Google releases Android Wear 2.0 Developer Preview 5 with iOS support, the final developer preview before a February launch
Google has delayed the launch of Android Wear 2.0 once, but it looks like the operating system may actually be on track for its early February release.
Context & Ripple Effects
This closes out a preview cycle that began with trouble: Google pushed Android Wear 2.0 back to early 2017 last fall, using the extra time to add an on-watch Play Store so watches could install apps without a phone. In December it committed to shipping two flagship OEM-branded smartwatches running the OS alongside Android Pay support.
The notable move in this final preview is iOS support in the developer tools. That extends what started in August 2015, when Google released an Android Wear app for iPhone 5 and later, and signals the OS launch is no longer tethered to Android handsets alone.
First-order effects
- Developers now have the last API surface before the February release, letting them finalize watch apps built around the new on-watch Play Store rather than phone-side installs.
- The two flagship OEM smartwatches slated for early 2017 ship against a frozen SDK, so their hardware-software integration work moves into certification and polish rather than feature changes.
Second-order effects
- With iOS support in the preview, Google widens the addressable buyer base beyond Android phone owners, putting its wearables push in more direct competition with Apple Watch on iPhone users' wrists.
- OEMs deciding whether to keep building Android Wear devices gain clarity on launch timing and payment support via Android Pay, which shapes their spring hardware roadmaps.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, Google's wearables strategy becomes phone-agnostic — the watch as an independent surface with its own store and payments — which would make future Wear releases compete on ecosystem reach rather than Android attachment.
The trend: Smartwatch platforms are decoupling from their parent phone ecosystems, with Google using on-watch stores, payments, and iOS compatibility to chase buyers wherever their phones come from.