The digital divide in mobile device platforms, between Google Android and Apple iOS, could soon disappear if reports about Google Android Wear supporting iOS come to fruition.
Google is supposedly building an Android Wear app for the Apple mobile device platform, which means iPad and iPhone consumers could embrace wearables such as LG's G Watch and Motorola's Moto 360.
The news comes as Apple is putting the finishing touches on its first ever wearable, Watch, which is due to officially arrive in April. Providing interoperability by porting to iOS could significantly boost the Android Wear platform in terms of adoption and device base. Consumers wouldn't need to have an Android smartphone to enjoy wearing an Android Wear wearable, such as a smartwatch.
Such a platform move would let Apple consumers tap the expanding array of Android Wear devices, which decidedly cost much less money. Today's Android Wear-based smartwatches, for example, start selling anywhere from about $50 to $200, depending on manufacturer and capabilities. Apple's looming Watch will reportedly start selling at a $359 price point, according to reports earlier this week.
Google has yet to comment on reports of its Android Wear going cross-platform, but some believe it could formally announce the move at its impending developer conference in May.
The cross-platform effort has been in development for some time, with Google hitting some technology obstacles.
"It's not always completely up to us right? There are technical constraints, API constraints so we are trying really hard," Jeff Chang, senior product manager for Android Wear, said in an interview last year.
Reports note that if Google does create Android Wear app support for iOS, it's likely not going to be reciprocated by Apple.
The Android Wear product line of smartwatches currently boasts six devices, including the Moto and LG options. There is the G Watch, Gear Live, SmartWatch 3 and Asus ZenWatch. The devices feature GPS, music streaming capability, voice search and fitness functionality, such as heartrate tracking.
The Apple Watch is already getting some early kudos for design and customization. In a comparison with Samsung's Gear S, which runs on Samsung's Tizen platform, the Watch was applauded for its expansive models featuring a wide range of fitness and health focal points and its unique creation of a Digital Crown that lets users scroll through screens and zoom on pictures and maps with ease.
