New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….
Original story (published on August 6, 2021) follows:
Samsung is all set to unveil the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic at the Galaxy Unpacked 2021 event scheduled for August 11.
However, the upcoming Galaxy watches will not come out with the OEM’s Tizen operating system. Samsung and Google have been working on the next generation of Wear OS i.e. Wear OS 3.0.
Speculations have been rife that the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic might sport One UI Watch based on the new, unified platform.
This platform, jointly built by Google and Samsung, also has Fitbit managing the fitness tracking aspects.
Many rumors and leaks about the Galaxy Watch 4 series indicate that the One UI Watch skin is going to be a major upgrade.
Samsung One UI Watch will have a new ecosystem for apps as it will come out with Google Play Store. Also, Samsung is focusing on improving the phone/watch synchronization.
For example, users will not have to install apps on their phone and watch separately as supported apps will get installed on the watch automatically once installed on the phone.
The new OS will also allow watch face designers to make new watch faces easily yet creatively thanks to a new and improved software kit for the same.
Apart from that, Samsung One UI Watch will offer better handling of activity and fitness tracking capabilities in eligible devices.
However, One UI Watch might not roll out as an update to existing Galaxy Watch devices. This is because Samsung said that Tizen-powered watches will not be upgraded to Wear OS back in May.
This is certainly a downer for existing Galaxy Watch users but the good news is that Tizen-powered watches will continue to get general updates as per the schedule.
While the One UI Watch skin is expected to be based on Wear OS 3.0, official info regarding the same is yet come out.
That said, we will keep tracking the development of One UI Watch and will update this story as and when new information becomes available. So, keep a weather eye on it.
Update 1 (August 12)
IST 10:21 am: A new poster from Samsung Singapore’s Instagram handle is causing waves online as it insinuates that the new Wear OS will be coming to the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3.
How true these claims only remain to be seen but many users are ruling it off as a typo.
IST 1:14 pm:Following the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, a few more details are now clear about the Wear OS 3.0 update. First, older devices like the Galaxy Watch 3 will not get updated.
Also, we now have a picture of just how capable this new OS will be, thanks to a post on things users might want to try on their Wear OS 3.0-running Galaxy Watch 4, along with a host of redesigned Google apps for the new platform.
Update 2 (August 13)
IST 11:15 am: Wear OS does not seem to fix the problematic pairing process for users with devices that are not Samsung’s own. Also, it looks like Samsung has ditched iOS support for Wear OS-based Galaxy Watch 4 series. More on this here and here.
IST 1:40 pm: New info now indicates that the Galaxy Watch 4 will not come with support for Google Assistant out of the box. However, there is hope that the same will be added down the line but for now, users have to deal with Bixby.
Update 3 (August 16)
IST 10:05 am: As per a recent report from 9to5Google, the Wear OS 3 based One UI Watch-powered Galaxy Watch 4 series does not focus too much on Google’s ecosystem and only works best with Galaxy devices.
Update 4 (August 24)
IST 11:21 am: Wear OS 3 holds a lot of promise for the whole Android smartwatch ecosystem and now, word has it that Spotify is adding support for offline playback on Wear OS. This is rolling out for some users but Free Spotify users will have to deal with some limitations.
Update 5 (August 30)
IST 2:11 pm: As users continue to explore the possibilities unlocked by the new Wear OS 3, a new Walkie-Talkie app has been released exclusively to Galaxy Watch4 and Galaxy Watch4 Classic. This app allows two or more users to have instant conversations, just like if they were using a walkie-talkie.
Users can create an instant Walkie-Talkie channel on your Galaxy Watch and enjoy instant conversations right away with the friends, colleagues, or family members who are in your Contacts.
Update 6 (September 04)
IST 12:45 pm: Telegram appears to have ended support for Wear OS with the latest version 8.0 update. Also, the Telegram app for Wear OS will stop working soon for those who have already installed it on their devices.
This further means that users of the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic will not be able to use Telegram. However, the Galaxy Watch 4 series is now getting the Material You version of the Google Messages app.
Featured image source: @evleaks
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Samsung One UI Watch (Wear OS 3.0) update tracker: News, eligible watches, features - PiunikaWeb
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