Google showcases 17 awesome, new Android Wear watch faces for you to use
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Android Wear is awesome compared to Apple’s Watch OS, if only for the fact that it has an almost limitless number of watch faces for you to download and choose from on the Play Store (and countless more available through apps like WatchMaker and Facer). To celebrate this fact, Google has highlighted 17 Android Wear watch faces that it thinks need airtime, and features an assortment of brands and familiar icons like Hello Kitty, Angry Birds and even Terminator Genisys. If you want to check out these 17 faces, hit the link below in Google’s tweet:
Adorable, elegant or fierce. Wear what you want with 17 new #AndroidWear watch faces https://t.co/VOLcXaanDK pic.twitter.com/pQzCsgPlu0
— Android (@Android) June 22, 2015
Unless you’re the type of person who likes to change watch faces everyday (like me), these 17 watch faces should give you more than enough to use for the foreseeable future, and based on the quality of the faces, you might want to check each of them out. We hope this is more of a regular thing for Google to highlight the selling points of their wearable OS which has somewhat fallen by the wayside with the release of the media sponge that is the Apple Watch.
What do you think about these 17 Android Wear watch faces that Google has highlighted? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Twitter (Google) via TalkAndroid
The post Google showcases 17 awesome, new Android Wear watch faces for you to use appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Apple’s Watch getting the same anti-theft security as iPhone
One thing Apple failed to mention last night at its WWDC 2015 shindig is that its WatchOS 2 update will have much improved security. Early Watch adopters noticed that all a thief would need to do to pair the wearable with a new iPhone would be to reset it. Although that’s documented as a “feature” in case you forget your passcode, Watch will get the same Activation Lock as an iPhone when WatchOS 2 arrives this fall. Activating it will then require your iCloud Apple ID and Password, making it effectively useless for thieves. Apple may have also made the move because the new OS will support native apps, so more of your personal info could end up in the Watch’s 8GB of internal storage.
Source: Apple
Apple Watch update brings full native apps
When Apple’s Watch first arrived, we couldn’t help but notice that the first third-party apps on it were a tad sluggish. But that’s because they were running on an iPhone and not natively on the Watch, as Apple’s own health tracker and other apps do. That’s about to change now, however, as Tim Cook just unveiled a new Watch OS and SDK at Apple’s WWDC 2015 event to open up all the wearable’s functionality to developers. That means app-makers will be able to tap the Digital Crown, health and orientation sensors, “taptic” feedback feature and more. We should hear more about it as the event goes along, and will update you later with more information.
Filed under: Apple
Here’s what our readers think of the Apple Watch
Long-awaited and eagerly anticipated by many, the Apple Watch finally arrived in April to fairly positive reviews. In our own write-up of Apple’s first wearable, we admired its construction, calling it the finest we’ve ever seen from a smartwatch and similar to “something made by Tag Heuer or Cartier.” In use, we found it “straightforward, if not always intuitive” with good notifications and comprehensive activity-tracking abilities. However, we had our reservations, noting that while it was the nicest smartwatch available, it wasn’t very revolutionary and as such: “It’s probably not compelling enough to buy one.” But many of you did buy one, and you let us know in your reviews whether you were amazed by its capabilities or merely found it acceptable for a first-generation product.
“Everyone that sees it seems to like it.” – LinusX
At first glance, the Apple Watch inspires admiration, with LinusX finding it “not as nerdy or embarrassing” as he originally thought, and more like “a futuristic object.” HornetStings actually went in the opposite direction on the timeline, calling the Apple Watch’s design retro, although still “beautifully crafted and highly stylish.” HighFlyer says it’s “far from being clunky or geeky” and fits snugly “like a high-class accessory.” But the Watch’s high style could still use a few improvements here and there, with nnieman wishing it had a circular display and that the device was “slightly lighter.” HornetStings feels that the added weight “may not be a problem” for men, but concedes that women “may notice it more.”
The squarish screen is a big part of what makes the Apple Watch so appealing, with HighFlyer finding its ability to display clear text and colorful photos outstanding. Thanks to the Watch’s “brilliant” display, jbanning finally understands “why OLED is so heralded as having such deep blacks.” And even though the screen on the Sport model is not a sapphire display like the higher-end versions, LinusX says it’s still “crisp and super high quality.”
“I can perform so many tasks with just a glance, a touch or gesture or two on my Apple Watch.” – HighFlyer
So our users were certainly enamored with the Watch’s style, but what about its substance? Well, LinusX had a laundry list of features he appreciated on the Apple Watch, finding the “text messaging, getting notifications, making AND taking phone calls (with Siri) on the watch to be extremely useful when driving, cooking, walking or at the gym.” Spenumatsa uses it as both a watch and a health tracker, and really enjoys the Watch’s prompts to stand up every hour, though it might be “an annoyance for some people.” HighFlyer found it very useful in a financial sense, using the Watch to monitor “worldwide reaction in real time of events on stock markets, look at my stock and derivative brokers accounts and make timely BUY/SELL/HOLD decisions.” And HornetSting found it very helpful in his work as a chef, making use of several cooking apps as well as the “customizable reminders to keep my kitchen staff up to date with orders.”
