Hands on with the redesigned Wear OS by Google for smartwatches

After neglecting it for too long, Google has finally redesigned Wear OS for the many smartwatches that run on its platform.

With the Wear OS revamp, Google’s director of product management for Wear OS, Dennis Topper, told us it focused on three major areas. 

The first is helping people stay connected to the information and people they care about with better quick and glance-able interactions. The second is giving people more proactive help with a personalized Google Assistant that better anticipates your needs throughout the day. And thirdly, helping people live healthier lives with Google Fit.

“Our studies show that people interact with their watches in five seconds or less on average,” says Topper. “So it’s really important that when people are connected to the information that they care about that we offer this in a really accessible and glance-able way and when you need to interact with it, it’s a very simple and actionable way. We’ve taken a close look at this and made important improvements.”

The new version of Wear OS will look as familiar as the old one. The watch face will still be the first thing users will see. However, swiping on it will do completely new things. 

Google Assistant working for you

Swiping right brings up the Google Assistant. You still have the handy microphone button at the top, as well as the date and weather below it.

Scroll up on the Google Assistant screen and you’ll get more personalized information to help you go about your day. 

Because the Google Assistant has access to things like your location, calendar, and email, it can use that data to surface relevant suggestions at the right time.

For example, if it’s going to rain later in the day, the Google Assistant might suggest you bring an umbrella before you leave the house. Or if you made a hotel reservation for an upcoming trip, the Assistant might show directions to get there. Have an Amazon package delivery coming soon? You probably want to see some tracking information.

“We want to help people stay ahead of their day with timely and relevant information,” says Topper. “We believe the Assistant can be a lot more useful throughout the day, not only waiting until you ask it a question, but also working on your behalf, giving you useful and personalized information throughout the day.”

Quickly see your Google Fit health tracking

The other big change is Google Fit integration. Topper says their research told them most people use smartwatches to stay healthy. With this knowledge, they decided to make the Google Fit data more accessible. 

Swiping left from the watch face brings up the redesigned Google Fit. The widget updates in near real-time and shows rings for the two new fitness measurements (Move Minutes and Heart Points) that Google created in partnership with the American Heart Association and World Health Organization. For more detailed Google Fit data, you’ll need to launch the app.

Smarter notifications

The more proactive Google Assistant and more accessible Google Fit are the two biggest updates in the new Wear OS, but there are a couple of smaller ones worth mentioning.

Swiping down from the watch face still brings down the “Quick Shade” with toggles for various settings, but now there’s a button for “Find my phone” (sends a beep tone to play on your phone so you can locate it) and Google Pay. 

Previously, if you wanted to use Google Pay on your smartwatch, you’d need to launch the app, which was a multi-tap process. Now, you can make a payment much quicker. It’s not as quick as double-pressing the side button on the Apple Watch to fire up Apple Pay, but it’s way faster than the old way.

Google’s also made notifications easier to manage at a glance. Swiping up from the watch face calls up your stream of notifications. Each notification is more compact so that you can see more on one screen. Tap on a notification and it’ll expand, and where appropriate, there will be smart replies. Wear OS’s product lead Stefan Frank told me these smart replies are based on your individual communication style and the Google Assistant will learn based on how you respond, using words that better fit you.

Finally some smartwatch love

“These improvements are designed at the core to make the information easily accessible so you can have those quick interactions that you’re used to having with your watch and then get on with your life in the real world after those five seconds,” says Topper.

I haven’t personally worn a Wear OS smartwatch with the new update so I can’t say if they’re a better experience on the daily. But everything Topper and his team showed me certainly makes sense. As someone who’s worn and used many different kinds of smartwatches, all of the changes in the new Wear OS seem like a no-brainer. 

With the new Wear OS, smartwatches not called Apple Watch might be worth considering again. Now, we just need a compelling smartwatch to buy and wear. Hopefully, that rumored Pixel Watch from Google comes true later this year.