HBurg789

Q: Apple Watch Series 2 GPS

I am very interested in the Apple Watch Series 2. Does anyone know if the GPS (map apps) will work if there is no connectivity. I am going to Europe this winter and we constantly use the walking maps while touring around new cities state side and wanted to know if I could use my watch for the same purpose if my phone is in airplane mode to avoid the international roaming charges.

Posted on Sep 8, 2016 5:58 PM

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Q: Apple Watch Series 2 GPS

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Sep 8, 2016 6:02 PM in response to HBurg789
    Level 10 (270,278 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 8, 2016 6:02 PM in response to HBurg789

    No. It needs satellites.

  • by bernardn753,

    bernardn753 bernardn753 Sep 8, 2016 8:16 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (44 points)
    Sep 8, 2016 8:16 PM in response to Kappy

    What you should consider doing is disable international roaming on your phone. That way your phone can still use GPS and Wi-fi without using any cell towers or service, thus not incurring any charges. If you go into cellular on settings, the second option Cellular Data Options will allow you to disable both voice and data roaming. As for the watch, your watch by itself will never cause any cellular fees because it is not linked to a data plan. It does have radios in it but GPS uses satellites instead of cell towers and is free to use. I would recommend using your phone for the GPS however and having your watch communicate via bluetooth. If you are touring all day, the GPS radio in the watch may drain the battery before the day is done. And again, disabling roaming on your phone will prevent any charges because GPS does not use cellular data. One thing to take into consideration, the maps data DOES use cellular data if enabled. Thats how it gets the directions and the overviews of the city. It won't if you have roaming off, and you can have the map data downloaded over wifi so it is not that big of a concern.

     

    Hope this helps a bit. (Meant to reply to the post, not Kappy. Sorry I can't change that)