Apple Stores to Restore Apple Watch Software In-House
Apple Stores and Authorized Service Providers will soon use an in-house repair dock to restore Apple Watch software without shipping devices. The change speeds up fixes for issues like failed updates and boot loops that iPhone restores cannot handle.
Currently, Apple Watches that cannot be restored using an iPhone must be mailed to an Apple Repair Center. Customers wait while the device ships to the depot, undergoes repair, and ships back, as no in-store repair option exists.
Starting later this month, Apple Stores and AASPs gain access to an Apple Watch repair dock that connects to a Mac for software restoration. This enables quicker fixes for software-based issues.
Apple introduced an iPhone-based wireless restore with watchOS 8.5 and iOS 15.4, but it works only when a restore prompt appears on the Watch. Failed updates, bricked devices, and boot loops require specialized repair unavailable in stores until now.
Early Apple Watch models featured a diagnostic port for in-store software fixes, but Apple removed it with Series 7 and shifted to wireless restoration. Software repairs then moved exclusively to Apple Service Centers.
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