Apple Offering Free Repairs for Apple Watch Series 5 and SE Models With Power Reserve Issue Not Fixed by watchOS 7.3.1

Apple today released watchOS 7.3.1 with a fix for an issue that can cause the Apple Watch Series 5 and SE not to charge after entering Power Reserve mode.

apple watch power reserve
In a support document, Apple outlines the issue, which affected "a very small number of customers." Apple says that these people saw a problem with charging after the Apple Watch went into Power Reserve mode.

While watchOS 7.3.1 will fix the issue for customers who haven't previously experienced it, those who already had the problem may need to get support from Apple. Apple says to check if an Apple Watch is affected by the bug, users should place the watch on a charger and then wait for at least 30 minutes.

If the Apple Watch won't charge after the 30 minute time period, customers should contact Apple Support to set up a mail-in repair, which will be done free of charge by Apple.

Related Forum: Apple Watch

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says These 7 U.S. States Plan to Offer iPhone Driver's Licenses

Monday February 9, 2026 6:24 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Apple Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, and then use it to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. The feature is currently available in 13 U.S. states and Puerto Rico, and it is expected to launch in at least seven more in the future. To set up the...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

New MacBook Pros Could Now Arrive in March

Sunday February 8, 2026 6:02 am PST by
New MacBook Pro models with the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips could arrive as soon as Monday, March 2, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In today's "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that the release of new MacBook Pro models is tied to the release of macOS Tahoe 26.3. The launch is said to be slated for as early as the week of March 2. He added that the M4 Pro and M4 Max models on sale today...

Top Rated Comments

Mr. Dee Avatar
65 months ago
Its one of the impressive parts of Apple, they really go out of their way to fix a product when there is a problem.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ouimetnick Avatar
65 months ago

Its one of the impressive parts of Apple, they really go out of their way to fix a product when there is a problem.
All things considered these units were recently released and would be covered under the regular 1 year warranty. This “offer” isn’t really anything special.. there is nothing “impressive” about covering a defect under the original 1 year warranty. The regular warranty covers defects in workmanship like we’ve seen here.

If this was a program being offered for 2-3 year old units, then we can talk.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PimpDaddy Avatar
65 months ago

Its one of the impressive parts of Apple, they really go out of their way to fix a product when there is a problem.
As someone who currently has a 15” Macbook Pro with a line of dead pixels down the center of the screen that are 99% due to a bad screen flex cable design I disagree somewhat. Had another Macbook Pro die on me years ago that was obviously due to a well documented issue with certain faulty logic board designs. Wasn’t covered by Apple because mine wasn’t in the serial number range they deemed was affected even though the issue was pinpointed to the exact same problem by an Apple certified repair center ??‍♂️.

I’d say they are hit and miss when it comes to acknowledging problematic issues. It seems like whenever it points in the direction of a design flaw they go to great lengths to subdue the issue. Maybe that’s because they sell so many units that the number of repairs/swaps they would have to make would cost a lot. That‘s just a bit of a dick move for a company that prides themselves on great design AND is the richest company in the world.

All said the above update mentioned in the article might explain why I had a Series 5 watch die on my during Xmas. Happy they exchanged mine for free and can fix it via software!
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
65 months ago
What a coincidence. Last week, Big Sur was killing the battery firmware of MacBooks. Now watchOS does something similar.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ApfelKuchen Avatar
65 months ago

All things considered these units were recently released and would be covered under the regular 1 year warranty. This “offer” isn’t really anything special.. there is nothing “impressive” about covering a defect under the original 1 year warranty. The regular warranty covers defects in workmanship like we’ve seen here.

If this was a program being offered for 2-3 year old units, then we can talk.
SE hasn't been around for a year yet, but Series 5 was introduced in September 2019, so there certainly are Series 5 that aren't covered by the one-year warranty.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple_Robert Avatar
65 months ago
Glad to see Apple step forward, take ownership, and an immediate customer solution.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)