Apple just made this classic Apple Watch obsolete, but it might not be the one you think

(Image credit: Luke Chesser / Unsplash)

The Apple Watch Series 1 is now officially obsolete, says Apple
That makes it harder to get official parts and repair service
Despite the name, it’s not the same device as the original Apple Watch

Are you still rocking an Apple Watch Series 1? If so, we’ve got some bad news: Apple has just declared it to be “obsolete,” making it much trickier to get proper service for your smartwatch. But the situation is actually slightly confusing, and there’s another model that is often confused for the Series 1.

We’ll get to that in a minute. But first, it’s worth understanding what Apple’s declaration means. Apple classifies its own products as “vintage” when the company stopped selling them more than five but fewer than seven years ago. Those products then graduate to becoming “obsolete” at some point after the seven-year mark. The Apple Watch Series 1 was discontinued seven years ago in 2018.

Having a vintage product isn’t so bad: it means that you should still be able to get it serviced with official parts from Apple, but only if those parts are actually available. Once it’s obsolete, though, Apple will no longer service it, and it’ll also stop making official parts available to third-party repair shops. That limits your options for getting the device fixed up, and that’s just what’s happened to the Apple Watch Series 1.

What’s in a name?

An Apple Watch strapped to a metal bar. — (Image credit: Future)

Despite what you might think, the Apple Watch Series 1 isn’t the same as the original Apple Watch – confusingly, it’s actually a second-generation model. Apple released the first Apple Watch in 2015 (after teasing it in 2014), then launched the Series 1 and Series 2 (as part of the same generation) in 2016. The Series 1 was essentially a rebadged version of the original Apple Watch with a slightly modified chip inside. The Series 2, meanwhile, was a more significant upgrade.

Interestingly, Apple declared the Series 2 to be obsolete in 2024 – before the Series 1, despite both hailing from the same generation. Apple stopped selling the Series 2 in 2017 – a year before the Series 1 – which might explain the discrepancy. Alternatively, Apple might simply have run out of parts for the Series 2 before those for the Series 1.

Either way, the reality is it’ll now be that much harder to repair an Apple Watch Series 1. You can try your luck at third-party repair shops, but you’ll be relying on unofficial components rather than the real deal. If you’ve been thinking about upgrading, now is the time to start weighing up your options. With the Apple Watch Series 11 just around the corner, there’s plenty to consider.

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Alex Blake has been fooling around with computers since the early 1990s, and since that time he's learned a thing or two about tech. No more than two things, though. That's all his brain can hold. As well as TechRadar, Alex writes for iMore, Digital Trends and Creative Bloq, among others. He was previously commissioning editor at MacFormat magazine. That means he mostly covers the world of Apple and its latest products, but also Windows, computer peripherals, mobile apps, and much more beyond. When not writing, you can find him hiking the English countryside and gaming on his PC.

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