Wearables
Samsung Wear OS smartwatches to get Google Home, Personal Safety apps
It’s known that Google is working on bringing Google Photos Watch Face to the Wear OS smartwatches. Now the Wear OS Google Photos watch face alongside Google Home and Personal Safety apps have appeared on Google Play Store, suggesting their early arrival.
Tipster Mishaal Rahman has recently shared the screenshots of the Google Photos, Google Home, and Personal Safety apps on the Wear OS that he tool from Play Store. He also suggets that these Wear OS applications will launch alongside the Pixel Watch next week.
Join SammyFans on Telegram
Google Photos watch face:
Google Photos is a watch face for Wear OS devices that will allow users to set single or multiple personal photos as their watch faces. As per the information, you can set your photos that will have a circular crop based on the design of the watch.
Follow Sammy Fans on Google News
You will meet two configurations including Date/Date and Time that can be added on top of the watch face. It is also reported to provide users with the ability to cycle through the selected images throughout the day.
Evidently, the new Google Photos watch face looks similar to the Android 12 lock screen. Check the images below:
Google Home app:
Wear OS Google Home app likely features a card list design, with smart home devices listed inside a rounded rectangle. It also includes an icon background color, device name, and room name.
It will also offer the ability to easily increase or decrease the temperature and adjust the brightness using the “+” and “-” buttons. In addition to this, there is also a security notification of “Person seen” in one of the screenshots.
Personal Safety app:
The informer further shows the screenshots of the Personal Safely app for Wear OS devices. It will reportedly help customers call a predefined emergency contact or service.
Furthermore, currently, there is no information on which Wear OS smartwatches will get the Google Photos, Google Home, and Personal Safety apps. Since the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 5 are running the latest version of Google’s Wear OS, it’s expected that these wearables will also get it in the coming time.
Apple has just announced the Apple Watch Series 10 at the “It’s Glowtime” event. The new model comes with a fresh design that hasn’t been updated since 2021. The Watch Series 10 features a thinner design and a larger display. It’s a strong competitor against Samsung’s latest Galaxy Watch 7.
Apple Watch Series 10 launches with several notable enhancements. It supports fast charging, so you can get up to 80% battery in just 30 minutes. Now, you don’t have to wait long for your watch to be ready to go.
Moreover, the Watch Series 10 Titanium design integrates a new built-in speaker, which allows users to play music or podcasts directly from their wrist. It also has better water resistance and is certified for high-speed water sports up to 20 meters deep. It means that the watch can handle more intense water activities and includes the Depth app, which was previously only available on the Ultra models.
Following Galaxy Watch 7, the Watch Series 10 now includes the ability to detect sleep apnea. This is a condition where your breathing stops and starts while you sleep. The watch tracks your sleep patterns and can identify signs of sleep apnea if you wear it every night for a few days. This feature works similarly to the new Vitals app in watchOS 11.
Apple Watch Series 10 will be available for pre-order from September 13 and officially release on September 20. The starting price is $399 for the 44mm version. With these advancements, the Series 10 is set to challenge the Galaxy Watch 7, offering a range of new improvements.
Samsung collaborated with the University of Michigan to assess Galaxy Watch features accuracy. The study validated the high accuracy of fitness tracking features. Dr. Hon Pak also encouraged MiPR’s validation of Galaxy Watch accuracy.
The Michigan Performance Research Laboratory (MiPR) found a significant correlation between Galaxy Watch and the clinical and sport science reference devices’ measurement of heart rate, sweat loss, VO2 max, and body fat percentage measurements.
The MiPR studies verified the accuracy of Samsung Galaxy Watch fitness tracking features by monitoring key metrics from elite runners, including:
Heart rate: It measures how hard the heart works during physical activity.
- Findings show an excellent 90% correlation with electrocardiogram equipment while running, the gold standard in heart rate measurement.
Sweat loss: Sweat loss estimates the amount of fluid lost during physical activity and helps guide proper hydration after workouts.
- The study found a 95% correlation for Galaxy Watch in assessing sweat loss over varying distances ranging from 2.5 km to 20 km.
VO2 max: Understanding how much oxygen the body absorbs during a workout helps individuals assess their fitness levels and set optimal goals and limits.
- The study demonstrated an 82% correlation, indicating acceptable alignment between Galaxy Watch and clinical-grade diagnostic equipment.
Body fat percentage: Measuring a person’s body fat percentage allows for a better understanding of physical health and fitness than tracking body weight alone.
- Galaxy Watch readings showed a 95% correlation with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) results, the standard diagnostic test for body composition using low-dose X-rays.
“We’re proud to be recognized by the renowned Michigan Performance Research Laboratory — their skilled researchers and expertise in wearable technology give us confidence in the accuracy of the Galaxy Watch’s fitness tracking capabilities.”
Google has rolled out a new update to the Weather Tile for Wear OS devices, which was initially available for the Pixel Watch 3 running Wear OS 5. This update is now rolling out to all Wear OS wearables including the Samsung Galaxy Watch series. It improves the functionality and information density provided by the Weather Tile.
The updated Weather Tile provides more detailed weather information. Instead of just showing the location name, current temperature, high and low temperatures, and weather conditions, the new tile provides more details. It now includes a forecast for the next 3 hours on the 41 mm Pixel Watch 3 and the next 4 hours on the 45 mm variant.
It means you can now see more information about the upcoming weather directly on the tile without opening the full weather app. This change makes it easier to check the weather at a glance on Wear OS devices. Notably, it does not change the UV Index or Sun Tiles.
Previously, the Weather Tile on Wear OS devices offered general information. Users could see the location name, current temperature, high/low, and a simple weather condition description. The new update improves this by adding a better forecast, which provides a more detailed view of the weather in the coming hours.
The update is available with the Weather app version 1.9.269.x. It was first rolled out to the Pixel Watch 3 but is now being extended to other Wear OS devices including Galaxy watches.
Get Pixel Watch 3 Faces on your Samsung Galaxy Watch 4/5/6/7 [Wear OS]