Android Wear got some stage time during today’s Google I/O 2016 keynote with the announcement of Android Wear 2.0.
As you might expect, Android Wear 2.0 is a big update to Google’s wearables platform. With it, watch faces will become more powerful, because Android Wear 2.0 will allow any watch face to draw data from any app. This means that you can get a watch face to show any app data that you want.
Also getting updated in Android Wear 2.0 is messaging. With the update, Android Wear will offer smart replies, handwriting support, and even a keyboard for those times that you feel like manually typing out images on a tiny screen that’s strapped to your wrist.
Android Wear 2.0 will also offer standalone apps. This will allow smartwatches to run apps without the need for a connected smartphones. For example, you’ll be able to stream music from Google Play Music without your phone on your body, and you’ll even be able to do it while out and about if your watch has cellular connectivity built-in.
A preview of Android Wear 2.0 is available to developers today, and the full release is coming this fall. What other features do you want to see included with Android Wear 2.0?
