Apple Watch Series 3 LTE Problems News: Apple Admits LTE Issues Following Unreliability Reviews
Apple's first attempt at an LTE-enabled smartwatch started off with a major problem – its connectivity features were unreliable and Apple recognized the issue just before the product came out in the market.
The Apple Watch Series 3 is now available in Apple Stores worldwide. The third-generation smartwatch is undeniably the company's most advanced yet as they have finally incorporated an LTE chip to it that will permit real untethered use.
However, its market debut was not as seamless as Apple wanted. Early product reviews revealed that the LTE-enabled variant of Apple Watch Series 3 showed some connectivity unreliability issues.
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In a comprehensive review of the smartwatch, The Verge declared that the LTE variant of the Apple Watch Series 3 has "failed at the LTE part."
According to the review written by Lauren Goode of The Verge, right at the first full day of using her new Apple Watch paired to an iPhone 8 and subscribed to an AT&T wireless plan, she could already tell that the LTE connectivity feature was not working as it should.
To put the device's independent LTE features to test, she set the iPhone 8 on Airplane mode and tried to do a number of tasks on the Apple Watch - such as using Siri to make phone calls and sending text messages - but was unsuccessful.
Even when Apple replaced Goode's Apple Watch, there were still times when tasks that would require network connections would not work. The review also stated that the replacement unit was showing some problems such as picking up on weak WiFi signals instead of using LTE connection.
Another review written by Joanna Stern on The Wall Street Journal discussed experiencing LTE connectivity issues at length. It was also mentioned that the preproduction smartwatches they were testing showed poor battery performances.
Within a week, they noticed that the battery life would not go beyond a half day when the device was consistently connected via LTE.
Shortly after these reviews came out, Apple provided a statement admitting there were LTE connectivity issues found on the new Apple Watch.
Apple said at the time: "We have discovered that when Apple Watch Series 3 joins unauthenticated Wi-Fi networks without connectivity, it may at times prevent the watch from using cellular. We are investigating a fix for a future software release."
Meanwhile, some people who have already received their Apple Watch Series 3 have taken to observing the device for any LTE-related issues, and so far, they have found none. This means Apple may have already found a way to fix the said problem.