“In no way will this product ever take the place of a regular watch.” – mattliptak
However, as much as the Watch can do for them, users noted all the things it still couldn’t do, with mattliptak lamenting that he still had to keep his handset nearby and he “ended up relying on my phone more after glancing at the watch, receiving texts and alerts to emails.” Falleninsea feels a lot of potential in the Watch fell short, saying it “delivers a lot of things, but doesn’t really blow me away on any of them.” Nnieman notes that for everything the Watch is capable of, “it can’t do many of them better than my iPhone.” However, while LinusX concedes, “I can do less on the watch,” he adds that it does keep him “from wasting time on the phone.” And even nnieman says that while he wishes the Apple Watch had more features, he doesn’t know “exactly what else I would want it to do.”
While falleninsea might feel the Apple Watch is being sold “on the strength of its design more than on the stretch of its features” and mattliptak calls it “one of the worst Apple products I have ever owned,” many readers are still happy with their purchases. LinusX finds it “well worth it” and nnieman is looking forward to future updates and more app support. Ultimately, nnieman calls it a “very good first-gen product” and Jd777 says it’s “better than the first iPhone because it works well.”
That’s what readers have told us so far; share your own opinions of the Apple Watch by leaving a review on the product page here. Or tell us about other recent purchases like the Fitbit Surge or the Pebble Time and we may feature them in a future post.
Apple Watch coming to its retail stores in two weeks
Apple says the Watch will finally hit its US retail stores in two weeks, and it expects to clear up most of its May pre-order backlog by then, as well. The wearable is also coming to seven more countries starting June 26th. Folks in Italy, Mexico, Spain, Taiwan, Singapore, Switzerland and South Korea will be able to grab it then at Apple’s online and retail stores, or other select retailers. The news is a pretty good sign that Apple is beginning to clear its order backlog, though it emphasized that demand had “surpassed our expectations.”
When pre-orders started in April, customers that didn’t nab one tout de suite saw delivery times slipping to June and later. Despite that, some pundits speculated that Watch sales haven’t met expectations, even though Apple didn’t release any figures to back that up. What we do know is that if you ordered the Watch early on and still haven’t received it, the longest you’ll now have to wait now is two weeks. (The only exception is the 42mm stainless steel model in black, which will take an additional two weeks to ship.) If you’re hoping to head to an Apple Store and buy one off the rack soon, though, beware that Apple said only “some” models will be available.
Source: Apple
Volvo’s working on an Android Wear app that will let you control your car from your wrist
Swedish automaker Volvo has just announced that it’s now applying the finishing touches to its On Call app for Android Wear and Apple Watch.
Both applications will enable Volvo owners to remotely lock/unlock their car, switch on their heater/air conditioner and check fuel/mileage. There’s even a feature on board that can be used to locate your car in a busy parking lot.
Volvo aims to have On Call available to download on both the App and Play Store by the end of June.
Do you own a Volvo? If so, is this an app you’d like to get your hands on? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Source: Volvo
Come comment on this article: Volvo’s working on an Android Wear app that will let you control your car from your wrist
Apple Watch charges faster with secret port, but not by much
Apple doesn’t want you hacking around its Watch, so it was kind of a deal when an accessory maker discovered a diagnostic port that would enable just that. The company, Reserve Strap, now has a video (below) that proves direct charging via the port is about 5 percent faster than the standard inductive way. While that might not sound like a lot, it confirms that it’ll be relatively easy to build straps that add battery life and other functionality. In fact, Reserve Strap pivoted on its own $249 design ($250 on preorder) after making the discovery, as shown below. If that’s too rich for your blood, we imagine other accessory makers will now follow suit.
Via: 9 to 5 Mac
Source: Reserve Strap
Last chance to enter The Huawei Smartwatch Giveaway
Sure, the Apple watch is a big deal right now and drawing a lot of attention to the smartwatch community. To that, we say bravo! Anything that raises awareness about developing technology and progresses the wearable lifestyle is terrific. It’s important to remember, however, that Apple isn’t the only shooter in the West. In fact, there had already been a handful of successful smartwatches on the wrists of Android folk worldwide before the Apple watch was even a rumor on your Grandpa’s Facebook wall. In fact, we’re giving away one of those watches — the Huawei Smartwatch — for FREE!
That’s right! We’re drawing one lucky reader to be the new owner of this luxurious and sophisticated timepiece from Huawei. There’s no purchase necessary and sharing the giveaway on social media only increases your chances of taking this beauty home. So what are you waiting for? Enter now!
See more at deals.androidguys.com
The post Last chance to enter The Huawei Smartwatch Giveaway appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Fetch’s shopping app puts a smarter concierge on your wrist
Talking into a smartwatch still isn’t the most socially acceptable thing to do, but a pair of startups is hell-bent on at least making it worthwhile. Fetch and Expect Labs — a personal shopping service and a purveyor of a voice-driven AI, respectively — have teamed up to make shopping on your Apple Watch a little less tedious with an improved concierge that works from your wrist.
