I just got an Apple Watch secondhand and I can’t figure out how to turn it on or if I’m even doing it right. I tried holding the side button and the Digital Crown, but nothing happens. I’m not sure if it’s dead, locked, or if I’m missing a step. Can someone walk me through how to properly power on an Apple Watch and what to check if it doesn’t respond?
Sounds like a mix of “new to Apple Watch” plus “secondhand mystery device,” so here’s a quick checklist.
-
Charge it first
• Put it on the magnetic charger, metal side to the back of the watch.
• Make sure the charger is plugged into a wall adapter, not a weak USB port.
• Leave it at least 30 minutes. If the battery was fully drained, it needs time before anything shows.
• If you see a red lightning bolt symbol, it needs more time. -
Turn it on the right way
• Press and hold the side button only.
• Do not hold the Digital Crown and side button together. That triggers force restart on a working watch.
• Hold the side button for about 5 to 10 seconds until the Apple logo shows.
• Then wait. Boot can take up to a minute on older models. -
Check if the charger or watch is dead
• Try another outlet.
• If you have another USB brick, swap it.
• If you know someone with an Apple Watch, test your charger on their watch or their charger on yours.
• No logo, no charging icon, no warmth at the back after 20 to 30 minutes often means battery or hardware problem. -
Check for activation lock / old owner issues
• If it turns on and shows a lock or asks for someone else’s Apple ID, it is activation locked.
• You need the previous owner to remove it from their iCloud account.
Path they need: Settings on their iPhone > their name > Find My > Find My iPhone > All Devices > pick the watch > Remove from Account.
• If they do not remove it, you will not be able to pair it. -
Force restart only if it shows some life
• If the screen lights up but freezes, then press and hold both the Digital Crown and the side button together for about 10 seconds until you see the Apple logo.
• Do this only after you know the watch has some charge. -
Quick sanity checks
• Make sure the plastic film is off the back, some people leave it on and the charger makes bad contact.
• Look for obvious damage around the screen or back. Cracked back can break charging.
• If it was stored for months or years, the battery might be dead and need a replacement.
If after a solid 60 minutes on a known good charger you get zero screen response, no Apple logo, no charging symbol, odds are the internal battery is gone or there is board damage. At that point your options are an Apple Store / repair shop quote or returning it to whoever sold it.
Couple of extra angles to check that @cazadordeestrellas didn’t really dig into:
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Confirm it’s actually an Apple Watch
Sounds dumb, but secondhand stuff can be weird. Flip it over and look at the text around the sensors. It should literally say “Apple Watch” plus the size (40mm, 44mm, etc.). If it doesn’t say that anywhere, it might be a clone, and nothing you do with the buttons will help. -
Check the charger is the right kind
A surprising number of “Apple Watch” chargers on resale sites are generic magnetic pucks for random smartwatches.
• Real Apple Watch chargers have a flat, white plastic puck, not a raised ring.
• The magnet should snap it into place pretty solidly.
If it sits there and slides around like a cheap fridge magnet, the pins might not be lined up properly or it’s not made for Apple Watch at all. -
Try a proper USB power source
I actually disagree a bit with only blaming the watch after an hour. Laptop USB ports and car chargers can be super weak. I’ve had a totally dead Apple Watch sit on a PC USB port and do nothing, then boot in 10 minutes once I stuck it on a 5W iPhone brick.
So:
• Use a phone wall adapter, at least 5W
• Avoid plugging into a monitor, keyboard, TV, etc. for this test -
Look really closely at the back glass
Micro cracks around the sensors or a slightly lifted back can kill charging completely. Run your fingernail around the back edge. If it snags or you feel a ridge, the back might be separating. If that’s the case, no amount of button holding is going to save it until it’s repaired. -
Check for any faint signs of life
In a dark room, plug it in and look very carefully:
• Any super faint glow?
• Any super quick flash when you first place it on the charger?
• Feel the back after 10–15 min. Is it even slightly warm?
No glow, no tiny flash, no warmth at all after a decent time on a known-good charger is a really bad sign for the battery or power circuitry. -
About the “holding both buttons” thing
You mentioned holding side + Digital Crown together. That combo is a forced restart, which only works when the watch already has some life. On a fully dead or nearly dead watch, that does nothing and can just confuse you into thinking you’re doing the right thing. For testing, only use the side button after you’ve charged it a while. -
Check the model age vs. expectations
If this is an older model (Series 0, 1, 2, sometimes 3) and it sat in a drawer for months or years, there’s a decent chance the battery is deep discharged. At that point:
• It might “wake up” after a long time on a real charger (like 2–3 hours), or
• The battery is so far gone it needs a replacement, no matter what. -
When it finally shows anything
The moment you see:
• Red lightning bolt
• Green charging icon
• Apple logo
at that point stop experimenting and just let it sit and charge until it hits at least 20–30%. Don’t keep mashing buttons or trying restarts, it only slows the boot / charge cycle.
