Video: Apple Watch Series 3

Last week, I canceled the data plan associated with my Apple Watch Series 3.

It’s not that I didn’t find the added service useful or beneficial. It’s the exact opposite.

Enjoyed the connectivity

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Until I canceled the plan, I enjoyed random trips to the grocery store with only my AirPods and Apple Watch. With just those two gadgets, I could call my wife to ensure my shopping list was complete or listen to music while I shopped. And with Apple Pay built into the watch, I was still able to pay without using my debit card.

Once, I randomly had to chase my dog down the block and into the middle of the field, and the unanticipated moment meant my iPhone was left at home on the table. I then had to rely on the ability to place a call through the watch in order to get a ride after I had tracked my dog down.

It all boils down to cost

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The problem with the cellular plan on the Apple Watch isn’t connectivity, battery life, or that it’s missing any features. It all boils down to the monthly cost. The going rate of $10 per month, before taxes and fees, is just too much.

The going rate of $10 per month, before taxes and fees, is just too much.

I did the math, and I realized I’m paying way too much for the amount of data the watch uses. Taking into account the launch promotions and a total of $55 of credits from AT&T, which made the first three months of service free, and the waived activation fee, I’ve still paid an average of $13.82 per month for my Apple Watch to connect to AT&T’s network.

Over five months, I used a total of 19.53MB of data. That averages to 3.91MB of data per month.

Is peace of mind worth it?

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Once I realized how little data the watch used — compared the amount I paid — I canceled service. It’s hard to justify the cost, even when taking into account the peace of mind that comes with an always-connected gadget on my wrist.

For the past week, I’ve contemplated a fee I would feel comfortable paying, and I don’t have an answer yet. Perhaps a one-time activation fee — and then the watch would use data from an LTE data plan I’m already paying.

Keep in mind, at one point, overage fees were $10 or $15 per gigabyte of data. Using just under 4MB of data a month is practically nothing.

And, right now, I’m not willing to pay for it.

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