I’ll be the one to say it: Wear OS is formally good now. The mixture of Wear OS 5 software program and Pixel Watch or Galaxy Watch {hardware} has made the very best Wear OS smartwatches actual Apple Watch rivals. In truth, I briefly ditched my Apple Watch Ultra for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic earlier than selecting the Garmin Enduro 3 as my every day driver.
But there is no denying Wear OS nonetheless has work to do. The platform continues to be rising, and the Apple Watch continues to be a extra engaging product for software program and {hardware} growth groups to construct for. For instance, based on April 2024 knowledge from Counterpoint Research, Wear OS is anticipated to carry 27% of the smartwatch market share exterior of China. That’s a big uptick from final yr, though it is nonetheless nothing in comparison with Apple’s 49% projected market share.
Even if Wear OS is clawing again a few of Apple’s watchOS market share — and that seems to be the case — there’s proof to counsel that Apple Watch customers could be extra useful to third-party corporations constructing apps and equipment. Data is sparse, however a 2023 evaluation from Asymco estimated that iPhone customers spend roughly seven occasions extra on apps than Android customers.
How does that translate to Wear OS apps and equipment? The fact is, we won’t know for certain. However, I’d guess that Apple Watch homeowners are way more prone to buy watchOS apps and third-party straps, circumstances, and different equipment than the very best Wear OS smartwatch homeowners. To be clear, that is not a knock on Wear OS customers. Android, and by extension Wear OS, has at all times been the platform for people who find themselves considerate — perhaps even frugal — with their money.
These two knowledge factors mix to create an unlucky downside for Wear OS. Developers and product designers simply do not spend as a lot time bringing their apps and concepts to Wear OS smartwatches. Don’t get me mistaken, there are some nice Wear OS apps.
However, even when an app is accessible on watchOS and Wear OS, the watchOS app could also be higher. An awesome instance of that is the Nike Run Club app, which I depend upon for coaching. New options would possibly keep unique to watchOS ceaselessly, and the app typically refuses to run on sure Wear OS {hardware}.
Of course, the larger downside is when an app or accent you want is not accessible on Wear OS in any respect. That’s what occurred to me this month… twice. First, Tesla introduced plans to deliver its cell app to smartwatches as a part of its 2024 Holiday Update. There was a catch, although — the Tesla app is just accessible on watchOS.
On high of that, Tesla did not even point out Wear OS. The platform wasn’t a thought or a consideration, no less than, not a large enough one to warrant public acknowledgment.
I pulled my Apple Watch actually out of the closet simply to check the Tesla app on watchOS. There aren’t any surprises right here: it is good, and really helpful. You can management your automotive out of your wrist, use your Apple Watch as a key, and extra. It’s extremely handy throughout occasions once you wish to go away your telephone within the automotive, and even at residence.
I do not like bringing my telephone with me after I go to the monitor and run, and now I haven’t got to. My Apple Watch tracks my run (with a full-fledged Nike Run Club app), performs music by way of my Bluetooth earbuds, and now begins my automotive.
Coincidentally, this app debuted the very same month because the TinyPod. Unless you are a part of the Apple Watch and iPod niches, you most likely do not know what that’s. Put merely, the TinyPod is an Apple Watch case that provides a scroll wheel — just like the one on outdated iPods — to your smartwatch.
It’s a gimmick, however one you’d by no means discover on a Wear OS watch. There is not a single model that makes Wear OS large enough to justify startups, and even main accent makes to create cool tasks, just like the TinyPod, for his or her merchandise. Most corporations will not even trouble to make an app, like Tesla, no less than for now.
The excellent news is that if you happen to do not personal a Tesla and are not nostalgic for iPods, you most likely will not really feel such as you’re lacking out by not having a Tesla app or intelligent case on your Wear OS smartwatches. However, these two new releases underscore an issue that you just would possibly run into — there merely aren’t as many choices for Wear OS. Whether you are searching for a fully-featured app or a customized strap, the Apple Watch will at all times have extra selections accessible in comparison with a Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch, or OnePlus Watch.
Hopefully, Wear OS will turn into extra engaging to builders and product designers because it continues to develop. If the aforementioned Counterpoint projections are correct, Wear OS market share exterior of China could have grown by greater than 5% in 2024 alone. It’ll even have pushed watchOS beneath 50% market share for the primary time in years.
Those are spectacular feats, and all Wear OS followers can do is hope that the apps and equipment come alongside the platform’s success.
