Android software support has never been in a better place. Samsung led the charge when it introduced a policy of four OS updates with a fifth year of security patches with the Galaxy S21 series. Later, Google set a new standard when it launched the Pixel 8 with seven years of security patches, OS updates, and Feature Drops. Sadly, Google hasn’t made the same commitment to smartwatches, lagging behind Samsung’s support and not innovating fast enough.
Samsung leads the way
Samsung reinvented its smartwatch lineup in 2021 when it finally returned to Wear OS in partnership with Google. Tizen was quite good but lacked the app ecosystem offered by Google’s platform, so the companies joining together made a lot of sense. The Galaxy Watch 4 was the resulting device, the first smartwatch to run the revamped Wear OS 3.0. The Watch 4 and all subsequent Galaxy Watches have been promised four years of software support, so the Watch 4 will receive its final update in 2025, and the new Galaxy Watch 7 will be supported through 2028.
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Compare that to other Wear OS devices, and you’ll see why this is so significant. The TicWatch E3 is still one of the best value watches, but it’s only running Wear OS 3.5, and so is the TicWatch 5 Pro. That’s not great, considering Wear OS 4.0 has been available since August 2023.
Wear OS updates have been pretty lackluster, more on that later, but Samsung has made up for this. Like Samsung phones, its watches run One UI atop Google’s code base, and while the yearly updates aren’t revolutionary, they are more exciting than what Google is doing.
Google should be setting an example
Google has promised three years of software support for the Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2. That’s not awful; it’s only a year less than what Samsung offers. However, as the company that develops Wear OS, it should be the one that leads the way. That’s especially true when the Pixel Watch 2 starts at $350, $50 more than the Galaxy Watch 7.
More than that, Google needs to find a way to incentivize OEMs to release updates faster and more often. Do you know how many models of smartwatches run Wear OS 4.0 in total? Eight. There’s the Pixel Watch, Pixel Watch 2, Fossil HR Gen 6, OnePlus Watch 2, Galaxy Watch 4 series, Watch 5, Watch 6, and now the Watch 7. Wear OS 4.0 was a relatively minor update compared to 3.0, but adoption of 3.0 was painfully slow, with Samsung having exclusivity to the OS for almost a year.
Another issue is the progress of Wear OS development in general. Wear OS 3.0 came out three years ago, and between that and Wear OS 4.0 last year, hardly anything changed with an x.2 and x.5 update tweaking some things. Wear OS needs some excitement around it again, and for that to happen, we need more OEMs producing up-to-date watches, and Google needs to start innovating again.
How long is long enough?
If innovation surrounding Wear OS has slowed down, then at least the platform could be better supported. Our smartphones can receive up to seven years of updates, depending on your make and model. There might be some complexities around supporting the less-powerful hardware in smartwatches versus a smartphone, but surely Google, and indeed Samsung, can do more. Samsung now sells a Galaxy Watch Ultra for $650. If these more expensive watches become a trend, and it looks like they will, software support should increase to match the higher pricing.
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