I have a series 5 stainless cellular and the battery is at 71% capacity. Apple offers replacement for $100 but I think this model is about to go obsolete really soon. Is it worth having the battery replaced still or should I be looking at a new model?
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Series 5 Stainless Cellular - Worth Battery Replacement?
- Thread starter Soybomb
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bricktop_at
macrumors 68000
I personally wouldn’t do it as the S5 is out of support already…
I use it for the time, viewing notifications, and payments. Does out of support mean anything for those uses? I know I'm missing out on gestures and oxygen and probably related apps but doesn't seem like there's any new functionality I need if what I use keeps going.
bricktop_at
macrumors 68000
Out of support means in the case of the S5 that you don’t get any new major watchOS versions higher than 10.x anymore (current version is 11.x)
Obsolete in comparison means you won’t even get repairs
You can still use it for payments and other stuff… but investing in a battery change isn’t worth it if you ask me. You‘d still have a watch that‘s out of support
Obsolete in comparison means you won’t even get repairs
You can still use it for payments and other stuff… but investing in a battery change isn’t worth it if you ask me. You‘d still have a watch that‘s out of support
russell_314
Suspended
Does it bother you not to have the latest and greatest? Oxygen sensor was mentioned, but new Apple watches don’t have that anymore. I would look up the new features and see if any of that interests you. The one I can think of offhand is crash detection.
Does saving money interest you? How important is that? If not, just buy a new one because you’ll have new features. If saving money is important and Apple will “replace the battery“ on your S5 that I would do that. I put replace the battery in quotes because they’re just going to give you a new watch. Apple isn’t going to spend the time to pull your watch apart and put a new battery in there by hand.
jz0309
macrumors P6
if that is all you're using it for, for the $100 you'll get a refurb with new battery, should last you 2-3 years. And, if sapphire glass is important, you'll get that.
Having said that, if Sapphire glass is not important to you, there are good deals for the 10 available all the time on Amazon etc, might be worth checking out.
While you don't get any more OS updates for the 5, it is still "supported" as Apple will give you the refurb.
Not sure if people are still reading this thread, but wanted to update you all in June 2025. I had an Apple Watch Hermès Space Black Series 5, with battery health 77%. I sent it in for repair last week at the store, and got back an Hermès Series 6! Definitely worth the $99, now that my watch can receive updates with watchOS 11 and later this year 26...
Too bad the blood oxygen app is disabled here in California, can't win them all 🙂
Too bad the blood oxygen app is disabled here in California, can't win them all 🙂
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CharlesShaw
macrumors 68030
That's lucky, but also seems fair to me, considering the cost, and both models are the same screen size.
In year two, my SS Series 3 with AC+ needed battery repair, so sent it in, but got back a Series 4 (bigger screen) and no cost. It felt like such an upgrade to me that I kept expecting them to contact me about a mistake, LOL.
1rottenapple
macrumors 603
Well there’s your answer. If you don’t see a sense dropped 700 on a new model I don’t think you’re missing a whole lot. Frankly I have notifications off on my watch so it’s hard to justify upgrading my 3 yr old ultra. I hate notifications. It’s basically a workout tracker, step tracker… ring tracker. frankly I’m looking for a screen less band. Less screens in my life.
