• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechChange the World

Prepaid Wireless Customers Can’t Add Apple Watch Series 3 to Their Plans

By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 13, 2017, 6:05 PM ET

Millions of people who pre-pay their wireless bill every month won’t be able to add the new Apple Watch to their service.

All four major wireless carriers—Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile—confirmed to Fortune on Wednesday that only customers on regular monthly plans will be able to sign up for Apple Watch Series 3 cellularservice for an LTE plan. 

Apple unveiled its Apple Watch Series 3 on Tuesday alongside three new iPhone models and a revamped Apple TV set-top box. The new iPhones, the 8 models and iPhone X, will work fine for customers on prepaid service, which typically costs less and doesn’t require a credit check. But the new Apple watch, which has LTE cellular connectivity for the first time since the original Apple watch debuted two years ago, will only be accepted on monthly, or postpaid plans for an extra $10 monthly at Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile.

Prepaid plans are most popular in low-income areas, but are also commonly used by students and people who just want to save money on their wireless bill.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The Apple Watch may have been considered a luxury item initially, but Apple has steadily cut the price of entry. After Tuesday’s announcement, Apple lowered the price of its original watch to $249. The new Series 3 version with a cellular connection starts at $399.

Although not a breakout hit, Apple Watch has steadily increased sales with a focus on fitness tracking, notifications and an array of fashionable bands. Apple has not disclosed any sales figures for the Watch. 

The big carriers have been increasingly competing for prepaid customers, but generally without using their main brands. AT&T offers prepaid service under its Cricket Wireless brand. Sprint owns two prepaid brands, Boost and Virgin. T-Mobile mainly relies on MetroPCS to offer prepaid service, while Verizon, which has not emphasized the segment much, uses its one brand for all kinds of plans.

At the end of the second quarter, T-Mobile (TMUS) had 20 million prepaid customers, AT&T (T) 14 million, Sprint (S) almost 9 million and Verizon (VZ) 5 million. All of the carriers have more subscribers for postpaid service.

About the Author
By Aaron Pressman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

AIMeta
It’s ‘kind of jarring’: AI labs like Meta, Deepseek, and Xai earned some of the worst grades possible on an existential safety index
By Patrick Kulp and Tech BrewDecember 5, 2025
2 hours ago
Elon Musk
Big TechSpaceX
SpaceX to offer insider shares at record-setting valuation
By Edward Ludlow, Eric Johnson, Loren Grush and BloombergDecember 5, 2025
2 hours ago
data center
EnvironmentData centers
The rise of AI reasoning models comes with a big energy tradeoff
By Rachel Metz, Dina Bass and BloombergDecember 5, 2025
2 hours ago
netflix
Arts & EntertainmentAntitrust
Hollywood writers say Warner takeover ‘must be blocked’
By Thomas Buckley and BloombergDecember 5, 2025
2 hours ago
person
CybersecurityDigital
Dictionaries’ words of the year are trying to tell us something about being online in 2025
By Roger J. KreuzDecember 5, 2025
3 hours ago
Greg Peters
Big TechMedia
Top analyst says Netflix’s $72 billion bet on Warner Bros. isn’t about the ‘death of Hollywood’ at all. It’s really about Google
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 5, 2025
5 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Two months into the new fiscal year and the U.S. government is already spending more than $10 billion a week servicing national debt
By Eleanor PringleDecember 4, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
‘Godfather of AI’ says Bill Gates and Elon Musk are right about the future of work—but he predicts mass unemployment is on its way
By Preston ForeDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nearly 4 million new manufacturing jobs are coming to America as boomers retire—but it's the one trade job Gen Z doesn't want
By Emma BurleighDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits he works 7 days a week, including holidays, in a constant 'state of anxiety' out of fear of going bankrupt
By Jessica CoacciDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Real Estate
‘There is no Mamdani effect’: Manhattan luxury home sales surge after mayoral election, undercutting predictions of doom and escape to Florida
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Tariffs and the $38 trillion national debt: Kevin Hassett sees ’big reductions’ in deficit while Scott Bessent sees a ‘shrinking ice cube’
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.