The rumors that have been swirling around are true after all. Google has just announced a new iOS app for Android Wear, which will allow iPhone users to sync their phones with Android smartwatches.
Until today, smartwatches running Google’s Android Wear software only worked in conjunction with Android-powered smartphones. As a result, companies building Android Wear watches — including Motorola, Samsung, and LG — couldn’t get their watches onto the wrists of iPhone users. But with today’s announcement, Android Wear watches will now be compatible with Apple’s iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, and 6 Plus running iOS 8.2 and later. They’ll also most probably be compatible with whatever new phones Apple introduces next week on September 9.
To use Android Wear with an iPhone, simply install the Wear app and pair your phone with the watch to be able access notifications for things like calls and texts. Most of the features you’d expect from Android Wear appear to be available on the iOS iteration too. You can also keep track of your fitness goals and heart rate, or use voice commands to create appointments and set reminders with Google Now. The app will also allow iPhones to support Google-created apps like Google Fit, Weather, Alarm, Agenda, and Translate, Google says. Any third-party app notifications that appear on the iPhone screen will appear on a paired Android watch.
The app will work on iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, or 6 Plus running iOS 8.2 or later to immediately connect with newer Android Wear smartwatches like the LG Watch Urbane, as well as all future Android Wear watches, “including ones from the likes of Huawei, Asus, and Motorola,” Google says. It’s likely that the new Huawei Watch, which will launch soon, will also be able to connect with the iPhone.
However, there are some limitations to using Android Wear, as many have feared. The biggest drawback is that the 4,000-odd available third-party Android Wear apps won’t work if you’re using a watch with an iPhone. Though Google is offering an Android Wear app that runs on iPhones, third-party apps rely on plumbing that the company has built into Android and its Play store and which isn’t available in the foreign territory of iOS. The ability of Android Wear watches to gain some level of autonomy by connecting directly to the Internet via Wi-Fi is also missing when they’re paired with an iPhone. The search giant did, however, say it is working to support third-party apps in the future. The search giant also made no mention of whether older Android Wear watches will work with the iPhone in its traditionally information-sparse press release.
Nevertheless, bringing Android Wear to the iPhone is a big win for Android Wear smartwatch makers, because it means their devices could soon be on the wrists of the legion of existing and future iPhone owners.
Source: Google Blog