Watch face fell off. How can I get by till new models arrive?

[wlow3]

Today I was lying on the couch and I happen to rotate my wrist and then I felt a plop on my leg. My Apple Watch (series 0 sport) face had fallen off (it’s still connected by wiring, still works otherwise).

My dilemma: I bought it in May 2015 so it's over 3 years old. I think it has a swollen battery. The battery feels cushiony on top and the face does sit correctly without pushing it down slightly. Because it’s older than 3 years, even if the cause is a swollen battery, Apple will still charge me $79 (otherwise it’s $199). I plan to buy the next generation watch so it seems dumb to put $79 into a watch I’m only going to have for another 5 weeks.

Can I limp along with this safely for another 5 weeks? I intend to keep it completely away from water naturally. Is the battery unsafe to charge now? Can i just tape it closed for the time being? Not sure about gluing it myself.

What would you recommend I do to safely keep the watch going for 1 more month or so till the new models are announced? Thanks.

 

[MBAir2010]

just wear long sleeves, no one will notice

 

[CobraPA]

Apple had a repair program for swollen batteries on the original Apple Watch. Call in and see what they say. It doesn't cost $79, but you will have to wait while you send it in and they check it out. I think they are all out of original watch replacements, when I sent my wife's watch in, they returned a Series 1.

 

[ftaok]

I would probably go for the $79 replacement. Then when the series 4 comes out, get that too. The old watch can be used as a sleep tracker or sold. Probably get more than $79too.

Also, if it truly is a swollen battery, I would absolutely not charge it. I wouldn't use it either.

EDIT for typo

 

[Freakonomics101]

Apple had a repair program for swollen batteries on the original Apple Watch. Call in and see what they say. It doesn't cost $79, but you will have to wait while you send it in and they check it out. I think they are all out of original watch replacements, when I sent my wife's watch in, they returned a Series 1.

I definitely second this. Why not have a backup that may very well end up being a series 1?

 

[44267547]

Apple had a repair program for swollen batteries on the original Apple Watch. Call in and see what they say. It doesn't cost $79, but you will have to wait while you send it in and they check it out. I think they are all out of original watch replacements, when I sent my wife's watch in, they returned a Series 1.

No, they are not. Apple is still in fact issuing first GEN replacement watches. Here are two recent examples of posts from other members in a different thread who just received original Apple Watch replacements.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/newer-model-via-out-of-warranty-repair.2122243/#post-26315677

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/newer-model-via-out-of-warranty-repair.2122243/#post-26314885

 

[CobraPA]

Well, that's interesting. I wonder where the old stock came from...

 

[bruinsrme]

One day at a time

 

[JPack]

Well, that's interesting. I wonder where the old stock came from...

Apple refurbishes their products. Refurbished products use salvaged parts.

 

[Ric WRX]

They would not replace mine. My watch face fell off a couple of weeks, first gen. I called and Apple wanted $279 to fix it. I was on the phone for one hour while we shut it down, they acted like there would be no charge. They sent me an email telling me about the charge. I called back and spoke to supv with no avail. I paid a lot for the watch, stainless 42mm.

 

[jekim]

I find it odd that people are being told they have to pay. I guess it depends on who you get. I submitted a support request over chat a few weeks ago. I told the agent my screen was hanging off and if I looked at the battery it was bulging. The agent asked me a few questions like did I drop it, did I leave it in extreme temps in a car and if I submerged it for any period of time. I answered no to all 3 and he told me that they would send me a box and send me a replacement for no charge. The watch was bought open box at Best Buy in October 2016 so maybe that’s why it was free...because I’ve owned it less than 2 years.

 

[44267547]

Apple refurbishes their products. Refurbished products use salvaged parts.

Thats not always true. The casing is likely used from the previous owner due to soldered components, but the display and battery very could be new, in which case others have had new displays/batteries installed on their replacement Watches.

 

[JonnyIreland]

Exact same thing happened to me last night... out for dinner and I tap my watch face to check the time, “hmm that felt loose”.. screen is completely detached and battery seems swollen in middle.
I call Apple and same as you, they didn’t mention a charge once, just confirmed my address so they could send out a return box to me... as soon as the call is over, I get an email asking for CA$372.64!

After 90 more minutes on Apple Live Chat, they told me the cost is incorrect and that it’s “only” CA$124 (battery replacement).

They claim the cause of my screen falling off is natural battery degradation, which is bs in my opinion. Should I be expecting my iPad to fall apart any day now because of the battery? My MacBook maybe? They cannot claim natural wear and tear for the Watch falling apart, regardless of warranty periods. It’s a CA$929 watch, a lifespan of 3 years was never alluded to when they were selling it, rather it was sold as a quality timepiece. What a crock.

