Apple Watch with Android? It's possible, sort of...

[spinedoc77]

For those 2 or 3 of you wondering if it's possible to use an AW with an Android phone, the answer is sort of. It seems that Apple has been continuously changing the AW's to be more and more independent of their mother phones. Anyway I'm a tinkerer at heart so I decided to give this a go with my AW 7 that's collecting dust since I switched to a Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. My AW7 does not have cellular service, but my AW Ultra that is on the UPS truck today does have cellular service, so I'll be able to report a bit more after that. If it's not clear, you are NOT connecting the AW to an Android phone in any way, shape, or form. You are simply using the AW standalone, but you will see it works *almost* as well as natively. Scroll down for more.



Caveats:
-You have to have an iPhone stashed in a drawer at home, both to setup the watch and also to function as a server the watch pulls from, but any old cheapie iPhone will do. I currently am using my old 13 pro max, but I also have a ip6 which cost $60 from Swappa.
-If you want to message with your phone number you will need a Mac computer as a server, but if you want to message with your email then you don't. The functionality for using your phone number comes from BlueBubbles which is an Android app that enables Apple Messages. There is a further caveat that you need to do some finagling with switching SIMs to make your home-stashed iPhone work if you want to user your phone number. It's not rocket science in the least, but there are some hoops to jump through.
-Can't make phone calls from the watch, I have to verify this when I receive my cellular Ultra today, but so far on wifi it's a no go. This is the major caveat, it doesn't bother me because I never use this functionality, but if you need it then this is a deal breaker. It may work because my new Ultra will be number matched by Verizon, where my current AW7 isn't, but I'm not sure what craziness will happen when I swap my SIM card.

What I can do:
-Messages work perfectly, I can use EVERY single feature messages has including tapbacks, read receipts, typing indicators, etc on the Android phone. On the AW I can use the messages app on the watch itself to receive and send messages natively, no issues works perfectly. With the Android app it makes it feel like its synced up with the AW even though it isn't. I get a new Apple message, my Android phone lights up at the same time as my AW with the notification and I can take action with either device.
-Google Voice: I use this a lot with my non family/friends connections and messaging seems to work perfectly. No phone calls yet, but I suspect that's because I don't have cellular. I can't access messages on the AW except when incoming, and then I can only do a canned response, but that's the same as if I was using it natively on an iPhone.
-Workouts: I use the FITIV pulse app for workouts, this works seamlessly on the AW with no iPhone needed, it also syncs my workouts to the FITIV app on the iPhone, which syncs it universally including my Android phone. Very slick and works perfectly. I haven't tried stock Apple workouts.
-Email: Works perfectly, no issues, I use the stock Apple mail app.
-Battery life: So far I haven't noticed any difference. Yesterday I ran it all day on wifi, so at home/work it was on wifi, but anytime in between it was searching. Even with the searching I still got home with about 40% left, which is about what I would have if I had my iPhone with me. I expect better battery life once I'm on cellular and it's not searching anymore.
-Other apps work perfectly right on the AW, for example Ring shows me someone ringing my doorbell, Schlage shows me my door has been locked/unlocked, even my home shortcuts like turning lights on/off work off my AW just fine.
-Reminders works perfectly, Samsung has a sync option to sync my reminders with my Microsoft account so these all come through on both devices.
-Calendar appointments are synced up through Microsoft, so they come through all devices.
-Autheticator apps works perfectly to sign into sites/apps, requests come through on my AW, I'm using Microsoft's authenticator.

-What else? I'll be playing around with this more today, and in particular when my Ultra arrives in the mail with Verizon number sharing and cellular network.

Edit: Phone works!! This is with the AW Ultra registered on Verizon with number synced to my cellular line and with my SIM in my Fold 4. The host iPhone does not have a SIM installed and is only on Wifi. So when I'm near the iPhone calls don't work, I'm assuming I just have to break the connection between the AW and iPhone locally via bluetooth but still have to play around with it. When I'm away from the iPhone calls work perfectly, I can make and receive calls and outgoing calls show up as my main phone number caller ID. Even Google Voice works perfectly as that's forwarded to my main number.

