One NZ joins smartwatch fray with $5/month plan - how others stack up

One NZ's smartwatch plan is cheaper than Spark's, but so far only works with the Samsung Galaxy Watch6 series (above), while Spark also supports Apple Watch.

One NZ has launched its first mobile plan for a smartwatch.

And although it’s last to the party, it’s bragging that its $5 per month “OneNumber” plan is two-thirds cheaper than Spark’s $12.99 equivalent.

Such plans can be used with a smartwatch that packs an e-sim (electronic sim card) that lets you use your mobile phone account via your “wearable” - so you can leave your phone at home, but still make Dick Tracy-style wrist-calls, stream music and use apps on your smartwatch.

However, for now, “OneNumber” will only work with Samsung’s just-launched Galaxy Watch6 LTE.

Support for Apple Watch is “on the way”, a One NZ spokeswoman said. [UPDATE: One NZ has now introduced e-sim support for the new Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2].

“Spark offers a connected watch experience for both Apple and Samsung watches. We were first to support Apple Watch one number several years ago,” a spokeswoman for Spark said.

2degrees (like Spark and One NZ) offers e-sim support for a range of phones) but not yet any wearables.

“Offering more e-siml functionality to customers is at the top of our development list, and we’ll have more to share soon,” a spokesman said.

Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.