Does your brand new iPhone 13 ask you for the “Unable to communicate with Apple Watch” error when you try to activate the? Unlock with Apple Watch feature to make it easier to unlock iPhone while wearing a mask?
Does the pop-up ask you to wear the unlocked Apple Watch and unlock the iPhone to fix the problem, but you are already doing it?
Unable to communicate with Apple Watch Causes
It looks like a widespread issue affecting all iPhone 13 models including mini, Pro and Pro Max versions as confirmed this Reddit thread.
Apparently, the iPhone 2021 fails to generate its unlock keys, causing the Apple Watch to reject the unlock setup request, as the nearby screenshot confirms.
Made: Quite strange, conversely, unlocking the Apple Watch with the iPhone 13 works!
How to fix iPhone 13 unable to communicate with Apple Watch
The popup comes with two options to cancel and Try again. Obviously, hitting the first one won’t help!
To go for Try again will result in the same Unable to communicate error, and you may need to adjust with to cancel to clear the prompt.
Perform these troubleshooting steps to try to repair the Unlock with Apple Watch bug:
1. Install iOS 15 software update on iPhone 13
Early iPhone 13 users have confirmed that an iOS 15 software update is available out of the box for the brand new iPhones. Install it by radio link in Settings -> General -> Software Update.
2. Restart iPhone and Apple Watch
Another fix requires you to restart both devices. Restarting might erase minor issues that could prevent the iPhone and the watch from communicating properly and terminating the Unlock with Apple Watch installation process!
3. Unpair and repair Apple Watch
The next step is to reset the watchOS 8 device and re-pair it:
- 1. Open the To concern application on your iPhone.
- 2. In the My watch tab, press All watches, in the upper left corner of the screen.
- 3. Press orange ‘i’ icon, available next to the Apple Watch you want to unpair.
- 4. Use Unpair Apple Watch option.
- 5. Enter your Apple ID, if necessary. A backup of your watch will be automatically created and stored on your iOS 15 device.
- 6. As soon as the dissociation process is complete, you will get the Start pairing on the Watch app. Use it for repair the watch.
4. Update iPhone 13 to iOS 15.1 beta 1
One more thing that you can try to fix iPhone error 13. Unable to communicate with Apple Watch is to update the smartphone to iOS 15.1 Beta 1.
Made: If Apple was aware of this issue, it might have already included a fix in the next planned release of iOS 15!
5. Wait for iOS 15.0.1
If none of the above worked, you have to be patient until Apple releases an emergency software update like iOS 15.0.1 to fix this annoying issue.
Workaround: A less ideal workaround that you can apply is to remove the iPhone passcode requirement while you are shopping and have to wear a mask!
Did you manage to set up your Apple Watch to unlock iPhone while wearing a mask? Did any of the above fixes help you? Do you have a better solution? Use the comments section to share your comments. Please also mention which iPhone 13 and Apple Watch models you are talking about!
Related: Other iPhone 13 Day 1 issues reported today are:
– Apple Music not working after restoring from backup
– Home screen widgets are reset after restore from backup
We’ve also covered a significant number of iOS 15 bugs that affect all iPhone models:
– A storage bug triggers an iPhone almost full storage notification, when there is obviously enough free space available!
– Safari video playback does not work in some cases. Here’s how to fix the black screen bug!
– Live Text does not work on iPhone.
– Silent mode bug cuts audio playback for Instagram stories and reels.