[NeonNights]

I only get cellular watches. Our Verizon plans include perks that effectively cancels out the monthly cellular cost for all three watches on our family plan (2 Apple Watch, 1 Galaxy Watch Ultra). But even with a monthly portion, I would still opt for cellular.

I love the ability to unlock my car, open/close the garage, unlock my house door, pay for things, and text and make calls, all without my phone or the phone off. I can even tell Siri to open the trunk of my car as I'm exiting Costco, without my phone. When I go for a run, or go swim laps at the local pool, I can leave my phone at home and still be reachable by text or call. For me, a non-cellular watch has too many limitations and just becomes redundant if it relies on my phone.

 

[mnewby]

I had cellular version on my last watch and not on my current. I'v noticed the battery life is better on my watch without it and there wasn't really a time I didn’t have my phone with me. I did switch off cellular on my older watch and the battery time per day increased quite a bit.

 

[AppleForeverandEver]

It is the one thing I dislike about AT&T prepaid, it you can’t put your watch on a prepaid account. But I love the $25 per month including all taxes and fees. 😃

 

[Aniseedvan]

I like the freedom of being able to go for a walk in my lunch and leave my phone behind, but still be able to listen to something like the "time to walk" series or music. Just switched to an EE plan here in the UK that includes my watch for free, plus Netflix. Slightly more expensive plan but adding up a watch plan and Netflix it came out better.

 

[MarkX]

US Mobile charges a flat $6.50 / month for cellular watch plan.

With my plan, EE in the UK it's a free add on

 

[ukms]

I like the freedom of being able to go for a walk in my lunch and leave my phone behind, but still be able to listen to something like the "time to walk" series or music. Just switched to an EE plan here in the UK that includes my watch for free, plus Netflix. Slightly more expensive plan but adding up a watch plan and Netflix it came out better.

Going off on a tangent ….. I have the same plan for my UK number with EE. Global roaming, Netflix premium and free AW ….. incredible value….. back to the topic …. Having cellular is just great peace of mind for many situations.

 

[hanser]

I have cellular and like it, since I often leave the iPhone at home. The only drawback is the higher battery draw when using cellular.

 

[GDF]

I have always had Apple cellular watches, but have never activated one for cellular lose until two months ago. So far, not sure if it is worth. There are many times when I am hiking or just out and about that it has no signal in same places my phone always does. So, to me makes no sense to pay for cellular if don’t get signals in the same areas as my phone. Will keep testing and have upgraded to the Ultra 4 this year and see if it improves.

My wife has had cellular turned on for all of her watches and experiences the same. One other thing, when getting phone calls on the cellular watch people can not always here you that great either.

 

[PatrickNSF]

I always have at least one Apple Watch with cellular. I like to run without my phone. I also find it handy to leave the phone in the car when I’m at PT or the gym. Mine comes bundled with my plan for “free” at the moment, but I’ve paid as much as $15/mo in the past and I think it’s worth it.

 

[A1423]

I find it worth it. It costs me about $60 a year and it makes things ridiculously convenient.

If I forget my phone I have my watch and AirPods. I don’t “have” to go back.

If I don’t want to bring my phone. I don’t have to.

If am not near my phone and fall, it’s still calling 911.

If I’m out to dinner, I can leave my phone on the seat. And use the rest room.

If I go for a walk, I don’t have to wear more sturdy clothing so my 17pm, and now the heavier 18pm, doesn’t weigh my pants down.

 

[doolar]

I love it. At work I can leave my personal iPhone in the office when out, just carrying my work iPhone and my Ultra as my personal device.

On the beach, out running, doing errands, basically a lot of situations where I don’t need my iPhone with me, I can still be reached via my watch.

Granted I’m not as attached to my phone as a lot of people are, I don’t take pictures of everything or use any traditional social media at all.

It was with the introduction of the Ultra that I actually could do this, mainly because the battery takes a huge hit on cellular. But with the Ultra there are a lot of headroom for a full day.

If however you always keep your phone with you att all times, then I fail to see why you’d need the cellular connection.

 

[CharlesShaw]

If however you always keep your phone with you att all times, then I fail to see why you’d need the cellular connection

As others have mentioned, someone who lives alone and/or travels alone might appreciate the peace of mind that their cellular watch could be a lifeline to calls, messages, and email if something happened to their iPhone.

Edited to add one caveat from Apple support:

• SMS/MMS Messages: Your Apple Watch can only receive SMS/MMS messages when your paired iPhone is powered on and connected to Wi-Fi or cellular.

 

[xraydoc]

I'm a cellular guy. For like $60/yr, I get some peace of mind if I forget my phone, lose it/break it, or feel like going out without it.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

I use mine when I go out exercising, it's nice to not have my phone with me. Streaming music is nice.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

Does your iphone phone number have to be with US Mobile for this to work?