Anyway I have set up a call with Apple this morning, let’s see how that goes.

 

[LoveToMacRumors]

Exact same thing happened to me last night... out for dinner and I tap my watch face to check the time, “hmm that felt loose”.. screen is completely detached and battery seems swollen in middle.
I call Apple and same as you, they didn’t mention a charge once, just confirmed my address so they could send out a return box to me... as soon as the call is over, I get an email asking for CA$372.64!

After 90 more minutes on Apple Live Chat, they told me the cost is incorrect and that it’s “only” CA$124 (battery replacement).

They claim the cause of my screen falling off is natural battery degradation, which is bs in my opinion. Should I be expecting my iPad to fall apart any day now because of the battery? My MacBook maybe? They cannot claim natural wear and tear for the Watch falling apart, regardless of warranty periods. It’s a CA$929 watch, a lifespan of 3 years was never alluded to when they were selling it, rather it was sold as a quality timepiece. What a crock.

Anyway I have set up a call with Apple this morning, let’s see how that goes.

Set up a phone call, apple support are often cocky during chat. When they hear your voice, they are less full-of-themselves.

 

[JonnyIreland]

Set up a phone call, apple support are often cocky during chat. When they hear your voice, they are less full-of-themselves.

Well I just had the call, he was quite rude and wouldn’t budge. He kept “moving the goalposts” imo, although he accused me of “verbal gymnastics” -the reason?
-First he insisted that 3 years was more than an adequate life expectancy for a battery, so I countered with “so, should I expect that my MacBook and iPad will fall apart soon and it’s okay?”
-I told him regardless of battery lifespan, the watch should not fall apart and the screen should not be popping off
-He again insisted that 3 years is expected for a “gadget”, at which point I reminded him that it was marketed as an upscale, contemporary timepiece.. he countered that 3 years was very long for a watch battery. I told him that the ****** G-Shock that I now have to wear had been going strong for 8 years on the same battery. So then he flipped again and said he was referring to smart watches, not regular watches. It was at that point that he accused me of the wordplay.

Result: they still want $124 to replace the battery. I said that I want the screen fixed as it shouldn’t be popping off, but he insisted that the battery would need to be replaced.

Looks like I’ll be doing this myself with a pry tool, YouTube and a $20 battery off eBay.

 

[ftaok]

Well I just had the call, he was quite rude and wouldn’t budge. He kept “moving the goalposts” imo, although he accused me of “verbal gymnastics” -the reason?
-First he insisted that 3 years was more than an adequate life expectancy for a battery, so I countered with “so, should I expect that my MacBook and iPad will fall apart soon and it’s okay?”
-I told him regardless of battery lifespan, the watch should not fall apart and the screen should not be popping off
-He again insisted that 3 years is expected for a “gadget”, at which point I reminded him that it was marketed as an upscale, contemporary timepiece.. he countered that 3 years was very long for a watch battery. I told him that the ****** G-Shock that I now have to wear had been going strong for 8 years on the same battery. So then he flipped again and said he was referring to smart watches, not regular watches. It was at that point that he accused me of the wordplay.

Result: they still want $124 to replace the battery. I said that I want the screen fixed as it shouldn’t be popping off, but he insisted that the battery would need to be replaced.

Looks like I’ll be doing this myself with a pry tool, YouTube and a $20 battery off eBay.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that with the battery replacement, you will end up with a new/refurbished watch. So while the screen won't be repaired, it's irrelevant because you'll end up with a new/refurbed watch altogether.

I do agree that a degrading battery should not push the screen off. That's a symptom of an expanding battery. At this point, I'd just pay the $124 to get a whole new AW.

Also, I'd advise against replacing the battery yourself. Sure, it's $20, but you could run into loads of problems. The battery could be total garbage crap from China (as opposed to good batteries from China). Also, you'd probably end up with compromised water resistance.

 

[JonnyIreland]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that with the battery replacement, you will end up with a new/refurbished watch. So while the screen won't be repaired, it's irrelevant because you'll end up with a new/refurbed watch altogether.

I do agree that a degrading battery should not push the screen off. That's a symptom of an expanding battery. At this point, I'd just pay the $124 to get a whole new AW.

Also, I'd advise against replacing the battery yourself. Sure, it's $20, but you could run into loads of problems. The battery could be total garbage crap from China (as opposed to good batteries from China). Also, you'd probably end up with compromised water resistance.

While I agree with everything you say, it also backs up my point that an expanding battery is not normal, whereas the Apple manager insisted that this IS normal!! Absolute joke. Therefore my point is that I shouldn’t have to pay for any repair or replacement parts. I would feel that a replacement battery charge is justified if my battery had been showing any previous signs of degradation -however, it was performing and charging very strongly, as good as new in fact. I just don’t feel like giving them any of my money at the moment as a point of principle.

