Google recommitted to its smartwatch platform with the launch of Wear OS 3 last year, in collaboration with Samsung. And it had a positive effect on the sales of Android-based smartwatches. Google claimed it saw 3x more smartwatch device activations this year, with Samsung selling more than 2.8 million smartwatches in Q2 2022 alone.
During the Android Dev Summit 2022 event, Google asked developers to create more smartwatch apps for Wear OS devices. Some app developers are already seeing a significant jump in their smartwatch user base. Todoist rebuilt its app for Wear OS 3, and the company saw a 50% jump in the installation rate. Strava, one of the best running apps available on Android and iOS, noticed a 30% improvement in daily active users. The developers of the OutdoorActive app managed to reduce its development time by 30% by using Compose for Wear OS.
Google revamped most of its smartwatch apps over the past year, leading to the launch of the Pixel Watch. It has also improved the integration of Wear OS smartwatches with Android smartphones, tablets, and Chrome OS laptops. Samsung also has its own suite of apps for the Galaxy Watch lineup. Hopefully, more app developers will bring their apps or improve their existing apps for a more engaging user experience.
Apple has a firm hold on the high-end smartwatch market, and it can create seamless experiences as it controls the development of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and tvOS. We hope that Google and Samsung will work together to improve Wear OS even further and bring it on par with the best in the industry.