 

[Ludatyk]

Umm.. technically it doesn’t work. The AW requires an iPhone to function… there’s no workaround.

I‘ve seen this discussed through various threads and the end result is a user keep the iPhone in the drawer and carry around the AW… that marks it as a no go for me because that requires two lines (unless this has changed). If I could use an AW standalone… I’ll buy the AW Ultra and give up on the iPad, then maybe grab Mac instead.

 

[spinedoc77]

Umm.. technically it doesn’t work. The AW requires an iPhone to function… there’s no workaround.

I‘ve seen this discussed through various threads and the end result is a user keep the iPhone in the drawer and carry around the AW… that marks it as a no go for me because that requires two lines (unless this has changed). If I could use an AW standalone… I’ll buy the AW Ultra and give up on the iPad, then maybe grab Mac instead.

I don't have 2 lines with my setup, just the one line on my Fold 4.

 

[Ludatyk]

I don't have 2 lines with my setup, just the one line on my Fold 4.

So, with two lines... you can carry one line on a cellular AW along with another line for the Fold 4? I'm trying to comprehend how that would work.

For instance, you set up the AW Ultra intially to work with a iPhone... and then you take the SIM card out of the iPhone to place it in the Fold. Wouldn't the NumberSync feature automatic get disabled when you place it in the Fold, because the protocols won't be the same.

 

[spinedoc77]

So, with two lines... you can carry one line on a cellular AW along with another line for the Fold 4? I'm trying to comprehend how that would work.

For instance, you set up the AW Ultra intially to work with a iPhone... and then you take the SIM card out of the iPhone to place it in the Fold. Wouldn't the NumberSync feature automatic get disabled when you place it in the Fold, because the protocols won't be the same.

Yes but I said, in multiple places, that phone calls don't work. I haven't checked if number sync gets messed up yet, but I expect it to not work and I'm ok with that.

 

[Ludatyk]

Yes but I said, in multiple places, that phone calls don't work. I haven't checked if number sync gets messed up yet, but I expect it to not work and I'm ok with that.

I'll certainly be okay with phone calls not working. The point of your setup is to get iMessages on the go (I do that with a cellular iPad)... I get it, look forward to seeing how it all works out for you.

 

[spinedoc77]

I'll certainly be okay with phone calls not working. The point of your setup is to get iMessages on the go (I do that with a cellular iPad)... I get it, look forward to seeing how it all works out for you.

iMessages works perfectly with no 2nd line needed! But that's on Wifi, when I get my cellular Ultra I'm going to test that it works over cellular, but I don't see any reason it wouldn't.

 

[bruinsrme]

iMessages works perfectly with no 2nd line needed! But that's on Wifi, when I get my cellular Ultra I'm going to test that it works over cellular, but I don't see any reason it wouldn't.

wifi is standalone now and doesn't need a phone to connect, this happened starting with the series 7

 

[spinedoc77]

I'll certainly be okay with phone calls not working. The point of your setup is to get iMessages on the go (I do that with a cellular iPad)... I get it, look forward to seeing how it all works out for you.

FYI I got my Ultra on a cellular plan and phone calls work both outgoing and incoming! Outgoing number shows as my phone's phone number. Only 1 cellular line with the SIM in the Fold 4, and 1 watch line on Verizon.

 

[Ludatyk]

FYI I got my Ultra on a cellular plan and phone calls work both outgoing and incoming! Outgoing number shows as my phone's phone number. Only 1 cellular line with the SIM in the Fold 4, and 1 watch line on Verizon.

Need some details one this. Can you elaborate on how you setup the AW Ultra and transitioning from the iPhone to the Fold?

And how does phone calls work incoming and outcoming on the Ultra? It’s a dope setup… just confused by it.

 

[spinedoc77]

Need some details one this. Can you elaborate on how you setup the AW Ultra and transitioning from the iPhone to the Fold?