If you’ve:
• Verified it’s a real Apple Watch
• Used a known legit Apple Watch charger
• Used a solid wall adapter
• Left it for at least 60–90 minutes
…and still zero logo, zero charging icon, zero warmth, then honestly it’s probably a dead battery or internal power issue. In that case your real options are: get a battery / hardware quote from Apple or a repair shop, or go back to the seller and treat it as “sold as broken,” because that’s effectively what you have.
Skip the Crown + side button combo for now. To actually turn an Apple Watch on from dead, it only needs the side button, but if you get nothing even after charging, I’d look at a few different angles than what @cazadordeestrellas already covered.
1. Rule out an activation lock / paired-then-wiped mess
Secondhand Apple Watches sometimes look “dead” because the previous owner half‑reset them.
- If it ever shows a tiny phone + watch icon, or a link to set up, it’s not dead, it is just waiting to pair.
- When you do get it to boot, immediately:
- Open the Watch app on your iPhone.
- Try to pair.
- If you see “This Apple Watch is linked to an Apple ID,” the seller must remove Activation Lock or you basically own a paperweight.
This does not stop it from powering on, but it is the next big hurdle, so better to know early.
2. Test the buttons themselves
People focus on the battery, but those side buttons can actually fail.
- Press the side button repeatedly, short presses, while it is on a charger.
- Feel for a tactile click. If it is mushy or stuck, the switch may be bad.
- Try slowly rotating and pressing the Digital Crown. If it is seized or gritty, water or sweat damage is likely, which often brings other board problems.
If the side button is physically dead, it might never register the power-on press even if the battery is fine.
3. Use sound as a clue
Put it on the charger in a completely quiet room:
- Listen for:
- A faint chime when connecting to power.
- Any tiny coil whine or high‑pitched noise after 10 to 20 seconds.
- If you hear the charge chime but see no screen, you are probably dealing with a display issue, not a power issue.
In that case, shining a bright flashlight directly on the screen at an angle can sometimes reveal a super‑dim Apple logo or UI, which confirms a screen/backlight failure instead of a dead watch.
4. Try a different type of charger scenario
I partly disagree with the idea that 60 to 90 minutes is always enough to judge. On some really drained older Series, I have seen:
- Nothing at all for over 2 hours.
- Then suddenly a red lightning bolt, then eventually the Apple logo.
So if you have:
- A second Apple Watch charger from a friend or family member, test with that.
- A different wall adapter entirely.
- Optionally, an Apple Store or repair shop nearby, they can slap it on their known-good pucks to see if it wakes.
The trick is to change one variable at a time so you know what made the difference.
5. Look for signs of liquid or “non‑obvious” damage
Flip it over and:
- Check the gaps around the back glass for corrosion, green/white residue or discoloration.
- Inspect the strap slots. Rust or sticky residue there is a big hint the watch has seen water or sweat + no cleaning.
Water damaged Apple Watches often refuse to power even though the back glass looks normal and the seller will swear it was “hardly used.”
6. Consider the economics before chasing repairs
If after all of this:
- No warmth on a good charger
- No faint display hints with a flashlight
- Side button is physically fine
- No tones, no churn, nothing at all
You are almost certainly looking at a dead battery or power IC. At that point, you have to ask:
- Is it a very old Series (0 / 1 / 2 / 3)?
Paying for a battery / board repair might cost close to what a newer used model goes for. - Did you get it cheap enough that a repair still makes sense?
If not, your better play is usually to go back to the seller or chalk it up to “sold as broken.”
A lot of folks, including @cazadordeestrellas, covered the basics really thoroughly. I would lean harder on checking for a failed display or button and not just assuming total battery death.
Pros & cons of sticking with this secondhand Apple Watch path
Pros:
- If it is just deeply discharged, leaving it long enough on a good charger could give you a fully functional watch for very little money.
- Even with a dead battery, a successful replacement can still be cheaper than buying brand new.
- Once it does power on and pass Activation Lock, you effectively have the same software experience as a new Apple Watch, just at a discount.
Cons:
- If the logic board is damaged, repair can be nearly the cost of a newer used unit.
- You may hit Activation Lock and be blocked unless the original owner cooperates.
- Time sink: you can spend days testing chargers, adapters and repair quotes only to find it is not economical.
Bottom line: try a different verified Apple Watch charger and wall adapter, watch and listen closely for any sign of life, test the buttons, and be ready to cut your losses if it stays completely inert after a few hours on known-good power.