Apple Watch uses Bluetooth® wireless technology to connect to its paired iPhone and uses the iPhone for many wireless functions.
When your iPhone is turned off or isn’t nearby, Apple Watch can connect to a Wi-Fi network instead. It’s flexible. And with a cellular plan, your Apple Watch can stay connected even when you’re away from your iPhone. Even without either, you can still use alarms, timers, and the stopwatch, and the built-in GPS tracks distance during outdoor workouts.
If Apple Watch is connected to Wi-Fi
Even with your iPhone turned off, you can still do the following when Apple Watch is connected to a Wi-Fi network:
- Get apps in the App Store
- Read and respond to messages
- Make phone calls (make phone calls if you have Wi-Fi calling enabled or want to make a FaceTime audio call and you’re within range of a Wi-Fi network)
- Stream music, podcasts, and audiobooks
- Add music
- Check the weather
- Track your stocks
- Control your home
- Use third-party apps that support Wi-Fi connectivity
Use Apple Watch without your iPhone nearby
You can stay connected away from your iPhone if your Apple Watch has a cellular plan. On all other models of Apple Watch, you can still do things while you’re away from your iPhone and not connected to Wi-Fi.
- Play music, podcasts, and audiobooks.
- Record and play voice memos
- Use Find My
- Use world clock, alarms, timers, and the stopwatch
- Display photos from synced photo albums
- Make purchases with Apple Pay
- Use cards and passes in Wallet
- See calendar events
- Track your activity and workout
- Check your heart rate, edit your sleep schedule, measure your blood oxygen levels, track menstrual cycles, and relax and breathe mindfully
- Measure sound levels around you and from your headphones
Thanks to a built-in GPS, Apple Watch can give you more accurate distance and speed information during an outdoor workout, even without your paired iPhone. There’s also a built-in barometric altimeter in Apple Watch, which provides accurate elevation gain/descent information along with your current elevation in real time.
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