Untethering the iPhone chain

Cellular connectivity is useful in specific situations; Watch is snappy and fast thanks to S3 processor; watchOS 4 adds great new features

Price is on the high-end of the smartwatch market; Cellular connectivity is only available with Bell; Cellular only does not get all-day battery life

T he Apple Watch Series 3 ushers in a new era of independence for the world’s most popular smartwatch device as it no longer needs to be tethered to a smartphone via Bluetooth in order to fully function.

Buy the Apple Watch Series 3, but not to replace your phone (yet)

Makes calls from your wrist; Voice control is excellent; A joy to use; Masses of personalization options; Superb fitness tracking ability

Third-party app support is lacking; Expensive; Speaker is quiet

A genuine gadget marvel, but its 4G smarts just need a little longer in the tech oven

Incredibly small for a 4G smartwatch; Still the best fitness tracker around; Voice calls work surprisingly well; Battery life holds up; even when using 4G; Huge array of bands means you can make it your own

Only available on one carrier in the UK; Apple Music streaming not yet available on 4G; Not all apps work on 4G without your phone; You still need an iPhone to use it; Overkill if you mainly want fitness tracking

It's feels strange that Apple didn't, like the iPhone X, announce its cellular Watch Series 3 as a 'coming soon' option. Right now, it can't stream Apple Music, is only available on one UK network, has quite a few apps that lack Watch-only functionality, and is awaiting a software update for a very minor Wi-Fi handoff issue. In a few months, a lot of that should be ironed out and I'm confident that we'll then update this review with an extra star and a number one ranking in our Top 10. Until then, the cheaper Series 3 (GPS) is the sensible choice for anyone craving a smart sportswatch. This doesn't mean you shouldn't buy the Series 3 (GPS + Cellular) now. It's the age old gadget conundrum: do you pay a premium and put up with a few niggles to be among the first to try out a fancy new technology? If you're happy to do that, I'd heartily recommend the cellular version. I was originally sceptical of 4G smartwatches but, for the first time in a decade, it's made me consider popping out or going for bike rides without my smartphone. Why's that a good thing? Because it's a useful buffer against mindless Twitter swiping and is a far more practical 'phone' for trips into the great, soaking British outdoors. The Series 3's 4G connectivity is also the icing on an already excellent smartwatch cake. A smartwatch that lets you eat more cakes, in fact, because it's so good at motivating you to move and exercise. Right now, none of its rivals can match its combination of fitness-focused apps and personalisable design. This could change with the imminent Fitbit Ionic, Garmin Vivoactive 3 and Samsung Gear Sport. But right now, the Series 3 (GPS) and this bold phone-watch are the leading pack.

Incredibly small for a 4G smartwatch; Still the best fitness tracker around; Voice calls work surprisingly well; Battery life holds up, even when using 4G; Huge array of bands means you can make it your own;

Only available on one carrier in the UK; Apple Music streaming not yet available on 4G; Not all apps work on 4G without your phone; You still need an iPhone to use it; Overkill if you mainly want fitness tracking;

Incredibly small for a 4G smartwatch; Still the best fitness tracker around; Voice calls work surprisingly well; Battery life holds up, even when using 4G; Huge array of bands means you can make it your own;

Only available on one carrier in the UK; Apple Music streaming not yet available on 4G; Not all apps work on 4G without your phone; You still need an iPhone to use it; Overkill if you mainly want fitness tracking;

Incredibly small for a 4G smartwatch; Still the best fitness tracker around; Voice calls work surprisingly well; Battery life holds up, even when using 4G; Huge array of bands means you can make it your own;

Only available on one carrier in the UK; Apple Music streaming not yet available on 4G; Not all apps work on 4G without your phone; You still need an iPhone to use it; Overkill if you mainly want fitness tracking;

The Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular takes a major step forward in making Apple's wrist-worn device its own independent, connected computing platform. Simply put, it's a must-have for athletes in the Apple ecosystem, and a wearable device worth considering for many other non-fitness use cases.

It's not easy to thoughtfully integrate cellular and LTE service on a wearable. A number of Android Wear devices have tried in the past, and none of them hit home runs. In my short time with the Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE, it's clear that Apple has the software chops to make cellular and LTE a...

Battery life can stand up to some LTE use; Audible Siri responses make hands-free, eyes-free Watch interactions easy; Improved performance thanks to S3 dual-core processor.

Why the red dot? Why?, LTE models require additional monthly charges by wireless service providers; Quite expensive even before extra monthly wireless charges; Standalone LTE can be unreliable; No on-Watch toggles to disconnect Wi-Fi and Bluetooth manually.

The biggest feature is the addition of cellular capability which makes it possible to use the Watch independently of paired iPhones.