Android Wear is about to get a new set of interactive watch faces and watch-to-watch communication features later this summer, according to a report from Phandroid.
Much in the same way that Apple Watch owners are able to send heartbeats and doodles between one another, the new watch-to-watch communication features within Android Wear will allow smartwatches that run the OS to exchange messages, emoji, doodles and stickers. According to Phandroid, users might have to use a specific watch face to take advantage of this feature, though that might have changed in the time since the website spoke to its sources; Phandroid admits that its information on this part of the update is likely out of date.
Additionally, the update will revise how the single tap gesture works within the OS with a set of new interactive watch faces. Once the update goes live, activating the launcher will be done by swiping from right to left, whereas tapping on the device will open up a new set of functionality depending on the watch face in question. A weather-focused interactive watch face, for instance, might switch to a three day forecast. Alternatively, a fitness-focused one might switch between different stats. Take a look at the screenshot below to see an example of one of the new watch faces in action.
To promote this second feature, Google will launch a showcase within the Play store that will highlight a couple the new watch faces.
According to Phandroid, Google was set to start rolling out the update later this month. For whatever reason, however, the company has now decided to release it sometime in August.
We’ll make sure to update you once we learn more. In the meantime, tell us what about the new features in the comments below.
[source]Phandroid[/source]
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