And how does phone calls work incoming and outcoming on the Ultra? It’s a dope setup… just confused by it.

I ordered the Ultra from Verizon with number sync and denoted it sync to my main line. The only way that option came up was to put my SIM into my iPhone, then it came up as number sync compatible. I then put the SIM back in the Fold 4 and waited until I received the Ultra. When setting up the Ultra, just to be safe, I put the SIM back into the iPhone, not sure if this was necessary. After the Ultra was setup and the cellular line enabled I just swapped the SIM back into my Fold 4.

With that said this could always just be a temporary thing until Verizon's system catches up, so we'll see how far it goes. Personally I have zero use for the phone on my watch so no biggie.

Incoming and outgoing calls both function on the AW. The only exception is if I'm close to my iPhone, then calls fail because the AW is using the iPhone to make/receive the calls.

 

[Ludatyk]

Incoming and outgoing calls both function on the AW. The only exception is if I'm close to my iPhone, then calls fail because the AW is using the iPhone to make/receive the calls.

Interesting. So, you haven’t powered off the iPhone?

But I’m definitely intrigued by this… major reason why I went with a cellular iPad is primarily for iMessage, not interested in carrying two phones with me. But if I can get by with an AW Ultra… I’ll probably go that route.

 

[spinedoc77]

Interesting. So, you haven’t powered off the iPhone?

But I’m definitely intrigued by this… major reason why I went with a cellular iPad is primarily for iMessage, not interested in carrying two phones with me. But if I can get by with an AW Ultra… I’ll probably go that route.

The iPhone is still powered on and on Wifi at home. Based on an unbox therapy video, which is where I got the idea in the first place, they powered their iPhone off and it didn't affect the AW function for phone calls or messaging. I will most likely leave mine on because I don't have any need for phone on the AW.

So yes, the AW should function just fine if you power the iPhone off. I also anticipate being able to leave the iPhone on but just breaking the connection to the AW should work, but I still have to experiment with that. It is nice to at the minimum have caller ID on the AW for when I can't easily reach my phone.

Here's the video which is very interesting:

 

[Ludatyk]

The iPhone is still powered on and on Wifi at home. Based on an unbox therapy video, which is where I got the idea in the first place, they powered their iPhone off and it didn't affect the AW function for phone calls or messaging. I will most likely leave mine on because I don't have any need for phone on the AW.

So yes, the AW should function just fine if you power the iPhone off. I also anticipate being able to leave the iPhone on but just breaking the connection to the AW should work, but I still have to experiment with that. It is nice to at the minimum have caller ID on the AW for when I can't easily reach my phone.

Here's the video which is very interesting:

Yeah, I went through chapters of that video before, interesting vid.

My reservation for going that route is giving up on the iPad and I’ve had been a user for years. Granted, this keeps me connected to the Apple ecosystem… But I do like the versatility an iPad provides more than anything. And then I have my eyes set on that rumored 16” iPad coming early 2024.

So, as much as I like the idea of the AW Ultra and the Fold mix… the iPad factor is what I’m struggling with right now lol. I have the MK along with the Apple Pencil… I did some research as far as what I could potentially pocket for my setup and judging by what I paid for, I highly doubt I can get half. I’ll end up taking a huge loss.

 

[spinedoc77]

Yeah, I went through chapters of that video before, interesting vid.

My reservation for going that route is giving up on the iPad and I’ve had been a user for years. Granted, this keeps me connected to the Apple ecosystem… But I do like the versatility an iPad provides more than anything. And then I have my eyes set on that rumored 16” iPad coming early 2024.

So, as much as I like the idea of the AW Ultra and the Fold mix… the iPad factor is what I’m struggling with right now lol. I have the MK along with the Apple Pencil… I did some research as far as what I could potentially pocket for my setup and judging by what I paid for, I highly doubt I can get half. I’ll end up taking a huge loss.

