Google has announced the next major version of Wear OS, called Wear OS 4 that would be coming to Android-based smartwatches later this year. Google has also detailed some of the features that would be coming alongside the update, including improved battery life management, Watch Face format built in partnership with Samsung, data backup functionality and more.
While most of the new features and apps would be integrated with the new software, some of the new apps coming to Wear OS before Wear OS 4 include WhatsApp and Spotify’s new tiles. We reported how a beta version of the app is already available for those to download who are currently using the WhatsApp Beta on their Android smartphones. However, the new confirmation assures that WhatsApp will be launching its “first-ever smartwatch app in the coming weeks”.
Then, more Google app features are coming to your smartwatch such as updates to the Google Home app. You’ll now be able to check who rang your Nest doorbell right in your notifications, remotely unlock your door and more. Gmail and Google Calendar will also be coming to Wear OS later this year.
In addition, three new Spotify tiles are coming soon, so you can easily play new episodes of your favorite podcasts, see what’s in your heavy rotation and jump into a curated lineup of music chosen for you by Spotify’s DJ.
Wear OS 4: What’s new?
Wear OS 4 is now official and is based on Android 13. It finally brings a much requested feature of restore and back up for smartwatches. This feature was long overdue and was a major one that was missing from both Wear OS 3 and Wear OS 3.5. It should apparently allow users to pair the watch with another phone without the need to factory reset it every time.
Then there are new power optimisations in the latest version of Wear OS to help your app run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. This in turn will also allow for better battery management. Next, users get better accessibility features, such as a faster and more reliable text-to-speech engine.
The next major announcement was the introduction of the Watch Face Format for Wear OS. The new format essentially allows developers to create Wear OS watch faces in a declarative XML format without writing any code. The platform would then automatically optimise the watch face for battery and performance. In other words, developers will be able to create analog, digital, complex, and many more designs without any restrictions.
Wear OS 4: Availability
While Google didn’t announce an exact launch date, it said that Wear OS 4 will arrive this fall. It has already released the Developer Preview of Wear OS 4 for developers to make and test apps on the new version ahead of its launch. The brand also didn’t mention which watch will debut with this software. However, one can expect it to be the Galaxy Watch 6 series that should debut in July, followed by Pixel Watch 2 in October, per leaks.
Apart from that, Samsung recently also announced One UI 5 watch update which should apparently be based on Wear OS 4. Separate from the Wear OS 4 features, One UI 5 Watch will carry its own set of new features and improvements. It will be available for both Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 4 series smartwatches, as confirmed by Samsung.