Apple is offering free screen replacements to Apple Watch owners after discovering a rare flaw in the popular smartwatch’s display.
The company is offering free repairs to Apple Watch customers flaunting cracked displays – but only if the crack follows a very specific pattern.
“Apple has determined that, under very rare circumstances, a crack may form along the rounded edge of the screen in aluminum models of an Apple Watch Series 2 or Series 3”, admitted Apple on Friday. “The crack may begin on one side and then may continue around the screen”.
Read our review of the Apple Watch Series 4
Unfortunately, not all Apple Watch models can take advantage of the free repairs. Watches eligible for the Apple Watch screen replacement programme include all Apple Watch Series 2 devices sold between September 2016 and September 2017 and all Apple Watch Series 3 devices sold between September 2017 and September 2019, including the Nike+ versions of the two models.
This means that the original Apple Watch, the Series 1 and the most recent Apple Watch Series 4 are not covered by the programme, signifying that the issue was more than likely fixed before the Series 4 was released, whether Apple knew about the damages beforehand or not.
If you’re one of the lucky – or unlucky – customers seeing this specific damage on your own Series 2 or 3 smartwatch, Apple will replace the faulty display free of charge.
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To take advantage of the programme, you can visit an Apple Authorised Service Provider, schedule an appointment at an Apple Retail Store or contact Apple Support to arrange to have your watch mailed out to an Apple Repair Centre. Apple will examine the device before shipping it off for repair and aim to return it to you five business days later.
You can read more about how to prepare your Apple Watch for service on Apple’s website.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
