Apple Watch will not connect

[JJM2019]

I'm so frustrated I am thinking of sending my Apple Watch back and cancelling my mobile number. Despite 4 long calls to Vodafone support, each time basically resetting my watch and iPhone settings, my watch still won't get connected. I was supposed to have 3rd line support call me - did not. 

this is bound to be an issue with the network rather than my watch or phone - which is what Apple support says. I have spent £100 on accessories and bought Apple care. 

the latest suggestion is go to the shop- but how can they help me with the network setup? And this will be me taking hours off work. 

I'm just fed up hearing the same from 1st line support!! Any suggestions would be really helpful. 

[BandOfBrothers]

I'm not confident that a Vodafone Highstreet Store can help as they are not primarily in place to deal with account issues @JJM2019 

They are primarily in place to sell new contacts, set them up , supply contract and Payg phones and accessories.

You may find they just suggest you can use the in store phone to ring customer services.

I've seen a few recent posts where people are experiencing issues with Apple Watches and getting them connected which does seem to lean towards account issues.

If you perform a Forum Search you will see those and the advice and experiences within.

The Vodafone Social Media Teams here are able to help with account issues but only via the Social Media avenues as detailed in 》 Contact-us-for-account-specific-queries.

I wish you all the best with this situation. 

[Madcatz]

I have been having a issue with connecting my Apple Watch to my iphone since upgrading it worked fine before then with my old iphone I've had apple check the watch for faults no fault I've made two phone calls to vodafone tech support and been in to the store where  they had me give them the eid number reset network settings unpaired and paired the watch again delete and reinstall the watch app to no avail I've spent three days online trying to get it sorted  and being told it's been escalated to a piority case and will be sorted in 24 hours nothing so far just did the 3rd chat and been told again that it's been escalated and will be done by midnight i have very little faith left I don't want to cancel my contract and can't anyway as it would be of cost to me I'm so unhappy I feel that I'm stuck in a catch 22 and am getting nowhere. I don't know where to go next if it doesn't work   

[thrunobulax]

When I first got an Apple watch with cellular a year ago it took a few calls and a visit to a store to get the thing connected. I just upgraded my mobile to a new one and tried re-pairing the phone with the watch. All worked fine and al aps worked except I can not get mobile data to to work. I restored all my maps and settings to avoid having to start again on the watch and when you get to the setup mobile data screen it flashes up a page where it tries to connect vodafone but gives top and goes back to the set top screen, If you proceed and try to set it uo later you get the same effect. There is something wrong with Vodafones setup screen process. Endless calls where they tel you to re-pair from scratch are not helpful. The phone knows the EID NUMBER of the watch so it can see it and vodafone are charing me for the £5 per month to enable it It all worked fine on the old iphone Annoying and time consuming

[TJ]

Hey @thrunobulax, thanks for getting in touch. Nothing should stop you from getting the most out of you Apple Watch. 

We'll need to access your account to help get you up and running - please contact our team via Facebook, or get in touch on Twitter. You can find more information on doing this here.

Please also provide a link to this thread, along with your username; this will save time and we’ll be able to help you quicker.

[alanodlin]

Same situation for me! New Apple Watch 5 arrived yesterday. Can't get mobile data connected! EID is on my account and active apparently, have repaired the watch with phone numerous times. Each time when it gets to setup mobile data let it just takes me to the Vodafone website homepage! Made numerous calls and just get told to wait a little longer, wait 24 hours, wait 48 hours! why?? If the EID is active on my account then why won't it work??!! Just another shambolic mess by Vodafone and lie after lie on the phone just to get me off the call! 

[JJM2019]

After about 3 hours on calls I called the complaints line and the rather gruff technician I was put though to just told me to go to the store and return the watch.

So I did that and I got a new one and it worked. So my advice is if they can get it working on the first call, just go get a new one. Don;t waste your time on endless calls.

They say it's Apple's fault. I doubt it. Network settings screw up and so getting a new watch just started the provisioning process again and it worked.

[thrunobulax]

I finally got it to work.

