Recent reports have stated that Samsung is turning its back on the Android Wear operating system for wearable devices, which at the time was not surprising as the company has mostly focused on using its proprietary Tizen operating system for its products in the category.
However, Samsung has now denied the reports, stating that the company has not made such announcement.
The report that pushed forward the notion that Samsung is no longer going to manufacture devices powered by Android Wear was published by Fast Company. The report said that, according to executives of Samsung, the company has no Android Wear devices being planned or currently in development.
The executives claimed that the Tizen OS, which is currently used in almost all of the current Samsung wearable devices, is more efficient in battery usage compared to Android Wear. The OS is adopted by other products, such as smart TVs and refrigerators.
Samsung responded to the report by stating that it has not made any announcement regarding Android Wear, and that it has not changed its commitment on any platform.
The answer by Samsung, however, brings forth more questions. The response does not actually mean that Samsung is still committed to Android Wear, as the company said it is still open to working with Android Wear in the future.
It remains unclear when the next Android Wear-powered Samsung wearable device would be released since Samsung currently has no plan to develop one. The last wearable device from the OEM, the Gear S2 Classic, which launched in the United States, is powered by Tizen.
Samsung is keeping the door open for Android Wear, though it can be seen through its latest wearable devices that its preference is leaning towards using the Tizen OS.
If Samsung ever needs another operating system on its wearables, however, Android Wear would certainly be a viable option, and this could be why Samsung responded to Fast Company's report. It may not prefer Android Wear right now, but it is not turning its back on the operating system altogether.
