Tech

Pixel Watch has landed. What does that mean for Wear OS?


After many years suggests that Google is working on its own smartwatch, the first one Pixel Watch has finally arrived. Powering it is the foundation that Google launched in 2014: Bring the operating system. Called for the first time Android Wear, the smartwatch operating system has survived periods of high activity and silence; everything went so quiet for a while that it felt like Wear was on Google tight block.

Last year, Google renewed people’s confidence when it introduced a new version called Wear OS 3the company developed the code with Fitbit (the company owns it) and Samsung (which sells a lot smart watch). So far, only a handful of smartwatches are running this new version, including the Pixel Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch5, but the platform is going through a lot of changes and it’s hard to keep track of the details. I sat down (virtually) with Björn Kilburn, Google’s director of product management for Wear OS, to set the record straight for where Wear is headed.

What is the official name?

Pixel Watch

Photo: Google

Google’s Android Wear smartwatch operating system was renamed “Wear OS by Google” by Google in 2018. Recently, Google has used a multitude of names: Wear, Wear OS, and Wear OS by Google. So what is it? Officially, it’s Wear OS by Google, but Google says the abbreviation “Wear OS” is also correct.

The new watch is running the latest version of the software, called Wear OS 3, and Google used the term “Wear OS 2” to describe the previous generation smartwatch.

How is Google committed to using the operating system?

Google’s support of its smartwatch platform is up and running; Wear OS doesn’t like the pace of updates nor the attention Apple gives WatchOS and Apple Watch. Google also doesn’t mind shutting down its apps and services if they fall out of favor (RIP Stadia). Things have been looking up for Wear OS lately, and while it’s too early to say if Google will follow up with its first Pixel Watch with a successor next year, Kilburn assures me Wear OS is very important. important to Google.

“We’re totally committed to space and hopefully there’s proof,” Kilburn said. “If you look at the number of apps that have been refreshed over the past year and a half, the Pixel team is building a first-party watch and our partnership with Samsung — which is very positive — I think All of those apps are strong indicators that there’s a lot of commitment beyond the Wear team. “

How often will Wear OS be updated?

Google says you can expect a new version of Wear OS each year, just as phone owners can expect a new version of Wear OS. New version of Android each year. At least, that’s the hope.

“From a platform perspective, our goal is to release a new version of Wear generally every year in a similar fashion to mobile, in part because we need to support mobile,” says Kilburn. . “If the new functions added to Android are very important for the watch and hearables, then we have to find a way to include it in the clock. ” That said, there will still be quarterly Wear updates to deliver “new experiences” throughout the year.

However, Kilburn notes that, unlike Wear OS 2 smartwatches, watch manufacturers are responsible for over-the-air updates in Wear OS 3. You’ll need to start checking the software update policy. from the manufacturer the same way you would with an Android phone. For example, the new Google Pixel Watch will get three years of software updates and the Samsung Galaxy Watch5 will get four years of updates. It is worth mentioning that Apple has supported the Apple Watch Series 3 for four years.

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