Theoretically, can I own ONLY an Apple Watch and a MacBook Pro to use OmniFocus?

You still need an iPhone with Watch OS 2

 

Still need an iPhone to set up the watch and install apps.

 

And get notifications... Emails... Phone calls... Or anything else. He might be able to check the time once in awhile without an iPhone I think.

In all seriousness though OP, you need an iPhone. watchOS 2 improved on original wifi connection features for phone calls and messages. But you still need to have the iPhone on the wifi network. It just means it doesn't need to be in your pocket all of the time.

 

Thought I'd give the "no phone" and OF scenario a go. So phone on airplane, create a task in OF on my mac & sync.
It's not appearing on the watch, same applies if I create a task on the watch. No updates happen until I turn the phone back on even though the watch was on wifi. Pity, but WOS2 limitation rather than the OF app (which I still think is the best natively running app so far).

 

Actually, that would work. From reading your OP, I thought you wanted to use the Watch without having any iPhone at all, and I'm sure many of the other posters thought the same thing. But if you are talking about leaving your iPhone at home and having only your watch at work, then that should be doable, provided you take the iPhone to work at least once so the watch can connect to the work network.

 

Are you sure about that? I just assumed the iPhone and watch had to be on the same network at the same time to get calls and messages. But I could be wrong.

 

No, they only have to connect together to the network once. After the first time, the watch remembers the network and connects to it even without the iPhone.

What the watch can do when it is connected to a network on its own, I'm not sure, because I haven't really tried it myself. But I do know it can connect to a known network without the iPhone.

 

Here is link to what work without iPhone but able to connected to previous connected wifi, which include Siri, receive/send message, receive/send phone call, and receive/send digital touch. Lots of thing could be done with Siri, like set reminder, set alarm,.....etc.
https://support.apple.com/kb/PH20767?locale=en_US

 

Wow. I've had the watch since release day and I had no idea. I never go anywhere without my phone anyway but even so. That's awesome. Good to know.

 

They have to be on the same network for calls, but not for SMS forwarding.

 

I beta tested

I beta tested this - unintentionally - when I left my phone at my studio last night and didn't feel like driving back to retrieve it. (Am on my iPad.).

My Watch immediately connected to my home network, having, as noted, already connected to it before. (Jolly green cloud symbol.) I continue to get messages and Calendar updates, set alarms, and get my Stand reminders.

But I can't use Clear (my simple substitute for OmniFocus), or get current information on AccuWeather or MLB AtBat, as those apps just show the red phone disconnect signal.

I can play my Watch Music playlist, of course, through Bluetooth headphones.