When Apple developed its watch, it planned to create not an independent device, but an accessory that would complement the iPhone smartphone. Therefore, immediately after purchasing a watch, the first thing the user does is connect it to the iPhone using a special application via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. However, Apple Watch can perform several useful functions without a smartphone.

Regular electronic watch

In order to inform its owner about the time, the watch does not need to be connected to the iPhone. The watch has the World Clock application, with which you can find out the time in any city in the world. And also, there is a stopwatch, a timer and, of course, an alarm clock.

Regular smart bracelet

Also, without a smartphone, Apple Watch can “monitor” your activity: how long you stand, walk, run, and other physical exercises. The activity circle is located next to the time, which will allow you to quickly go through the statistics. Later, all the information can be easily sent to the iPhone. By the way, it will be noted that every Monday Apple Watch will notify you about the achievements of the past week, which makes it possible to see your achievements.

You will be able to manage your own workouts, set specific goals, and view results without a connected iPhone. Tests have shown that this watch is considered a real replacement for a fitness tracker.

Audio player

You can listen to music through Bluetooth headphones, but first you need to download them from your iPhone. If you want to download music to the Apple Watch, you can do this through a special application on the iPhone.

Photo album

You can do the same thing with photos as you can with music. Using the program, synchronize your photo album and view photos without connecting to your smartphone. By default, the watch will sync photos that are marked as favorites on your Apple Watch, but this setting can be changed. You can look at photos by scrolling through the photos with your finger left and right, and enlarging them using the Digital Crown.

To begin with, it’s worth noting that Apple Watch cannot be fully autonomous without an iPhone, because even to get started and add Wi-Fi to the watch, you will need at least an iPhone 5.

What can you do with Apple Watch without connecting to your iPhone?

Initially, the Apple Watch was not conceived as an independent device, but only as an addition to the phone. However, there are several functions that the watch can perform on its own.

• It is possible to view the time, set alarm settings, or turn on a stopwatch or timer.
• Track and record all your daily activities: steps, exercises, etc. You can place the activity ring next to your watch for easy access.
• The recorded data is synchronized with the Health application on your phone.
• Record your favorite songs on your watch using your phone. After that, you can listen to them through Bluetooth headphones.
• View your favorite photos uploaded via your phone.
• Pay for purchases in hours (Apple Pay feature).
• Connect to a Wi-Fi network. But only to those connected on your phone.

Options for using Apple Watch without an iPhone

There are two cases of using Apple Watch without pairing with iPhone:

• with Internet connection;

If Wi-Fi is available

Using a smartwatch, it is possible to control Apple TV and other smart technology in the home, but first you will need to set up a connection between the devices. Also possible:

• banal conversations with Siri;
• by type of queries about the weather, a popular Wikipedia article, the score of a football match.

But don’t forget about stand-alone applications with Wi-Fi support (Instagram, Twitter, etc.). In addition, now all applications in the AppStore are adapted for WatchOS 2 SDK and can work without being tied to a smartphone.

Without internet access

Apple Watch Series will be able to perform its direct function as a smartwatch without access to the Internet, namely:

1. View the time and use a timer, alarm, or stopwatch.
2. Track your activity, heart rate, breathing and your goals with built-in apps.
3. Set reminders and events on the calendar.
4. Play music from a synchronized playlist (up to 2 GB of third-party files).
5. The situation is similar with viewing photos, you just have to save them to the Photos application on the iPhone, and then to the watch.
6. Make payments using Apple Pay.

Time display

The Apple Watch is, first and foremost, a watch, so its main function is to display the time. Without your iPhone at hand, you can customize and edit your watch face and use your calendar. On the Magnetic Charging Dock, the device becomes a real electronic watch with an alarm function.

Play audio recordings and view photos

The memory capacity for music is 2 GB, and for photos – 75 MB. Although the built-in memory capacity is as much as 8 GB.

