The next version of Wear OS clarifies its compatibility with available and future watches.
Designed to be used on smartwatches, the merger between Samsung’s Tizen and Google’s Wear OS, soberly named Wear OS 3.0, will not be deployed on all existing models, nor will it be imposed on compatible ones.
One watchword: Snapdragon Wear 4100
We suspected it a little, but it is now official: not all connected watches running on Wear OS will be eligible for the critical update planned by Google. To be more precise, watches equipped with the Snapdragon Wear 4100 processor will be able to upgrade to Wear OS 3, but for those using a Snapdragon Wear 3100 or 2100, you will have to go your way.
The Mountain View firm is nevertheless committed to providing new application experiences to those who will not enjoy Wear OS 3.0 or simply who will not want to update. Google takes as an example the recent changes made to Gboard or Google Play to specify that this type of update will always be offered for old connected watches. The security patches will be maintained for at least two years from the launch of the regard concerned.
It is interesting to note that Google will not force anyone to switch to the new version of its OS, with each compatible watch owner having the choice to update or not.
Wear OS 3.0 will not, however, point the tip of its nose right away. According to Google, the expected launch of the operating system is currently dated to the second half of 2022.