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Apple Watch and roaming

Dingerdoidge1
Visitor

Do I need to pay for roaming on my Apple Watch 6 or does it share my phone roaming?

34 REPLIES 34

Hi @Chris_B ,

With the greatest of respect, the network and roaming networks have agreements for roaming based on data facilitated by the sim / esim, not the device.

There is absolutely no objective reason why you would allow an esim for iPhone / iPad to work and not allow esim for Apple Watch other than attempted profiteering by maximising data usage via a mobile phone / tablet as the data they consume is considerably higher than a watch would ever likely be.

Also for clarity, in none of the advertising is there a “*cellular voice and data access available in UK only”. In fact it sells itself on the fact that you can go out without your phone.

For many of us who bought the cellular data plan, there was also no clear information provided that roaming wasn’t supported on these devices, hence the number of threads on this over the years. 

IMG_0466.png

As much as you are trying to defend EE from this, as said before, the reality is there is absolutely nothing stopping EE from allowing this. Roaming agreements for sims are clearly already in place as per their mobile and other data plans.

If EE can give a good reason then I’m sure myself and many others would be willing to listen. If they made it clear on purchase of either the device or the plan then again we’d not be having these conversations. The reason they won’t is because it might actually prevent people from a purchase if made clear from the beginning, whereas on balance people are less likely to be able to return the device after owning it for a while and realising the limitation.

This 100%, no reason to doggedly defend this stupid limitation 

rysongs
Established Contributor
Established Contributor

I’m with Clawzskunk

Been waiting since the release of the original Apple Watch Ultra for international roaming, as Apple promoted the fact that it is now supported on the newer Apple Watches, yet it’s now on its second generation and still EE doesn’t allow it 

@rysongs   Apple says it can but  it doesn’t mean any network has to support such a feature.   

From Apples website 

International roaming with your Apple Watch

With watchOS 9.1 and later, international roaming is available on cellular models of Apple Watch Series 5 and later, Apple Watch SE and later, and Apple Watch Ultra. 

To get international roaming on your Apple Watch, contact your iPhone carrier to add your watch to your iPhone cellular roaming plan. For international roaming to work on your Apple Watch, your carrier must support VoLTE and roaming. Not all carriers support international roaming on Apple Watch and coverage in other countries is determined by your carrier.

To turn on international roaming, open the Settings app on your Apple Watch. Tap Cellular, then turn on Data Roaming.

To cover the LTE and UMTS bands used around the world, cellular models of Apple Watch come in regional models for the Americas, China mainland, and Europe/Asia Pacific. Unlike iPhone, there isn't a worldwide Apple Watch model that supports all cellular bands used globally. Find out which carriers in your country or region offer cellular service for Apple Watch.

@Chris_B  I’m getting tired of repeating myself and the constant defending of EE without any salient reasoning..

You’re right they don’t have to support it, but then change the advertising and make it clear.

BUT, you seem hell bent on saying “they don’t have to” but clearly there is a market for the people already paying for the cellular service (which costs the same as other international roaming services they offer).  What makes this worse is all that is required is for the network to support VoLTE (which EE do) and support roaming (which EE do with almost all of the cellular plans except for the Apple Watch).

Lastly can you explain *why* you appear to be defending the UK’s largest cellular network *not* providing a service that there is clearly both a market for and clearly no real excuse not to provide? Is it just to get responses and maintain the “grand master” title?

blindly quoting a position with no explanation on why that position is being maintained is more likely to drive legacy customers, like myself and others, away from the network.. it’s simply not helpful.

EE need to fix this asap

My daughter does not have a cellphone (too young) so we bought a cellular enabled Apple Watch for her. First trip away in France and discover it won’t even receive a phone call. 

Apple are very clear the device is capable of roaming so this is at EE’s door to fix!

 

 

Hello @Beastiehairy ,

Welcome to the community,

The watch will only work via bluetooth when abroad, so needs the phone nearby, it has always been like that, there is nothing to fix and nothing EE will do. You should have checked this out, not something EE will need to tell you, unless you ask, then you would have found this out.

She would have needed the phone for it to work abroad, it is not a problem in the UK, as it will work wherever she is, so long as it is registered with the IPhone, sorry, but that is how it is, Apple are correct it will work whilst roaming so long as the phone is nearby.

 

To contact EE customer service dial 150 from your mobile phone or ring customer service for free using Skype or another phone: +44 800 079 8586 or +44 800 956 6000.

EE should have informed me. It’s not up to me to find out! Let’s be very clear on that. 

EE need to work on their training on cellular Apple Watches as I even had one employee tell me that there wasn’t a cellular Apple Watch option!

 

 

@Schockwave I disagree with you and completely agree with @Beastiehairy. Based on your response and on your title of "community hero" I'd refer you to my post in this thread on 15/10/23:

With the greatest of respect, the network and roaming networks have agreements for roaming based on data facilitated by the sim / esim, not the device.

There is absolutely no objective reason why EE would allow an esim for iPhone / iPad to work and not allow esim for Apple Watch other than attempted profiteering by maximising data usage via a mobile phone / tablet as the data they consume is considerably higher than a watch would ever likely be.

Also for clarity, in none of the advertising is there a “*cellular voice and data access available in UK only”. In fact it sells itself on the fact that you can go out without your phone.

For many of us who bought the cellular data plan, there was also no clear information provided that roaming wasn’t supported on these devices, hence the number of threads on this over the years. 

Clawzskunk_0-1707731970010.png

 

As much as you are trying to defend EE from this, as I've said before, the reality is there is absolutely nothing stopping EE from allowing this. Roaming agreements for sims are clearly already in place as per their mobile and other data plans.

If EE can give a good reason then I’m sure myself and many others would be willing to listen. If they made it clear on purchase of either the device or the plan then again we’d not be having these conversations. The reason they won’t is because it might actually prevent people from a purchase if made clear from the beginning, whereas on balance people are less likely to be able to return the device after owning it for a while and realising the limitation.

@Clawzskunk  while I do agree it should be available it’s in the contract that roaming isn’t included and not reading the contract isn’t down to EE. 

see HERE   

EE should also state clearly on the ordering page that it’s not included.  

As for getting a valid reason why it’s not included I can not answer.