In any case, listening to tracks and viewing photo galleries without a smartphone is possible. To enjoy music using a smartwatch, you will need either wireless AirPods or any headset equipped with Bluetooth.

Smart watches from Apple are not a completely independent device. They only work in conjunction with an iPhone. All watch apps are companion apps to those for the iPhone. In addition, for full operation, the watch requires the Internet, a voice assistant, as well as other smartphone capabilities. Therefore, if you do not have an Apple smartphone, then there is no point in buying a smart watch. This does not mean that a watch without a smartphone is just a beautiful and stylish accessory. They can also be used as a stand-alone device, but in certain cases. The main function of any watch is to show accurate time. Apple Watch is no exception. They display absolutely accurate time and can do it without an iPhone. Moreover, the wearable device has a power-saving function, which is specifically designed to operate the watch in accurate time display mode. In this mode, the watch can work for as long as 72 hours. A stopwatch, timer and alarm will also work. In addition, you will have access to the calendar and you will be able to plan events. The only thing the watch cannot do without a smartphone is the ability to check the time on the Internet.

Without a smartphone, the Apple Watch can play music. You can also view photos. This is possible because the watch has a built-in memory, which allows you to save music and pictures. Thus, the watch will allow you to listen to your favorite music on headphones while playing sports (music is broadcast via Bluetooth), and after training you will be able to show your friends photos from your vacation. If you don't take your iPhone with you to training, the sports capabilities of the watch are significantly reduced. Without a smartphone, the watch will not be able to determine the distance you have traveled, but a pedometer will be available to you. The smartwatch will also be able to count squats, measure heart rate, count flights of stairs climbed and calories burned. By the way, after renewing the “pair” with your smartphone, all this information will be transferred to your smartphone in a special “Health” program.

Apple Watch has another important ability without an iPhone: you can use the Apple Pay payment system and the Passbook application. This means that you can pay for an order in a cafe or make purchases in a supermarket using Apple Pay and a smart watch, without having a smartphone with you. True, this can only be done in Canada and the United States of America. All tickets, coupons, gift cards and coupons in Passbook will also be fully accessible without an iPhone.

Thus, Apple smartwatches are capable of a lot without an iPhone. Without a smartphone, a wearable device remains not only a stylish accessory, but a useful and functional device.

The built-in LTE modem, that is, the ability to communicate autonomously in LTE networks, without WiFi and even without connecting to an iPhone - this, as you know, is one of the most important features of the new Apple Watch 3. And, as practice has shown, one of the most sophisticated, if not say capricious.

Of course, full-fledged phone calls through a smart watch, due to the specifics of the device itself, are initially a dubious idea. Therefore, about this another time.

Now let’s try to talk about some of the features of the new smartwatch with text messages. From these features, it seemed to us, it is very clear why the Apple Watch 3 is not yet .

Let’s say right away that if you (like us at first) haven’t really figured out what and in what communication mode your Apple Watch 3 can or can’t do, and immediately try to use it as another iPhone, then a lot of interesting discoveries await you . And even more questions. Because it’s impossible to get used to the fact that the Apple Watch 3 works differently in different situations.

The fact is that your Apple Watch 3 simply cannot live without an iPhone. It doesn’t matter whether the smartphone is in the immediate vicinity, or whether it remains in another city, the watch really wants to know that it is somewhere, and it is desirable that it be turned on and connected to or .

Mystic? No, of course, but it depends on where and in what condition it is , it just depends on how the clock works.

It looks something like this:

• if the Apple Watch 3 is connected to the Network via its own LTE module, and the iPhone is either turned off or “Airplane mode” is activated, then

phone calls: Yes

iMessages app: Yes

SMS messages: NO(that’s right, the watch does not receive or send any SMS messages, so, say, communication with Android users will have to be postponed for a while)

Apple app notifications: Yes

Third party app notifications: NO(i.e. the watch does not yet display notifications about events on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, VK and other services);

some applications in the smartwatch do not launch (Apple maps, Mail, Messages, Weather and others work fine);

All offline applications work fine, including Apple Pay, player, Activity, toys, etc.

