear my Apple Watch when working out, but on a long run all the things you described are nice.