Kid Wants and Apple Watch, Family Has Android Phones

December 15, 2023 5:32 PM

My 12-year-old wants an Apple Watch. Her friends have them and I see the value of her being connected without having a phone. Great! But wait! My partner and I both have Android phones, which presents a problem.

To set up an Apple Watch (including the family setup that we'd want to use to make her watch a standalone device), you need an iPhone. Unless a smarter MeFite knows a way, that's not going to work for our Android family.

I investigated Android-compatible watches, and they seem to fall into two categories: 1) Fully featured watches like the Galaxy and Pixel that compete with the Apple Watch but aren't great as standalone devices and don't support kid features like being locked down during school hours, and 2) Kid-centric watches that are clunky and lack lots of features.

So, what's the best solution here? Should I buy a cheap older iPhone to set up and manage an Apple Watch? (Would that even work?) Find some other way to set up an Apple Watch? Go with an Android watch like the Galaxy Watch6 and figure out how to do some parental controls? Get a clunky kids watch and face the wrath of a middle schooler?

My 12-year-old has a long list of preferred features, but these are the critical ones for this question:
- School settings and parental controls that we can manage
- Being able to call and text with her own number on T-Mobile
- Cool enough for middle school

posted by cholstro to Technology (7 answers total)

I can't speak to a lot of this but...

I was an Android user for 10 years and switched to iOS a few months ago to get an Apple Watch for the health benefits. My research told me there is no convenient way to set one up as an Android user (there are a few videos on Youtube but they'll all disuade you from trying).

- Being able to call and text with her own number on T-Mobile

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that the phone number of the Apple Watch is the same as the iPhone it's attached to. You don't get to have a separate number for the Watch. I have dual sim in my iPhone 15 Pro Max and both numbers are accessible on my Watch, but there was no option to set up a number that didn't exist on my iPhone.
posted by dobbs at 6:41 PM on December 15, 2023

Caveat: any Apple Watch you buy today can only pair with a phone that is running the latest iOS. So you can't reach too far back in time to get an old phone. And frankly if doing that I'd recommend getting a base iPhone SE which is an outstanding value in a phone, rather than an older model off the used market.

anyway the Apple Watch is pretty great and imo worth getting a "cheap" iPhone SE as a base station.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:26 PM on December 15, 2023 [2 favorites]

The Apple Watch is pretty tied to having a parent iPhone to configure and control it. Also the “Find” feature is an iOS app if you need to see their location.
posted by nickggully at 7:47 PM on December 15, 2023

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that the phone number of the Apple Watch is the same as the iPhone it's attached to. You don't get to have a separate number for the Watch.

You CAN get a separate number for the watch, though then of course you have to pay for the extra cell device accordingly. This is the arrangement we currently have for my kid on an Apple Watch with family setup, administered/configured/controlled through my parent iPhone.
posted by redfoxtail at 8:24 PM on December 15, 2023 [3 favorites]

Apple Watches with cellular network access actually do have their own phone number. Mine does, on Verizon. I have actually received spam phone calls on my watch that did not register on my phone.

I’m not well-versed in all the technical aspects, but I believe two things are true: Apple watches are unique devices on your existing mobile network plan, and they are also paired with your phone so that you can make and answer calls to your regular phone number using your watch.
posted by emelenjr at 6:21 AM on December 16, 2023

You do have to pay extra for an Apple Watch with cell phone service; it actually has its own phone number, though it's usually somewhat hidden on your account, at least it was for me on AT&T. I found using my Apple Watch as a phone very inconvenient and tiresome because I would have to remember to put it on "Do Not Disturb" when I didn't want to receive calls, so my latest iteration doesn't have its own cell service. You can indeed make and receive calls on the less-expensive Apple Watch if you're using WiFi, though I believe your watch stops automatically using WiFi when the phone isn't nearby, and I don't know if your 12-year-old has access to the school WiFi. Based on my experience, if you do get an Apple Watch for a 12-year-old, you're going to want to turn off a lot of features especially the one that asks you if you've "had a fall." I kept getting those alerts when I was at my sport practice. More info here.

I was a middle school teacher (11 and 12-year-olds) and it was embarrassing for the kids who forgot to put their phones on DND in school and therefore received calls from parents in the middle of class. They had a really hard time ignoring the phone, harder even than adults do, and it was really distracting for them.
posted by Peach at 6:37 AM on December 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

If you aren't dedicated to Android, consider switching the apple hardware is great, i dont agree with the software as an android person.

But kids are cruel, and the blue vs green bubble is a real thing, and you dont want your kid ostracized.

Id ask more about why the watch is needed but i assume its apple ecosystem, but who knows.
posted by TheAdamist at 1:57 PM on December 16, 2023