watchOS 4.1 will bring LTE music and radio streaming to Apple Watch Series 3

The newly released watchOS 4.1 developer beta includes expansions to the Apple Watch's built-in Music app, including the ability to stream songs from Apple Music and iTunes Match via an LTE connection on the new Series 3 hardware.

Apple previously said that LTE music streaming for Apple Watch Series 3 will arrive to the public in October at the earliest. Wednesday's launch of watchOS 4.1 developer beta 1 suggests the feature is on track for launch within the coming weeks.

The release notes accompanying watchOS 4.1 note that the update will allow users to stream any song from Apple Music or the iCloud Music Library, which includes tracks purchased from iTunes and songs matched with iTunes Match.

Apple has said that athletes using music streaming with GPS and Bluetooth headphones can expect about four hours of uptime with Apple Watch Series 3 while running, biking or otherwise outdoors.

In addition, watchOS 4.1 will also include a new Radio app that gives access to Beats 1 live or any Apple Music radio station over LTE. It also works with Siri, letting users request genres to create custom stations on the fly.

However, the release notes for watchOS 4.1 note that the Radio app currently does not support cellular connections. Presumably that issue will be resolved before the software is released to the public.

In addition, the ESPN radio station is said to not operate at all, even when the watch is tethered to a phone or connected to Wi-Fi.

Access to radio stations beyond Beats 1 require a subscription to the Apple Music service, which is available for $9.99 per month for an individual or $14.99 in a family plan. iTunes Match, which costs $24.99 per year per person, does not include radio access.

AppleInsider published its review of the Apple Watch Series 3 earlier Wednesday, and found it to be an excellent device, even before Apple Music and iCloud Music Library streaming are available. However, the device is not meant to be entirely independent of an iPhone, as evidenced by its relatively short battery life when using its own LTE radio.

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26 Comments

airnerd 688 comments · 13 Years

About 7 years ago

And will it solve the inability to get LTE on the watch? Tim said it was a simple fix. Still waiting.

macxpress 5910 comments · 16 Years

Will it get rid of the ugly red dot on the watch?

ihatescreennames 1971 comments · 19 Years

airnerd said:

And will it solve the inability to get LTE on the watch? Tim said it was a simple fix. Still waiting.

I was under the impression there were issues with Series 3 holding onto Wi-Fi networks and not switching to LTE, I didn’t realize they were incapable of picking up LTE at all. Glad I’m waiting.

“Simple” doesn’t equal “fast”. Growing grass is simple, it still takes time.

alandail 768 comments · 20 Years

I don't know if it's because we have a business account, but Verizon has yet to be able to activate LET on our apple watches. I called Friday to get it set up, they failed, I gave them a few days to figure it out and tried again today and it still doesn't work. Either they didn't do enough training, or they somehow didn't manage to think business customers would buy these. I've been on the call for 90 minutes now, and have had multiple people tell me to insert a SIM card into my watch.

CourierJoe 1 comment · 7 Years

ihatescreennames said:

airnerd said:

And will it solve the inability to get LTE on the watch? Tim said it was a simple fix. Still waiting.

I was under the impression there were issues with Series 3 holding onto Wi-Fi networks and not switching to LTE, I didn’t realize they were incapable of picking up LTE at all. Glad I’m waiting.

“Simple” doesn’t equal “fast”. Growing grass is simple, it still takes time.

Try reading the article again. I have the Series 3 Apple Watch and LTE works fine. This article does NOT say what you said above. It simply states that on the new developer beta which includes Apple Music does not yet allow music over LTE, but will in its final form. Everything else works fine on LTE. The watch is truly incredible and music over LTE will be an awesome addition!