It’s been interesting to follow the Wear OS 3 transition for smart wearables and with each new piece of information we can slowly see what the big picture will look like for Wear OS. The latest information comes from Fossil, a popular OEM for Wear OS smartwatches.
According to a Reddit thread, a Fossil representative provided an update on the health of Fossil smartwatches with a recent overhaul of the smartwatch’s user interface and the newly released Fossil companion app. There’s also a note about the transition to some smartwatches receiving a Wear OS 3 update and new devices that come with the new software.
Second, we’re pushing for the app to help our WearOS watches get the WearOS 3 update later this year.”
The mention that Fossil watches will get Wear OS 3 “later this year” matches the time frame offered almost a year ago from H2 2022.
u/FossilGuy1111 explains that the motivation behind the new app was primarily that a new app would make it easier to remove old features and implement new feedback from Fossil users. The new app brings a redesigned user interface with a simpler interface and prepares the brands’ smartwatches to support Wear OS 3 on current and future wearables.
Fossil Gen 6
The Fossil employee explains that it is working with Google on the new Fossil app to support the new wearables software. OEMs can control the experience with their own companion apps instead of relying on the Wear OS app. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 has a companion Samsung app, the Google Pixel Watch is expected to have its own app according to a recent leak, and Montblanc’s Summit 3 is also expected to have its own companion app.
This transition has proven to be a major hurdle for OEMs and smartwatch makers given how long it’s been going on, but the payoff will be that Wear OS will be a more viable competitor to the Apple Watch and that the standard smartwatch experience for Android will be that much closer to how the Apple Watch works with the iPhone.
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