A lot has been said about Wear OS but it's likely that no one has ever said it offered a slick experience. This is something that just might change though thanks to the new Snapdragon Wear 4100 chipset and the newly announced Wear OS update that will be rolling out this fall. Unlike the current Wear OS version that is based on Android 9 Pie, the fall update will instead be based on Android 11, skipping Android 10 entirely.
The Over-The-Air (OTA) update should begin rolling out to eligible Wear OS smartwatches this fall with a focus on quick access to information, a simplified process for pairing devices, more intuitive controls for managing the various watch modes and workouts. It also brings CPU Core improvements that promise a speed boost of up to 20% in relation to app startup times, improved LTE support, and finally, it adds support for Qualcomm's brand new Snapdragon Wear 4100 and 4100+ chipsets.
With both Mobvoi and Suunto are known to be prepping new Wear OS smartwatches utilizing the new 4100 processor, it may mean that the two new wearables could launch running the new Wear OS software out of the box.
Other notable improvements include a “beautiful new weather experience” as seen above which should be easier to read when out and about and included an hourly breakdown of the day's weather.
As a teaser, the Android Developers blog says to “Stay tuned for more in 2021”. Which I guess, strictly speaking, is only four and a half months away, but this is 2020 which already feels like we've endured 16 months.
Anyway, nonsense aside, the Wear OS fall update will bring some welcome improvements visually and under the hood to our smartphones.
Source: Android Developers
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