Apple Watch Series 3 owners frustrated by issues after WatchOS 7 update

By Aaron Mamiit Updated April 25, 2023

Owners of the Apple Watch Series 3 have reported various issues with the device, including random reboots, and freezing, since updating to WatchOS 7.

WatchOS 7, which was released on September 16, offers new features such as watch face customization, hand-washing tracking, and cycling directions, among many others. The operating system upgrade is compatible with Apple Watch Series 3 to Apple Watch Series 6, and the Apple Watch SE.

Unfortunately for owners of the Apple Watch Series 3, which was released in 2017, the upgrade has not gone as smoothly as they hoped. There is a growing thread on the Apple support forums where owners of the device have shared different problems that they have experienced after upgrading to WatchOS 7. In addition to random reboots and freezing, there have been complaints of battery drain, degraded functionality, and slower loading of apps.

Further worsening the problem is that there is no way to downgrade the Apple Watch Series 3 from WatchOS7 to WatchOS 6, and the device remains part of Apple’s official line-up even if it appears that it is struggling to keep up with new features, according to 9to5Mac.

Digital Trends has reached out to Apple for comments on the difficulties that Apple Watch Series 3 owners are facing with WatchOS 7, and if there is a timeline for a fix. We will update this article as soon as we hear back.

Meanwhile, interested customers on a budget may want to go with the Apple Watch SE instead of the Apple Watch Series 3, especially if these issues persist with the three-year-old device.

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