[Update: May 19] Apple Watch users complain of slow charging, battery drain with 3rd-party chargers after watchOS 8.3 update

New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on December 17, 2021) follows:

Developed by Apple Inc. for its smartwatch lineup, watchOS is based on iOS. The operating system made its debut on the first generation of Apple Watch back in 2015.

Unsurprisingly, over the years, Apple developers added several features that make the Apple Watch one of the best smartwatches available to date. That being said, Apple recently released watchOS 8.3 just a few days ago.

The latest version brings in support for Apple Music Voice Plan and App Privacy Report. However, Apple Watch users say that they are facing various charging issues with 3rd party chargers after the update.

While some say that their devices are charging very slow, others complain of battery drain issues with a few saying that their device is not charging at all. This is really frustrating for those who lost their official charger or have switched to third-party chargers.

Users said they tried reconnecting the charger, leaving their Apple Watch overnight, and even resetting, but nothing seems to fix the charging issues.

I let my watch charge overnight and when I woke up to check on it, I realized it had not charged at all. I put it on the port snd it says its charging and after two seconds switches back to the home screen and asking for the passcode. It will do this back and forth from charging to home screen continuously. I tried restarting it, rebooting it, different charging blocks and everything. Has my watch shit the bed? Any advice helps!
(Source)

Updated my watch last night to 8.3, set it on my 3rd party charger this morning, came back after an hour and it had gained maybe 2%? Tried the same thing with my spouse’s watch and her 3rd party charger with the same result. Put them on the official charger, zoom, done charging in no time. Argh! Anyone else seeing the same thing? Is this something they might fix in future or are my 3rd party options now useless?
(Source)

As it turns out, switching back to the Apple charger fixes all charging issues, indicating that the update has something to do it. But with Apple yet to shed light on the matter, it is still unclear when it will be fixed.

In the meantime, Apple Watch owners will have to use the official charger to avoid the aforementioned charging issues.

Nonetheless, we will be keeping a keen eye on the matter and update this space when the developers fix the issue so make sure you stay tuned.

10:37 am (IST): As reports now have it, the draining battery issue on watchOS 8.3 update seems to stretch a lot further than initially thought.

This, as users of the Apple Watch Series 5, 6, and even Series 7 seem to all be facing battery drain issues.

As always, we shall continue to keep an eye on this story and update with new info as and when it becomes available so stay tuned.

10:48 am (IST): Apple released watchOS 8.4 update for Apple Watch owners and it brings a fix for the bug which could cause Apple Watch not to charge as intended.

03:28 pm (IST): Some users are now reporting (1, 2, 3) that the wireless charging issue has been fixed in the latest watchOS 8.6.

NOTE: We have more such stories in our dedicated watchOS Section so be sure to follow them as well.

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