Cannot pair Series 4 watch to iPhone 6s

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Level 1

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Cannot pair Series 4 watch to iPhone 6s

I just purchased an erased Series 4 watch. I am trying to pair it to my iPhone 6s running ios 15.7.9 which is the latest update for the 6s. Apple support indicates that the watch should be able to pair with the 6s. I have tried all of the suggestions that I can find from other Apple watch users but none have worked. When I start the pairing process, if I hover the phone over the watch, my phone has a message that says "Unable to Connect to Apple Watch". When I try to pair it manually, I get an Apple Watch number on my iphone which I tap on. My watch then provides me with a 6-digit code that I enter on the phone. The pairing process begins until I receive a message on the phone that says I need to update the IOS on my watch. The phone then continues to try and unpair a phone (which I do not have) and finishes with a message that says "pairing Failed". I cannot use the My Watch part of the phone's Watch app because there is no phone paired with it. I cannot go to Settings on my Apple Watch because it will only allow me to start a pairing process. Please help!

Apple Watch Series 4

Posted on Sep 20, 2023 9:45 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

bumbleben0

Level 5

5,731 points

Sep 20, 2023 10:25 AM in response to tzobrien99

It sounds like your Apple Watch Series 4 has watchOS 9 or later installed. Apple Watch devices with watchOS 9 or later need to be paired with an iPhone running iOS 16 or later, which your iPhone 6s cannot install. As a result, unfortunately, you cannot pair this Apple Watch with your iPhone.

To be clear, everything you've said is correct, so your confusion is understandable – Apple Watch Series 4 is compatible with iPhone 6s, but the software installed on each of those devices is not compatible, and it is not possible to "downgrade" the software on Apple Watch such that it would be compatible with your iPhone.

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Answer 2

bumbleben0

Level 5

5,731 points

Sep 20, 2023 1:05 PM in response to tzobrien99

I don't know for certain -- during setup, when you see a particle cloud on your watch (that is intended to be scanned on your iPhone's camera), you should see a small info (i) button. If tapping this does not reveal the software version, then it likely isn't possible to do without setting up the device first.

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Answer 3

tzobrien99 Author

Level 1

8 points

Sep 28, 2023 9:45 AM in response to bumbleben0

You were correct in noting that my recently purchased Apple watch Series 4 could not pair with my iphone 6s because the IOS for the 6s cannot be updated to IOS 16 and that the AppleOS for my watch is WatchOS 9. OS 9 will not pair with an iPhone running less than IOS 16. Apple will not allow devices to reinstall older IOS or OS versions on their devices. Thus, the watch could not be paired with my 6s. This despite the fact that my old Apple Watch Series 4 was paired to my 6s. I assumed (incorrectly) that if I replaced my old Series 4 watch with a refurbished Series 4 watch that it would work. Thank you bumbleben0 for ending my frustration in trying to understand why the newly purchased watch was not able to pair.

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Answer 4

tzobrien99 Author

Level 1

8 points

Sep 20, 2023 1:01 PM in response to tzobrien99

Thanks for the quick response. Is there any way for me to know if the watch has the ios 9 update? I cannot get to settings on the watch until I have paired it (as far as I can figure out). I do expect that you are correct about the watch having the ios 9 update but I wanted to confirm that (if possible) before returning the watch to the vendor.

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Answer 5

Home1950

Level 1

8 points

May 10, 2024 1:46 AM in response to tzobrien99

I can’t pair my apple S4 watch to my apple iPhone 6.5 BUT I have a S3 paired to same iphone ?

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Cannot pair Series 4 watch to iPhone 6s

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