I have US Mobile, and you don't.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

I'm a huge fan of cellular on the watch. I wanted it since the first Apple Watch came out.

I use it mostly for exercise (Running, cycling, hiking, etc) but also enjoy leaving my phone at home frequently. In my opinion, most people who feel like they use their phones too much don't give it up because of the desire to remain in touch. With a watch, I know that my loved ones can reach me via text or call, but I don't have to have may hone burning a hole in my pocket.

I pay too much for my cellular ($17.10/month), and would downgrade to a lower plan if T Mo would let me, but they don't and so I continue to pay for it because I find it valuable enough. If I didn't use it for being outdoors, I'm not sure if I would pay that much for it, but it is super convenient.

I remember the first time I fell in love with it, was on a week of vacation. We had a new product go live and there was a follow-up meeting scheduled for some point during the week. I was able to copy the meeting access info to my watch, and I called in from a park bench, right after my run, and then was able to carry on after the call was over.

I do feel like having cellular frees my from the need to keep my phone nearby at all times and allows me to go lower-tech more often than I would otherwise. I know I'm reachable, and that alleviates any concerns I have about not having my phone close by. I also use the sports app to keep track of several teams that I'm interested in. It's great to get the status updates on games without having to have my phone on me. so I can be present with whatever I'm doing, knowing that if anything important happens, I'll get a heads up.

Consider US Mobile when it's time for you to re-up. You can use any of the three big networks, and they are more affordable than any of them. I've had US Mobile since they started and I won't go back.

 

[dmccombs]

I have US Mobile, and you don't.

Wow, so if you have the Standalone plan, the watch will still have cellular capability even if you turn off your phone?

With watch plans that are "Sync with your phone", if the phone is turned off, or if the phone eSim is off, then the watch has no cellular connectivity.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

Wow, so if you have the Standalone plan, the watch will still have cellular capability even if you turn off your phone?

With watch plans that are "Sync with your phone", if the phone is turned off, or if the phone eSim is off, then the watch has no cellular connectivity.

That is what it sounds like.

 

[Howard2k]

Wow, so if you have the Standalone plan, the watch will still have cellular capability even if you turn off your phone?

With watch plans that are "Sync with your phone", if the phone is turned off, or if the phone eSim is off, then the watch has no cellular connectivity.

I think it depends on the carrier. I lost my phone, it powered down pretty quickly. I lost SMS when the phone powered off but I could still make calls using the watch and receive iMessages.

 

[ayephoner]

I've never found it worthwhile. I could barely justify the purchase of an apple watch, let alone the additional cost of the cellular version and a plan on top of that. I just don't see the use case at all for my own personal use. This seems like a very personal need.

 

[mk313]

Consider US Mobile when it's time for you to re-up. You can use any of the three big networks, and they are more affordable than any of them. I've had US Mobile since they started and I won't go back.

I looked at them & while they offer good prices for single lines, when you get into multiple lines, their cost advantage goes away. They actually cost more than I'm paying at T Mo (total bill, obviously not on the watch itself).

 

[dmccombs]

I have US Mobile, and you don't.

I looked at the plans closer and the Standalone Plan says you'd use a seperate Apple ID. If we do this, we wouldn't get texts or calls from your main number.

The companion plan seems to work the same as the T-moble watch plans. It sounds like if you main phone is off or the eSIM is off, that the watch would lose cell connection.

I don't know if any of this is true. IF I get bored one day and want to text the US mobile support for an hour, I'll know. I know my use case is uncommon. I am one of the new iPhone Handoff users though.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

I looked at the plans closer and the Standalone Plan says you'd use a seperate Apple ID. If we do this, we wouldn't get texts or calls from your main number.

The companion plan seems to work the same as the T-moble watch plans. It sounds like if you main phone is off or the eSIM is off, that the watch would lose cell connection.

I don't know if any of this is true. IF I get bored one day and want to text the US mobile support for an hour, I'll know. I know my use case is uncommon. I am one of the new iPhone Handoff users though.

Ah interesting. If you do, let us know. Their chat support is very responsive and usually respond within minutes.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Wow, so if you have the Standalone plan, the watch will still have cellular capability even if you turn off your phone?

With watch plans that are "Sync with your phone", if the phone is turned off, or if the phone eSim is off, then the watch has no cellular connectivity.

Yes, but it'll have a different phone number. This is basically a "Family Plan" Apple Watch

 

[xxFoxtail]

I have a Visible+ Legacy plan so I have free smartwatch service. I didn’t use it as much as I would have liked to, but liked that it was there in case something happened to my iPhone.