 

[ftaok]

While I agree with everything you say, it also backs up my point that an expanding battery is not normal, whereas the Apple manager insisted that this IS normal!! Absolute joke. Therefore my point is that I shouldn’t have to pay for any repair or replacement parts. I would feel that a replacement battery charge is justified if my battery had been showing any previous signs of degradation -however, it was performing and charging very strongly, as good as new in fact. I just don’t feel like giving them any of my money at the moment as a point of principle.

I understand your point. But what recourse do you have? You've already gotten the cost down from $370 to $124. Not sure if there's much more you can do. Maybe if you have a copy of all your correspondence with Apple, you could escalate this to the next level up and see if they side with you.

Ultimately, the pragmatic thing to do is pay the $124 and end up with a newish AW. Or you could leave it in a drawer somewhere until they issue a recall. Or maybe nothing ever happens it just sits there forever.

At least if they do a recall at some future point, they'll probably refund your $124. But I guess the next step would be to escalate up the support chain until you get satisfaction. Might end up getting all the way to Tim Cook.

 

[iFan83]

Exact same thing happened to me last night... out for dinner and I tap my watch face to check the time, “hmm that felt loose”.. screen is completely detached and battery seems swollen in middle.
I call Apple and same as you, they didn’t mention a charge once, just confirmed my address so they could send out a return box to me... as soon as the call is over, I get an email asking for CA$372.64!

After 90 more minutes on Apple Live Chat, they told me the cost is incorrect and that it’s “only” CA$124 (battery replacement).

They claim the cause of my screen falling off is natural battery degradation, which is bs in my opinion. Should I be expecting my iPad to fall apart any day now because of the battery? My MacBook maybe? They cannot claim natural wear and tear for the Watch falling apart, regardless of warranty periods. It’s a CA$929 watch, a lifespan of 3 years was never alluded to when they were selling it, rather it was sold as a quality timepiece. What a crock.

Anyway I have set up a call with Apple this morning, let’s see how that goes.

If your screen is falling off as you said, then I do think Apple should fix that as that's more of a default of the design. But whenever your buying tech it has a short lifespan as tech is improving at such a fast rate, Apple Watch is basically a 2-year lifespan tech, especially in these earlier years. So if you're going to dump a $1000 on a smartwatch you better be ok knowing up front that in 2 years time you could be throwing it away.

 

[44267547]

Looks like I’ll be doing this myself with a pry tool, YouTube and a $20 battery off eBay.

Sounds like you were a bit defensive with the Apple specialist, and I’m not saying that they weren’t rude to you and I can understand you’re disgruntled over the repair costs, but just remember that you get much farther with people when they can be cordial with each other.

I always find it much easier process to have Apple inspect something in store versus talking to somebody on the phone. Because the specialist on the phone can’t physically see the product, they only go off based off what you’re telling them and they quote you prices, protocols, ect. The Experience is much different in store if you have one near you.

For the record, I would be highly hesitant of trying to repair the watch yourself and using a $20 battery off eBay. Those batteries I would not trust and certainly not attempt to repair the watch yourself, which may only further cause issues for you.

 

[Ric WRX]

I wasn’t rude to Apple when I spoke with them, they still wanted $279. I have an iPad Air that I purchased in 2010, I am using it right now. I ended up glueing my face back on, working fine.

 

[OllyW]

For the record, I would be highly hesitant of trying to repair the watch yourself and using a $20 battery off eBay

Yeah, you wouldn’t want a cheap battery to swell up and cause the screen to pop off.

 

[44267547]

Yeah, you wouldn’t want a cheap battery to swell up and cause the screen to pop off.

The major difference being Apple warranties Repair services with their ‘OEM’ parts, where as a third-party eBay part, substantially has less credibility and certainly could cause further issues (I.e Voiding) if the repair wouldn’t go accordingly if the OP chooses that route.

 

[OllyW]

The major difference being Apple warranties Repair services with their ‘OEM’ parts, where as a third-party eBay part, substantially has less credibility and certainly could cause further issues (I.e Voiding) if the repair wouldn’t go accordingly if the OP chooses that route.

It’s three years old, isn’t going to get any more OS upgrades and is almost worthless on the second hand market. I’d have a go at repairing it myself and put the money I’d saved towards one of the new models which are expected to be released next month.

 

[silverblack]

Same here. Screen poped due to swollen battery, verified by Apple. They insisted on charging me the cost of replacing the battery. But they did give me a new watch after. It was a stainless steel model, gen 0.