Apple Watch Activation issue

Just to update this thread should others have the same issue.  I finally have my Apple Watch activated on Xfinity Mobile as of yesterday.  I was on vacation for a week a few days after first attempting to activate my watch and creating this initial post.  While I was told my ticket was escalated and I would get a call back in 24-48 hours that never happened.  When I returned form vacation after over a week with no response from Xfinity Mobile support I decided to try a new approach.  I sent an email to a comcast executive expressing my frustration with the process an the poor customer service I was receiving.  I got an email from executive escalations later that day asking for my contact info and account information.  I received a call shortly after responding from Salinthia on the XM Executive Resolution team.  This is where for the first time some actual progress was made.  Salinthia asked me to go over the issue with her then said she would call me back in a few hours.  I was skeptical but to my surprise she did call back.  She actually called 4 times that day to update me on what she was doing and/or request more information from me.  At the end of the day she had identified the issue.  For some reason my watch was not listed in Verizon's device inventory and could not be activated.  Xfinity had to put in a ticket with Verizon to get the watch added to their inventory.  I was told that unfortunately this request would take 1-2 weeks.

Researching this further it seems this is common with verizon when moving from another network to verizon, though my watch was newly purchased from apple so I'm not sure why it wasnt available.  From my research it seems this can be just as painful to get completed when dealing with verizon CS as they also don't know what they are doing either.  Though it is an instant fix if you get the right representative.  It was at this point I decided to wait the 1-2 weeks in hopes it would be easier than switching carriers and potentially facing the same issue.

Fast forward to last Friday and I try to add my watch again and to my surprise I don't get the "uh-oh" error but instead the process just times out and doesn't complete.  Being a long weekend I was unable to get back in touch with customer service until yesterday.  I called Salinthia and explained what was going on currently and after a bit more research she determined my watch was now available to be added to my account.  She at this point still had to manually add the watch as it still wouldn't work through the standard process, but it was finally added.

All in all I'm happy to have this resolved, and can not run without having to bring my phone.  While the underlying issue appeared to be an issue with the Verizon network they run on and out of Xfinity's control, that is not an excuse for the extremely poor customer service.  I shouldn't have to email the C-suite just to get on the phone with someone who can do more than read a script and not actual escalate an issue when they say they will. 

Like many here I have the exact same issue. Tier 3 is working on mine…it’s been about 12 days and no answer yet. Apple ran diagnostics on my series 6 and as I knew all along, no problems with the watch. This is an XM issue. Yes great prices with XM but, 1/2 the service is working. So not so great…They gave me full credit for my bill while they’re still working the problem. 

I have same issue. Apple Watch  5 was on sprint/T-Mobile.  Got new xfinity plan and activated new phone and old watch. Could not get watch to work. Unpaired/ repaired like 10 times.  Finally got transferred to Apple rep that screen shared to my phone then told that me an ICCID number (watch app/ my watch/general/about) was missing on Apple watch. Called xfinity techie tech and told him what she said and come to find out after hours and hours that my watch is NOT compatible with the Xfinity mobile service.  Great. Who knew 😕🙁

Hello, @user_752612 and any others seeking assistance for this issue. 

For assistance with your concerns about the Apple watch, you would need to contact our Xfinity Mobile support center via any of the following methods:

• SMS Text Message: 1 (888) 936-4968

• Phone: 1 (888) 936-4968

I definitely do apologize if that hasn't resulted in a resolution just yet, over forums though, that is our next step and recommendation for you. 

Whoa- we must be living the exact same experience!! I even sent the watch I’m for repairs (went to the apple store). A week later it was returned and still no hope to connecting cellular. Why isn’t xfinity figuring this out? It seems to be more common than they think! Urgh

have you had any luck? i am still trying to get mine working as well... two months later..

I just bought an Apple Watch 6 with GPS and cellular and I was able to get cellular service on it. The problem is that I had to replace the watch I bought and when I went through the pairing process with the new watch and set up the cellular service again, I now have 2 watches on my xfinity account. I had successfully unpaired and disconnected the xfinity cellular service when I returned the original watch. I'm working with xfinity now to see if we can delete the old phone.  However, we can't figure out which watch is which.  The watch names on the account shows "AppleWatch####" but have no idea which is the original that needs to be disconnected.  I'll probably have to call Apple. 

I’ve been having the same issue since July! I gave up ;((

I’ve been having the same issue since July 2021….Seems they disconnect you if you call back…I gave up! Saving 10.00 a month a a lot of frustration 

I'm not alone.  Just made the switch from Verizon and all is working well with the family phones.  The Apple 5 Watches however are proving a problem with the Cellular setup.  8 + hours with at least 4 agents and I am running low on energy and patience.  Clearly Xfinity does not have this figured out - total pain on the A$$.  I get to Step 3 of 4 on the activation and it just can't clear the last hurdle.   Lots of friendly support from Xfinity, but of no real use.  Ugh!  

