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Ghost in the Machine

Here's a fun story,


Yesterday I came into work and I noticed I didn't have my phone. Thankfully I have my handy dandy series one Apple Watch that told me that it was in fact connected to my iphone so it could not have wandered far. The whole office stopped what they were doing to help me search, it was not in my car, parking lot, purse, no where. But through it all I was still receiving the missed calls on my apple watch as they were happening! It HAD to be close by! With no other options I got in my car, I didn't even hit the end of the parking lot before it disconnected.....and then did not reconnect. I thought "this is stupid there is no possible way" but regardless I drove to my apartment, why not grab an apple or something on my unintentional break? And there it was. Right on my counter where I had put it down in the morning, my iphone, safe as could be.


So here's my spooky question for you, oh great apple community. How could a series one Apple Watch, with no wifi or bluetooth capabilities to stretch that far of a distance, receive to the second notifications when the iphone it is connected to is miles away?


Do we have a ghost in the machine?

Apple Watch, null

Posted on Feb 28, 2018 8:27 AM

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Posted on Feb 28, 2018 11:03 AM

Great story! You've got a talent for telling us about an experience! 🙂 By the way, the Series 1 Apple Watch does have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n 2.GHz and 4.2 technology, respectively). I suppose that it's possible that your Apple Watch got notifications through Wi-Fi by some freak of code. Glad you found your iPhone! 🙂

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Question marked as Best reply

Feb 28, 2018 11:03 AM in response to Hi-im-Kat

Great story! You've got a talent for telling us about an experience! 🙂 By the way, the Series 1 Apple Watch does have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n 2.GHz and 4.2 technology, respectively). I suppose that it's possible that your Apple Watch got notifications through Wi-Fi by some freak of code. Glad you found your iPhone! 🙂

Feb 28, 2018 11:03 AM in response to Hi-im-Kat

Hi


Your Apple Watch had connected to a compatible Wi-Fi network at your place of work, which enabled it to continue offering certain features.


For Apple Watch Series 1, the full range of features is available when Apple Watch and the paired iPhone are connected via Bluetooth and your iPhone has access to both cellular service and the Internet (via either cellular data or Wi-Fi).


You do not necessarily need to have your iPhone on or immediately around you (within arm's reach, for example) for the devices to establish and maintain their Bluetooth connection. Normal Bluetooth range is around 33 feet / 10 meters (this will vary in practice due to wireless interference).


Whenever your watch cannot connect to the iPhone via Bluetooth, it will attempt, as a fallback, to connect to a known Wi-Fi network - this being a compatible 802.11b/g/n 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network (some exceptions apply) that your iPhone has connected to before whilst your Apple Watch was connected to the iPhone via Bluetooth.


When instead connected to Wi-Fi, the watch also still offers a number of features, including receiving and sending messages via iMessage. If your carrier offers Wi-Fi Calling and it is supported on your plan and enabled on your iPhone, you can also use Apple Watch to make calls and (subject to carrier support) to send and receive SMS / text messages.


If your Apple Watch is unable to connect either via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, it again still offers some - although fewer - features.


Features that are available in each case are detailed here:


How to use your Apple Watch without your iPhone nearby - Apple Support


For the best performance from your iPhone and Apple Watch, including the most power-efficient communication between them, Apple recommends keeping both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi permanently enabled on your iPhone.


More information:

About Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on Apple Watch - Apple Support

Make a call with Wi-Fi Calling - Apple Support

Ghost in the Machine

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