The Apple Watch is one of those things I’ve never really understood. Don’t get me wrong, I see why people would love it, but I just didn’t think it was for me. I don’t use a fitness tracker, I don’t want to be more connected, and I already wear an analog watch. For those reasons, I’ve always struggled with the idea of spending a few hundred dollars on something I didn’t absolutely need. That being said, I’ve always though the Apple Watch would be very handy while traveling. Specifically, I’ve always loved the idea of using an Apple Watch boarding pass
It’s that idea, the idea of using a boarding pass on an Apple Watch that eventually convinced me to buy one. Still, I wasn’t quite sure the Apple Watch was for me so I decided to do a bit of a trial run. Instead of buying the latest and greatest Apple Watch I started small. I did this to minimize my investment in the event I didn’t love the watch. So, a few months ago I finally caved in and bought an Apple Watch Series 3.
Buying An Apple Watch Series 3
Apple currently sells two versions of the Apple Watch on their website. The first, and most recent version, is the Apple Watch Series 5. The Series 5 starts at $399, but that’s just for the smaller GPS-only model. Iff you want the larger 42mm watch face with cellular connectivity, you can expect to pay closer to $530. Prices only continue to go up from there.
Apple also currently sells the Apple Watch Series 3 from 2017 as new on their website. The series 3 Apple Watches are more reasonably priced with prices starting at $199. Again, you can expect to pay more for the larger watch face and cellular connectivity, but those models start at $330.
For me, because I was still on the fence about owning an Apple Watch long term, I opted for the GPS-only 42mm model.
I placed my order on the Apple Store app on my phone and the series 3 Apple Watch arrived a few days later. Setup was easy enough and before long my watch was fully functional.
However, before I used the Apple Watch boarding pass feature I had to first download the various airline apps.
Using An Apple Watch Boarding Pass At The TSA Checkpoint
As I mentioned previously, I bought the Apple Watch primarily for traveling. I especially wanted to use the Apple Watch boarding pass for my next flight.
My next flight came a few days later and getting everything setup couldn’t have been easier. I opened the American Airlines app, checked in for my flight, and pulled down my Apple Watch boarding pass directly from the watch. From there, I left my apartment for the airport to catch my flight.
On the way to the airport I started to really appreciate the Apple Watch. I loved seeing real time information at a glance on my wrist. This was especially useful at the airport when I checked to see if the flight was still on time or if our departure gate had changed.
Next came the TSA checkpoint. When I arrived at the TSA podium I had already put all of my other personal belongings into my carryon. Instead of using my phone’s mobile boarding pass, I activated Apple Watch boarding pass on my watch. This brought up the full-screen QR code which I could then scan at the TSA podium. This is where I ran into trouble.
The TSA’s boarding pass scanner was sitting on the podium a little below chest level. This meant that I had to raise and turn my wrist in an awkward way to line my watch face up with the scanner. Likewise, I couldn’t exactly see what was happening and I found it hard to scan the Apple Watch boarding pass. After a few tries my boarding pass worked and I was directed to the scanners. Overall, the process wasn’t nearly as smooth as I originally anticipated.
Using The Apple Watch Boarding Pass At The Gate
As I left security and made my way to the gate I again noticed the positives of having an Apple Watch. When our gate change my watch buzzed and I could quickly glance at the new gate number. I also received notifications for any other changes to the flight such as a delay. Again, I really liked having the Apple Watch in this situation because it meant I wasn’t buried in my phone when trying to pass through the crowded terminal.
However, when it was time to board the flight I again ran into the same issue I noticed at the TSA Checkpoint. As I was boarding the flight I again opened the Apple Watch boarding pass and pulled up the QR code. I then tried to scan that code on the gate’s boarding pass scanner with lackluster results. To scan my Apple Watch boarding pass I again had to contort my arm at an odd angle to align my boarding pass with the gate scanner. After a few attempts my boarding pass registered and I was directed to board the flight.
Again, this process wasn’t as seamless as I would have liked and the entire process called into question the continued use of the Apple Watch boarding pass.
Final Thoughts
I ended up keeping my Apple Watch for a few months, but ultimately decided it wasn’t for me. At the end of the day, I just didn’t like having a phone on my wrist. I grew tired of the various notifications and the watch trying to get me to start a workout every time I went for a walk. Mostly, I grew tired of trying to make the Apple Watch boarding pass work at the airport.
Eventually I gave up entirely and went back to using my phone which defeated the purpose of owning the watch. So, after a few months I traded my Apple Watch back into Apple for a small loss. Sure, there was a cost associated with testing out the Apple Watch, but I’m glad I did. At least now I know that it’s not for me and I don’t need to revisit it anytime soon.