Don't feel guilty for keeping the iPad. At least with this combo you can leave the iPad and iPhone at home and still have a phone, messaging, etc. Or keep the iPad but leave the iPhone at home, AW + iPad is still a very powerful combo where you wouldn't really be missing anything. I really think Apple was considering exactly this scenario in how they've made the AW more powerful and standalone.

I've been heavily testing it this week and am extremely happy with my setup, pretty much everything works, so good that I'm going to go ahead and put my Galaxy Pro 5 for sale. The only caveat is I can't figure out how to disconnect my iPhone from the AW when I'm at home short of unpairing it. Bluetooth, Wifi, Airplane mode, none of these affect the connection.

 

[Ludatyk]

Don't feel guilty for keeping the iPad. At least with this combo you can leave the iPad and iPhone at home and still have a phone, messaging, etc. Or keep the iPad but leave the iPhone at home, AW + iPad is still a very powerful combo where you wouldn't really be missing anything. I really think Apple was considering exactly this scenario in how they've made the AW more powerful and standalone.

But my issue with keeping the iPad is the fact it has cellular capabilities… it’ll be wasted opportunity for me to not make use of it being a on-the-go iPad. But I’ll most likely try for a WiFi model my next go around and then revisit the AW + Fold combo.

I've been heavily testing it this week and am extremely happy with my setup, pretty much everything works, so good that I'm going to go ahead and put my Galaxy Pro 5 for sale. The only caveat is I can't figure out how to disconnect my iPhone from the AW when I'm at home short of unpairing it. Bluetooth, Wifi, Airplane mode, none of these affect the connection.

Yeah, that completely makes sense… you should go ahead and sell the GW (I’ll certainly do it if I were you).

Um… have you tried powering off the iPhone so it wouldn’t affect the connection of AW? I think that would be a better solution.

 

[spinedoc77]

But my issue with keeping the iPad is the fact it has cellular capabilities… it’ll be wasted opportunity for me to not make use of it being a on-the-go iPad. But I’ll most likely try for a WiFi model my next go around and then revisit the AW + Fold combo.


Yeah, that completely makes sense… you should go ahead and sell the GW (I’ll certainly do it if I were you).

Um… have you tried powering off the iPhone so it wouldn’t affect the connection of AW? I think that would be a better solution.

I would keep the cellular connection on the iPad and an AW, but I suppose it depends on your use and finances. The cellular plan on my AW through Verizon is only $5 as some of the unlimited plans have a half price for connected devices, I think you can even use this for half off the iPad cellular plan. Although to get half off of both you would have to have 2 lines. Not sure which carrier you are on.

Yeah powering off the iPhone does work, but I still use it for app development so it's a pain to always turn it off and on. It works out, I really don't have much need for phone on the AW at home, and everything else works perfectly.

 

[Ludatyk]

I would keep the cellular connection on the iPad and an AW, but I suppose it depends on your use and finances. The cellular plan on my AW through Verizon is only $5 as some of the unlimited plans have a half price for connected devices, I think you can even use this for half off the iPad cellular plan. Although to get half off of both you would have to have 2 lines. Not sure which carrier you are on.

I mean, I’ve done it before… had a cellular iPad along with a cellular AW during my iPhone days. AT&T charged me 10$ for both the cellular iPad and AW lines… but this was about 3 years ago. I had moved to the unlimited lines and now I get charged 20$ for the cellular iPad line and I’m guessing I will be charged 10$ for the AW line.

Don’t get me wrong, I could pay for it. But when I decided to move away from the iPhone… sold my cellular AW, I realized that I‘m not throwing away my money like that anymore lol (no shade to those who do). But it’s no problem… I’ll opt for a WiFi iPad model next time around and purchase a AW Ultra.

Yeah powering off the iPhone does work, but I still use it for app development so it's a pain to always turn it off and on. It works out, I really don't have much need for phone on the AW at home, and everything else works perfectly.

Ahhh, completely understand.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

This thread was an interesting read.

I currently use IP14 PM with my main line connected. It's on e-sim. And AW Ultra with the same main line number.
My second line is S22U on Verizon.

