In a new blog post, Google has announced that it will now allow third-party developers to create custom Tiles for Wear OS.
The idea was first introduced in 2019, with widgets that users could glace at and swipe to get information about calendar notifications, weather, or status.
All of the Tiles used to be directly from Google or the manufacturer of the device.
Google to allow third-party developers to create Titles
The Jetpack Tiles library for third-party developers is now in alpha. Google had pointed out in the blog post.
According to Google, Tiles can be designed for many cases, like tracking the user's daily activity progress, quick-starting a workout, starting a recently played song or sending a message to one of the contacts.
The apps can be immersive, and Tiles are fast-loading, and it focuses on the user's immediate needs. If the user wants more information, Tiles can be tapped to open a related app on the Wear OS or phone for a deeper explanation.
Wear OS had small updates but it's been in limbo for a while now, without a clear path for introducing it in the market.
In Google's latest blog post, the company stated that the new custom Tiles will become available to users this year when they roll out the corresponding Wear OS platform update.
Samsung working on Wear OS
According to GSMArena, Samsung is working on a Wear OS-powered smartwatch and will be ditching Tizen OS. In a Galaxy 20 source code teardown, an XDA developer found that there is a device codenamed Merlot, and it is linked with Google's Wear OS.
The device has been mentioned together with the Galaxy Watch 3 with code name Noblesse, which was already released.
New information about the Wear OS is scarce, but fans hope to see more evidence soon, especially since Google had already announced an expected release date.
Wear OS features
Wear OS has changed over the years. The biggest update was Wear 2.0 back in Feb. 2017, though there have been a lot of smaller updates since.
The Wear 2.0 has Google Assistant, Google Pay, standalone apps, and expanded watch faces. There are also new input methods, new functionality, improved fitness tracking, and more.
With Wear OS' Google Assistant, users can check the weather, start a run, set a reminder, control the compatible smart home devices, and do other things using only their voice.
Google Assistant on Wear OS supports Smart Suggestions, so when users ask Google Assistant a question, it will automatically serve follow-up questions related to the topic.
Answers from Google Assistant are returned over the watch speaker or Bluetooth headphones. If you Wear OS smartwatch does not have a speaker, and answers are displayed on the watch face.
Wear OS also lets you stay connected as you can text, email and you can see who is calling on your watch without pulling out your phone. The default apps of Google are included with Wear OS.
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Written by Sieeka Khan
