Google may make big changes to its Wear OS release cycle

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summary

  • Google has announced Wear OS 5, which features major battery improvements, more watch face complications, and a wider variety of fitness data.
  • Wear OS 5.1 based on Android 15 is being tested on the Pixel Watch 2, marking a major shift in Google's Wear OS release strategy.
  • Decoupling the Wear OS version from the underlying Android version may lead to more consistent APIs in future releases.



Google announced Wear OS 5 at its annual developer conference in May 2024. The new release promises significant battery improvements. Based on Android 14, Wear OS 5 also adds support for watch face complications and allows fitness apps to access more data types. Google's Wear OS release cycle has been inconsistent, with the company typically basing its latest builds on a year-old version of Android. But it looks like the company is ready to change things for good.

A Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 and Pixel Watch 2 sit outside the trash bin, along with other Wear OS watches at the edge of the bin.

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In a report by Android Authority, Android expert Mishal Rahman claims that Google has been internally testing Wear OS 5.1 on the Pixel Watch 2. That in itself shouldn't be a big deal, except that this Wear OS release is based on Android 15.


Google has only released one point update for Wear OS so far (Wear OS 3.5 in October 2022), which includes some small new features and changes. Additionally, all Wear OS versions are based on a year-old Android release. So if the company is working on Wear OS 5.1 and the underlying Android upgrade is based on an OS version that hasn't been released to the public yet, it would mark a major shift in strategy.

Rahman speculates that Google may have finally “decoupled the underlying Android version from the Wear OS version.” Apparently, the company has been working on this for some time now to ensure a single main development branch. If so, Google may base future Wear OS releases on the latest Android builds in beta testing to improve API consistency.

Google may rename Wear OS 5.1 to Wear OS 6 before the public release. The company usually makes such decisions based on new features and API level improvements.



The debut of the Pixel Watch 3 gives us a better idea of ​​the improvements in Wear OS 5.

Currently, Samsung's Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra are the only smartwatches on the market running Wear OS 5. However, they run the One UI Watch 6.0 skin on top of them, which hides many of the OS's underlying enhancements. We should get a better look at the changes and improvements in Wear OS 5 when Google unveils its Pixel Watch 3 lineup next week.



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