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Apple Watch pairing problem

Hi , I have a IPhone 12 Pro Max running up to date iOS 26.1

I bought an Apple Watch Ultra 2 and cannot pair it to the phone .

I have tried hard resetting both products, reset network settings with no luck.

I have seen a few discussions that users uninstalled the “Watch” app itself on the iPhone and then re installed and that fixed the problem. I can’t delete the app because of a very old Apple Watch still on there. It won’t let me unpair it, the watch isn’t in my iCloud as a device. So I am stuck , please help . Thanks

Posted on Dec 1, 2025 10:40 PM

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3 replies

Dec 1, 2025 11:46 PM in response to CrowJoe

Did you try all troubleshooting steps mentioned in this article?

If you can't pair an Apple Watch with your iPhone - Apple Support

Does the iPhone detect the watch?

No VPN or Firewall enabled for your Wi-Fi network?

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Level 1

4 points

Dec 2, 2025 12:29 AM in response to Ingo2711

Hello, yes I have tried all the above , not working for me. I do have a VPN but made sure it is off when pairing.

The issue seems to be when I try to unpair the old Apple Watch - it then says activation lock could not be turned off because of a server error

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Dec 2, 2025 12:36 AM in response to CrowJoe

Did you try to erase the old watch directly without the iPhone, as explained in the last section of this article?

Unpair and erase your Apple Watch - Apple Support

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Apple Watch pairing problem

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