Problem 1 - The VOdafone MyVodafone website would not launch originally after selecting Setup Mobile Data on the iphone Watch app

Problem - 2 After this message it began to work

Problem 3 - You then have to delve through the site to find Activate my Aple Watch and even tough the App knows the correct EID for the watch you have to Set up for a new eSim for that account which is bizarre since it worked Ok with earlier iphone. Then after doing that it sends an enabling message and voila it works again having to type in the EID manually is a pain

[alanodlin]

So I'm still not connected. Spoke to three different chat advisers today who all say the same rubbish "I've reconnected your EID with your OneNumber subscription so go ahead and re-pair the watch" and surprise surprise it doesn't work! Though I would call and speak to someone in the technical team who tells me "the activation of your EID has got stuck so I've processed it again" and told me to wait ANOTHER 24 hours!!!! This is beyond a joke now. I received this watch on Thursday, it's now Saturday and it's still not working correctly! 

[TJ]

Hey @alanodlin - nothing should stop you from getting the most out of your Apple Watch. 

We'll need to access your account to help get you up and running - please contact our team via Facebook, or get in touch on Twitter. You can find more information on doing this here.

Please also provide a link to this thread, along with your username; this will save time and we’ll be able to help you quicker.

[alanodlin]

---

@TJ wrote:

Hey @alanodlin - nothing should stop you from getting the most out of your Apple Watch. 

We'll need to access your account to help get you up and running - please contact our team via Facebook, or get in touch on Twitter. You can find more information on doing this here.

Please also provide a link to this thread, along with your username; this will save time and we’ll be able to help you quicker.

---

I don't use Facebook or twitter. 

[alanodlin]

So here we are on day 5 and still no cellular connection on my watch!

same lies and rubbish being spouted by advisers on chat and on the phone!

time to email Nick Jeffery I think

[alanodlin]

Now being told that the EID number on my account was wrong despite giving it to every adviser I have spoken to over the last five days! Now being told to wait for the "sim swap" to take place which has been placed as "high priority" and should be done within 24 hours! Surely it's just a case of inputting the number into a computer??! 

You really couldn't make this up! What a farce!

email to directors office sent!

[TJ]

I'm sorry to hear you don't have either of our social channels @alanodlin. Please continue to keep us updated and let us know how you get on with our Directors Office team. 

[jimmybond007]

Sorry to say Directors office no better.  Absolutely no-one at VF knows what to do.  Am able to break contract mid-term becuase of this so encourage everyone else to do this.  You dont launch a product untuil the right department has been trained on it.  Simples...

[Nabs1980]

This is absolutely disheartening that a company as big as Vodafone has been unable to resolve this issue, I wish I had looked at these forums prior to getting an Apple Watch through Vodafone. I have just received my series 5 Apple Watch, and it would seem VF are still experiencing the same issues that they were experiencing well over 12 months ago.

I am unable to activate my data connection on AW Series 5, I've tried restoring and re-pairing Watch as well as switching phone off and resetting network connections. I have had a webchat today and apparently all settings seem to be correct their end, can I visit a Vodafone shop. This is a joke that the same issue is still being experienced and that a company the size of Vodafone have not resolved this issue, I now have little faith that this is ever going to work. 

[Tash]

Let's turn this around for you and get your Apple Watch connected to your number @Nabs1980. Please drop our team a message on Facebook or Twitter and we'll get this sorted for you ASAP. By including your Community username and a link to your post, you won't need to repeat yourself and we'll look into this for you quickly. 

[Nabs1980]

Thanks but I resolved this issue myself, although I would suggest proper guidance/instructions for mobile data registration being included in the packaging or by email. 

[Dave7134]

I am now on week five (no kidding) of the same saga above and dearly wished I had seen this thread as I've had this exact issue and re-paired about half a dozen times, chatted on with the nice (but ultimately useless) Facebook team with many different techs, tried to speak to technical support (for a couple of weeks, couldn't even get a semi-clear phone line to them as they were working from home - presumably using vodafone...). 

On the third (or fourth?) re-pairing attempt last week, I've now also lost use of my mobile as well as something glitched in trying to link the EID and now the mobile doesn't let you pick up incoming calls (I know this is a vodafone issue as I tested the SIM in another phone as well with the same issue).  I've done all the various steps detailed in the email trail above - SIM SWAP on the website, cleared backups, re-pairing, adding/removing Onenumber.

