London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Google and Samsung are teaming up to take on the Apple Watch - here's what that means for smartwatch shoppers

Google and Samsung are teaming up to take on the Apple Watch - here's what that means for smartwatch shoppers

Google and Samsung are working together on the new version of Wear OS, which should give the Apple Watch stronger competition.

Google is finally taking smartwatches seriously again. During the 2021 Google I/O developer conference, the company announced that it's partnering with Samsung to create a revamped version of its Wear OS platform.

The new software should give Google-powered smartwatches longer battery life, faster performance, and more apps. It also leverages some of Fitbit's health-oriented features, coming after the search giant acquired the digital health company earlier this year.

In other words, Google and Samsung are teaming up to compete with the Apple Watch, the world's most popular smartwatch. Apple accounted for 40% of smartwatch shipments in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to Counterpoint Research, far outpacing Samsung, Huawei, and Fitbit.

Although there are few details about when the software will launch and which watches will be the first to get it, the update is a welcome sign for Android users in the market for a smartwatch.

Google hasn't meaningfully updated its smartwatch platform in years. But this new partnership with Samsung and its acquisition of Fitbit prove that Google is still committed to wearable devices.

Release date and supported smartwatches


Google hasn't provided many specifics, but did say the Wear OS updates will begin rolling out later this year.

We don't know exactly which watches will get it, but Samsung did say during the keynote that the next Galaxy Watch will run on the new version of Wear OS.

More features and better performance


Google and Samsung's new software should make apps run 30% faster on smartwatches powered by the latest chipsets, Google said in a blog post. That last part is crucial, considering slow processors have been partially to blame for hampering the success of Wear OS smartwatches in the past.

Google also says that smartwatches running on the new software should be able to last more than a day on a single charge while offering features like continuous heart rate and sleep tracking.

Wear OS will also get interface improvements that make it easier to switch between apps and customize the home screen with Tiles, which are essentially widgets. Fitbit features, like health tracking and goal celebrations, are also coming to Wear OS, and Google says apps like the Google Assistant and Google Maps will get updates for Wear OS as well.

The Apple Watch's ease of use is one of the main reasons we've chosen it as our favorite smartwatch, so hopefully the new interface will allow for a similarly intuitive experience for Android fans.

More apps, and catching up to the Apple Watch


As part of the collaboration, Samsung is pivoting away from its current smartwatch software and combining it with Google's to create the new version of Wear OS.

That's a good thing for smartwatch shoppers. Developers can build apps that will work across Samsung and Wear OS watches rather than having to choose between the two.

Google already operates one of the largest mobile app stores in the world, and Samsung is the second-largest smartwatch maker behind Apple. So developers have plenty of motivation to optimize their apps for the new platform. Google says a new watch face design editor made by Samsung will be among the new tools available for developers.

But above all else, the update could give Wear OS the most important element it's been missing: consistency. The biggest benefit Apple has always had over Google has been that no matter which iPhone you buy, the software feels the same. That concept translates to the Apple Watch as well since all models run on the same watchOS software.

Now, Google is seemingly trying to bring that level of consistency to its smartwatch platform, which will hopefully result in a much more compelling experience for Android fans.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Trump’s Quip on Biden and Google Lawsuit Revives Debate Over Antitrust Legacy
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
×