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Hunter5117

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 17, 2010
569
401
I recently purchased a 2nd cellular Apple Watch and I guess I was a bit surprised that I am not able to have both synced to the same iPhone, that is, both of them act as an extension to the iPhone phone number. From talking with both my phone company as well as with Apple it seems that this is a limitation of the watch/phone rather than the cellular network. I had to set the 2nd watch up as a standalone ie basically another phone. Anybody else comment on how this has worked out for them?
 
Are you expecting both watches to share a single plan that would switch when you switch watches or do you expect each watch to have their own plan?
 
I had a 3LTE and a 4LTE synced to the same phone for a couple of years with no problem. Did have to pay AT&T $10 additional each month. Finally dropped both LTE plans last month, realizing that I almost never was without my phone when wearing either watch.
 
Yeah, it may depend on the carrier. I googled a little and from what I found AT&T (who is my carrier) will let you have up to 5 watches tied to the same number. But you do need the $10 plan for each watch. I’ve never tried it though as I just use one watch.
 
I had two with Verizon on the same phone a couple years ago. Each watch had a unique phone number but I could send/receive texts coming from my main iPhone phone number. Only got rid of it because it was an extraordinary pain moving one of the lines to a new watch the first time, the second time I gave up and cancelled one of them not wanting to spend hours on the phone with Verizon/Apple help desks.
 
Those of you who had 2 or more watches synced to the same phone. Did the syncing work when you left your phone at home and were only wearing one of the watches? My understanding from both Apple and T-Mobile is that this does not work, only one phone can be set up to keep synced when 100% remote. Otherwise, yes this works but only when the phone and watch can sync via bluetooth or wifi.
 
Are you expecting both watches to share a single plan that would switch when you switch watches or do you expect each watch to have their own plan?

Yes, that is what I am meaning. I know that multiple watches can sync via bluetooth or wifi but it is the remote syncing via the phone cellular number that I am looking for. Both Apple and T-Mobile tell me this can not be done, and in fact is the reason that Apple at some point added the capability to set up a watch as a stand-alone device, basically making it a phone of sorts.
 
Ok, I am about to try something even deeper.

My case: I am an Android user (me Note20 ultra, my wife Note10+)

I've bought an Iphone 6s and 2 apple watches SE (GPS/LTE- 44mm and 40mm)

I've put my wife phone sim card to set up a cellular plan for her watch, and have syncing her most used apps, and then put the phone on airplane mode. Alredy test and her watch sync perfectly 👌
The phone is set up under one apple ID and the health data with her personal apple ID . (That we've created just to use with the watch)

Whats working: phone call , mail (gmail) , Gmail task, whatsapp (with WatchChat), Apple music, podcast, find my phone (with her name). For her the most important it's the Gmail taks that she uses a lot.

Remember: the phone its on airplane mode now.

What's not working: imessage and text message (not a deal break to us)

Tomorrow my watch arrives and I will setup intonthe same iPhone, but now with my Sim card. (I will turn off her phone just in case or wait her get out of the house, to not let the phone sync with her watch through my sim card)

If interested you all, I will update tomorrow or Monday after testing what is work, and what isn't.

For me the most important it's the fitness aspect of the watch (I am a personal trainer)

I will use a different calendar app to sync my sessions and use WorkOutDoors app to track my trainings.

I believe that may work because we use diferent apps and our job are totally different. Lets see.

I am experimenting, and of course if doesn't work I will buy another Iphone to keep the watches separated.

Ps.: the iPhone 6s I've bought for $100 Canadian * with box, charge, no scratch at all)

And I am looking into a Iphone SE for around $80-90 bucks same contidion if my set doesn't wok. 🤷‍♂️🤞
Why I am doing this?

I've used Google and Samsung watches and I just don't like them. The apple watch it's much more reliable (in my opinion)

To be conitnue....
 
@Rafaelmissoes It sounds like kind of an interesting experiment, but I think what matters more than the SIM card is the Apple ID that the phone is logged in with. You really need to switch Apple ID’s on the phone, but I think that’s going to wind up breaking the sync with your wife’s watch.

One possible option would be to completely wipe the phone, put in your SIM and then set up the phone with your Apple ID and watch. I have no idea what would happen with your wife’s watch when the phone associated with it is wiped though. There would also be issues if there was something that she needed to connect her watch to the phone for, since it would be orphaned at that point. Even if you restored the phone from a backup when it was set up with her Apple ID you would need to wipe the watch and re-pair it with the phone.

I think a better option would be to look into the new family sharing option for watches...


This is designed to allow your phone to set up a watch for a family member who doesn’t have an iPhone. I think there may be some limitations, so you might need to look into exactly what will and will not work, but I feel like this is an actual supported solution for your exact situation whereas you are trying to cobble something together that may sort of work, but is definitely not supported and likely to be fraught with weird unexpected issues.

Good luck though, and let us know how things go.
 
Ok, I've waiting couple days to make a truly review of this crazy experiment.

First of all , I dont like the apple IOS and I am happy with Android. The compatibility it is way better *for me* , BUT, the apple watch it's a whole new level. Wow!

I tried with one iphone, works really goos actually, but them I realized if the watch was paired with a different apple ID on a different iphone will be much better, and I could take advantage of the walkie-talkie and the imessage.

My wife works in the office just dont care about fitness, and I am a personal trainer and my life it is around fitness, so I thought that will be no issue, them I realized my wife start to get interested on the info that rmthe watch brings. (My she was not interested before because google watch or even tizenos sucks- again my perosnal opinion, I have had both)

With two phone I will fix that, and take advantage of on important feature, the Emergency profile.

What I did? I both another Iphone for $90 bucks (iphone 7) broke screen but 100% functional. We starting use today.

The key point here is: if we look carefully and download the app that can stantalone and brind you notification, I am not even need the iphone on all the time.

Taking in consideration that the galaxy watch 3 doesn't have a lte version in Canadá (at least I didn't finded)

The price of the Apple Watch was much better because brings LTE (and much more of course)

The only extra was $190 Canadian for 2 iphones, that isn't the ideal but we definitely are enjoying the apple watch.
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Ok, I've waiting couple days to make a truly review of this crazy experiment.

First of all , I dont like the apple IOS and I am happy with Android. The compatibility it is way better *for me* , BUT, the apple watch it's a whole new level. Wow!

I tried with one iphone, works really goos actually, but them I realized if the watch was paired with a different apple ID on a different iphone will be much better, and I could take advantage of the walkie-talkie and the imessage.

My wife works in the office just dont care about fitness, and I am a personal trainer and my life it is around fitness, so I thought that will be no issue, them I realized my wife start to get interested on the info that rmthe watch brings. (My she was not interested before because google watch or even tizenos sucks- again my perosnal opinion, I have had both)

With two phone I will fix that, and take advantage of on important feature, the Emergency profile.

What I did? I both another Iphone for $90 bucks (iphone 7) broke screen but 100% functional. We starting use today.

The key point here is: if we look carefully and download the app that can stantalone and brind you notification, I am not even need the iphone on all the time.

Taking in consideration that the galaxy watch 3 doesn't have a lte version in Canadá (at least I didn't finded)

The price of the Apple Watch was much better because brings LTE (and much more of course)

The only extra was $190 Canadian for 2 iphones, that isn't the ideal but we definitely are enjoying the apple watch.
 
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