So I know this is gonna sound stupid, but it’s full on worth a try. 

just like everyone else, never could get my cellular data to work. 

I ended up just asking them did I even add the data plan to my watch? Sure enough, I didn’t… 

of course the watch will work if you within like 200ft of your phone and then after that not so much. 

you have the “smart watch” fee or some junk like that and then you have the data just like we do with our phones.

so that was my problem with mine the whole time. Like I said, may sound stupid, but it’s worth looking into and asking them. 

Honestly they seem to have a hard time with apple watches.  Every time I get one (2nd one with them) it’s the same hoops.  They system they have is not set up.  I kept saying it doesn’t have a sim.  It has to get escalated so a digital SIM card is created by them.  4 hours on the phone for them to finally do it this time.  Last time took me 4 days I swear but that was my first and learning process.  One would think Xfinity would have learned by now but it seems they do they same hoop jump for everyone.  

I’m having similar issues with activating cellular in my new Apple Watch 7. I have been on calls with Xfinity and Apple as well with each blaming the other company. This is ridiculous. At this point I think i’ll try a couple more days and maybe switch to a different carrier.

***ATTENTION - ANYONE HAVING ISSUES ACTIVATING APPLE WATCH ON XFINITY MOBILE - UPDATED OCT. 17 2021***

To anyone if you’re having this issue where your Apple Watch is not activating and you’re receiving an error message to the effect of:

”Uh oh! Something went wrong and we were unable to complete your activation and your information was not saved”, etc etc.

This issue can be resolved and it will not take several months and you do not need to switch carriers out of frustration. That said, Xfinity Mobile is an MVNO which means they operate on Verizon’s network and their systems are structured a little differently meaning the same way Verizon activates an Apple Watch may not be the same way Xfinity Mobile activates it. Having said that if there is a technical problem since Xfinity Mobile runs on Verizon’s networks their advanced engineering and back office support teams may also need to resolve tickets that go to Verizon support for assistance. 

Couple of things I can tell you right off the bat:

1) Customer support reps over the phone have no idea how to fix this issue

2) To save you the time un-pairing your Watch multiple times and re-pairing it will not resolve the issue either 

3) Wiping and factory erasing your iPhone is unnecessary and will not resolve the issue

4) It’s not an Apple issue- Apple is not a cell phone carrier so not activating on a cellular network would not be a troubleshooting issue they can fix that’s up to the wireless carrier you have partnering with you to escalate the issue and get you provisioned and activated. 

5) And last but not least-make sure you meet these sets of criteria:

* You’re account needs to be current 

* You need to be eligible to add another line as the Apple Watch occupies a service line on the account 

* The Apple Watch must be compatible/unlocked. In most cases only AT&T Apple Watches or other MVNO carriers like Cricket may be incompatible with Xfinity Mobile. Use their BYOD compatibility checker tool on xfinitymobile.com to check this.

* Both Apple Watch and iPhone software should be up to date/current

* If you are newer to Xfinity Mobile and have ported your number to them you must allow the port process to complete in its entirety which can be immediate or take a few days. (This depends on how fast your old carrier releases your number for port out)

Once you confirm that you meet this criteria perform a Google Search for Xfinity Executive Resolutions Team. You will see a link to contact their team via email. Include your Xfinity Mobile Account number, Xfinity mobile number, full name, the number and type of iPhone you want your watch paired to, and then the IMEI and EID number of your watch that you want activated. Also what type of Apple Watch it is.

I’m not sure about all these other posts of people waiting months or what their stories were I bought a Series 7 on launch day 10/15 which was a Friday tried to activate it Friday night it didn’t work I spent like 2 hours on the phone troubleshooting and then I emailed Executive Resolutions on 10/16 and they actually reached out to me the following day on 10/17 which was a Sunday in the evening and figured out the issue and got my Apple Watch activated. 

Basically what they had to do was manually add the Watch and then ask me again for my IMEI and my EID (electronic ID/AKA eSIM) and within 5 minutes the device was showing on my account and I was activated. They had to submit another order in their system to activate/add the line. 

As a reminder, Apple Watches do not take physical SIMs. 

Also, no disrespect- but the outsourced call center people from the Philippines have no idea how to fix this issue. Don’t waste your time with them. 

Hope this gives you hope and helps you get your issue resolved. Good luck!

Having the same issue and I bought the watch directly from Xfinity. Unacceptable.