If I switch my main line to an Android device, would my AW still retain my main line? I don't see a reason it shouldn't. I should be able to make/receive calls and text on my AW and Android device at the same time. Unfortunately the battery won't last long if the AW is on stand alone cellular. If the battery could atleast last a full 24hrs on stand alone cellular, I would definately give it a try.

 

[mk313]

Yeah powering off the iPhone does work, but I still use it for app development so it's a pain to always turn it off and on. It works out, I really don't have much need for phone on the AW at home, and everything else works perfectly.

You may have mentioned it earlier in the thread, but I didn't see it, so apologies if it was discussed. If you turn off the iPhone, do you still get non-Apple (green) messages on the watch? That is the one thing that I lose when I turn off the phone, but maybe Apple has changed that since I last tried it.

 

[spinedoc77]

You may have mentioned it earlier in the thread, but I didn't see it, so apologies if it was discussed. If you turn off the iPhone, do you still get non-Apple (green) messages on the watch? That is the one thing that I lose when I turn off the phone, but maybe Apple has changed that since I last tried it.

Hmm I haven't tested that as the only SMS I really use is Google Voice. If you don't get SMS when you turn your iPhone off, I would assume the same would happen on my end but I'm not sure.

 

[spinedoc77]

This thread was an interesting read.

I currently use IP14 PM with my main line connected. It's on e-sim. And AW Ultra with the same main line number.
My second line is S22U on Verizon.

If I switch my main line to an Android device, would my AW still retain my main line? I don't see a reason it shouldn't. I should be able to make/receive calls and text on my AW and Android device at the same time. Unfortunately the battery won't last long if the AW is on stand alone cellular. If the battery could atleast last a full 24hrs on stand alone cellular, I would definately give it a try.

That's been my experience, that the AW stayed connected to whatever number sync/share line you set it up with, even when that phone SIM was put into an Android device.

FYI I'm not sure why you aren't getting good battery life on cellular. Having my Ultra on cellular all day long (AOD and max brightness also), and it's still at at least 60% when I get home at night. I am seriously impressed with the battery life.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

That's been my experience, that the AW stayed connected to whatever number sync/share line you set it up with, even when that phone SIM was put into an Android device.

FYI I'm not sure why you aren't getting good battery life on cellular. Having my Ultra on cellular all day long (AOD and max brightness also), and it's still at at least 60% when I get home at night. I am seriously impressed with the battery life.

I personally haven't tried to go cellular only on my Ultra yet. The longest I went was about 6 hours without being attached to the iPhone, and I didn't notice any huge battery hit. But I wasn't on calls long, using GPS, or anything draining, just texting.

My assumption was based on Youtube reviewers that went a day with the Ultra without the iPhone. But if you're getting 60% that's great.

 

[spinedoc77]

I personally haven't tried to go cellular only on my Ultra yet. The longest I went was about 6 hours without being attached to the iPhone, and I didn't notice any huge battery hit. But I wasn't on calls long, using GPS, or anything draining, just texting.

My assumption was based on Youtube reviewers that went a day with the Ultra without the iPhone. But if you're getting 60% that's great.

Yeah, but that's 60% without any calls, probably 15-20 incoming text messages, and maybe another 20 or so notification alerts all on vibration only. AOD on, brightness maxed out in settings. Use of a few apps here and there, things like my car's remote start, checking weather, adjusting ecobee, etc. Not sure how bad the phone calls would be.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Yeah, but that's 60% without any calls, probably 15-20 incoming text messages, and maybe another 20 or so notification alerts all on vibration only. AOD on, brightness maxed out in settings. Use of a few apps here and there, things like my car's remote start, checking weather, adjusting ecobee, etc. Not sure how bad the phone calls would be.

With my iPhone turned off, I tried calls from the Ultra using APP2. They sound just as good as if coming from the iPhone. On speaker, it's more than decent for short calls. I did notice the Ultra loses connection where my iPhone doesn't. Probably cause no 5G.