• if the Apple Watch 3 is connected to the Network via Wi-Fi, and the iPhone is either turned off or “Airplane mode” is activated, then

all of the above , however

phone calls are possible only if you have enabled the WiFi calling function;

The watch may not connect to some WiFi networks (mainly those for which authorization is carried out in pop-up windows. Apple knows about this bug and promises to fix it, but for now they advise “forgetting” such problematic networks, and not in the watch, but in Wi-Fi settings of your iPhone (and by the way, let us remind you that the WiFi module in a smart watch cannot be turned off).

• if your Apple Watch 3 and iPhone are connected to the Network via Wi-Fi or LTE, but the smartphone is located somewhere far away (not connected to the watch via Bluetooth), then

phone calls: Yes

iMessages app: Yes

SMS messages: Yes(iPhone, as we see, helps even from a distance);

app notifications: Yes(notifications from third-party applications are also sent via iPhone).

On the Apple Watch, and also began demonstrating the device in stores. But let's take a break from all this fuss and talk about much more interesting things. For example, about what the Apple Watch can and cannot do, when there is no iPhone nearby.

Apple's policy is simple - the Apple Watch is not a standalone device. There's no point in buying a smartwatch if you don't have an iPhone. The smartwatch is not compatible with either iPad or Mac. They connect to the iPhone through a companion application that appeared in, and work through it, performing most of their functions. Apple does not hide: the lion's share of calculations is assigned to the smartphone, and only their results are transferred to the watch.

However, situations in life are different, so it is possible that you will be left without an iPhone for some time, but with an Apple Watch on your hand. What can be done with smart watches in this case?

First of all, the Apple Watch is a watch. Therefore they can show time without a smartphone. Moreover, the device has an energy saving function designed to work in watch mode. In this mode, Apple Watch can work up to 72 hours. In addition to the clock, it will work alarm, stopwatch And timer. Access to the calendar will remain. The only limitation regarding time is the inability to check your clock with a server on the Internet, but this is not the biggest problem for short time periods.

Secondly, Apple Watch will be able to play music and show photos. We already know that smart watches have built-in memory that is accessible to the user. You can record music and pictures into it, which will then be available even when the iPhone is not nearby. Apple Watch will be able to stream music to headphones via Bluetooth during a workout, and you can show athletes from a nearby treadmill photos of your family - Apple cares about users.

However, if you don't take your iPhone to work out, you're guaranteed to limit yourself in the sporting capabilities of your Apple Watch. The fact is that without a smartphone with a GPS module, the wrist device is not able to determine the distance you have covered. However, you will still have access to pedometer, counting flights of stairs climbed, it will be for sure the number of squats and your heart rate are determined.

By the way, after resuming contact with the iPhone, all this data will be transferred to the smartphone to the Health program. The conclusion is simple: if the distance covered is important to you, then during training the smartphone should be in your pocket or attached to your hand, not far from the watch.

Without an iPhone nearby, you'll be surprised to learn that the Apple Watch can use the service Apple Pay and data Passbook. On a walk or run without your iPhone, you can pop into Starbucks for a cup of coffee and pay for your order using Apple Pay and your NFC-enabled smartwatch. In reality, this is true only in the USA and Canada for now, but, you see, it’s very convenient. All tickets, coupons and cards in Passbook are also fully accessible without a smartphone. All actions are then synchronized.

As you can see, the Apple Watch is capable of a lot even in those moments when the iPhone is dead or left at home. Your wrist device remains useful and functional. But there are several important functions that will not be available. Among them, it is worth noting any notifications from applications, Siri voice assistant, navigation, messaging. These are important features, but there's nothing wrong with the Apple Watch not being able to handle them without an iPhone.