Sadly, I've come to the conclusion Vodafone are trying to sell a service they are in fact incapable of providing...  Completely unbelievable shambles doesn't even begin to describe. 

I was willing to do a bit of a run-around given the COVID challenges for all companies and put in a bit of effort to sort out, but this is beyond the pale.Now I face the long battle of trying to cancel my contract as I've of course gone beyond the "cooling off" period.

SIGH.  Let this be a lesson.  Don't use vodafone.  Not worth the aggravation.

[Dave7134]

I am now on week five (no kidding) of a saga of Vodafone being unable to pair my Apple Watch Series 5 with my iPhone.

I've now spoken with innumerable representatives via the social media team (Messenger) and telephone calls.  

I've been told variations on a theme:

- you need to unpair / pair (and delete backups) -- about 6-7 times

- the backoffice connection will be sorted in (pick one) 1/24/48 hours as the order apparently cancelled itself (for some unknown reason) -- this has now happened three times 

- your OneNumber account needs to be removed and reinstated  -- at least twice

- you need to enter your EID # on the SIM SWAP page -- at least twice

On the third (or fourth?) re-pairing attempt last week, I've now also lost use of my mobile as well as something glitched in trying to link the EID and now the mobile doesn't let me pick up incoming calls (I know this is a vodafone issue as I tested the SIM in another phone as well with the same issue).  I've done all the various steps detailed in various other threads.

Sadly, I've come to the conclusion Vodafone are trying to sell a service they are in fact incapable of providing...  Completely unbelievable shambles doesn't even begin to describe. 

I was willing to do a bit of a run-around given the COVID challenges for all companies and put in a bit of effort to sort out, but this is beyond the pale.  I have been a vodafone customer for years, but had renewed my contract (foolishly it seems) at the time of adding the OneNumber plan.  Now I face the long battle of trying to cancel my contract as I've of course gone beyond the "cooling off" period.   

By way of comparison, on my first contact with Apple to check it wasn't a hardware issue, I was very quickly elevated to senior tech support in California on the first call (despite all of Apple being on lockdown) and run through diagnostics to confirm it was not a hardware issue (which was expected, since the watch makes calls when on Bluetooth).

x

SIGH.  Let this be a lesson.  Don't use vodafone.  Not worth the aggravation.

[Dave7134]

I am now on week five (no kidding) of a saga of Vodafone being unable to pair my Apple Watch Series 5 with my iPhone.

I've now spoken with innumerable representatives via the social media team (Messenger) and telephone calls.  

I've been told variations on a theme:

- you need to unpair / pair (and delete backups) -- about 6-7 times

- the backoffice connection will be sorted in (pick one) 1/24/48 hours as the order apparently cancelled itself (for some unknown reason) -- this has now happened three times 

- your OneNumber account needs to be removed and reinstated  -- at least twice

- you need to enter your EID # on the SIM SWAP page -- at least twice

On the third (or fourth?) re-pairing attempt last week, I've now also lost use of my mobile as well as something glitched in trying to link the EID and now the mobile doesn't let me pick up incoming calls (I know this is a vodafone issue as I tested the SIM in another phone as well with the same issue).  I've done all the various steps detailed in various other threads.

Sadly, I've come to the conclusion Vodafone are trying to sell a service they are in fact incapable of providing...  Completely unbelievable shambles doesn't even begin to describe. 

I was willing to do a bit of a run-around given the COVID challenges for all companies and put in a bit of effort to sort out, but this is beyond the pale.  I have been a vodafone customer for years, but had renewed my contract (foolishly it seems) at the time of adding the OneNumber plan.  Now I face the long battle of trying to cancel my contract as I've of course gone beyond the "cooling off" period.   

By way of comparison, on my first contact with Apple to check it wasn't a hardware issue, I was very quickly elevated to senior tech support in California on the first call (despite all of Apple being on lockdown) and run through diagnostics to confirm it was not a hardware issue (which was expected, since the watch makes calls when on Bluetooth).

x

SIGH.  Let this be a lesson.  Don't use vodafone.  Not worth the aggravation.