Back in the day (i.e. last year), Fetch was best known for using a crew of humans to respond to messages sent from the app. If you wanted to buy, say, a sweet messenger bag someone was rocking in SoHo, you could snap a photo, send it along, and someone would eventually respond with the cheapest, most appropriate listing they could find. With Expect Labs’ voice recognition and analytical chops now being baked into the existing iOS/Apple Watch app, though, those requests can be chopped up and acted on more quickly. The end result? A faster first wave of hits, and a less headache-inducing shopping experience (they hope).
Let’s say you’re itching to laze under the sun in some far-off locale. You’ll be able to ask your Apple Watch to book you on the first flight to Bangkok next Thursday, and Expect Lab’s thoughtful back-end will dig up a handful of suitable flight options. From there, those results will get passed along to Fetch’s crew of shopping concierges so they can ferret out the best option and send it back home to you for approval. Well, eventually, anyway. Fetch and Mindmeld are talking up a partnership today, but a spokesperson confirmed that the actual functionality won’t go live for another few months (hopefully in time for a last minute summer holiday). And if you’re one of the countless multitudes who don’t — or won’t — wear an Apple Watch? No worries: The feature will find its way to Fetch’s Android app, too, though you’ll have to pay Fetch $10 a month on any platform for the privilege.
Filed under: Mobile
Android Wear vs Apple Watch Software Comparison
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Wearables have slowly been finding their feet over the last couple of years, and were given a much needed boost with the arrival of Android Wear. That said, whether we love it or hate it, what has further pushed this technology into the mainstream is the Apple Watch. Apple’s take on the smartwatch is finally here, and understandably, the first question on everyone’s mind is with regards to how it stacks up against the competition. Today, we’re going to find out what is similar and what is different between the two, in this close look at Android Wear vs Apple Watch!
For starters, it has to be mentioned that this comparison is mostly pertaining to the software side of things, as there are some differences in hardware depending on which Android Wear watch you have. For the purposes of this comparison, we will be using the LG Watch Urbane, given that it is currently the only Android Wear smartwatch to run the latest Android 5.1.1 update.
While aesthetically very different, the latest version of Android Wear and Apple’s Watch OS 1.0 couldn’t be more similar in terms of features and capabilities. Both receive notifications, answer phone calls, track fitness data, and have customizable watch faces, along with a laundry list of other features, and of course, also tell the time. Granted, there are some significant differences as well, including when it comes to the implementation of what are essentially identical features.
We begin by taking a look at how each watch handles notifications. In the case of Android Wear, notifications show up in a Google Now-esque card style format that pile up in a vertical list as more notifications are received. All of them can be dismissed easily with a simple swipe, and most come with a set of actions, such as replying to a text message or email, deleting them, or the option to open the relevant application on the phone directly from the watch.
On the other hand, the Apple Watch takes on a more mobile-like implementation with regards to how it manages notifications. Whenever a notification arrives, it briefly appears on the display, and if you happen to miss it, or want to see all your notifications, you can find them with a swipe down from the top of the display to reveal the notification shade, from which you can also dismiss them. Unlike Android Wear, only a certain set of notifications can be responded to from the watch, making for an implementation that feels less robust. Applications like Google Hangouts and Gmail require you to open them on the phone, but messages on Apple’s iMessage can be responded to from the watch itself, either via a preset message, or using voice dictation.
Speaking of voice dictation, just like their phone OS counterparts, you are dealing with Google Now on Android Wear and Siri on the Apple Watch. Google Now integration on Android Wear means that any cards that you normally get on your phone or tablet like sports scores, stocks, and weather information, will also show up on the watch. While Siri doesn’t necessarily offer that on the Apple Watch, a swipe up from the bottom of the display reveals what Apple calls “Glances,” which houses a lot of the same information that one might get from Google Now. Glances is also a management hub for other things like media controls, navigation, and even Instagram and Twitter.
For fitness junkies, both operating systems are capable of keeping track of calories burned, exercise, and heart rate monitoring, with the Apple Watch also giving you a reminder to stand and move around a bit if it thinks you’ve been sitting idle for too long. There is possibly a third party Android Wear that offers this additional feature, but is something that isn’t available out of the box.
Watch faces are also highly customizable on either OS, but for now, there are a lot more options available for Android Wear, likely due to the open nature of the platform and its third party support. Along with the appearance, watch faces on both can be customized to show pertinent information like battery life, current date, and weather, to name a few.
With the update to Android 5.1 Lollipop, Google added some new features to Android Wear, such as Wi-Fi support to allow the watch to sync with your phone without a Bluetooth connection, wrist gestures to scroll through notifications by flicking the wrist, screen lock, a dedicated app and contacts screen, as well as the ability to send emoticons. With the exception of Wi-Fi and wrist gestures, all the other features are also available on the Apple Watch, but again, in a different implementation.
For example, screen lock on Android Wear is in the form of a pattern lock, while it is a PIN iteration in the case of the Apple Watch. Applications on Android Wear can be found in a simple vertical scrolling list, compared to a series of floating circles on a black background on the Apple device, which might seem confusing, but is actually very easy to navigate. Granted, these are negligible differences, but differences nonetheless.
The big difference between these two platforms comes in what purpose they are trying to serve. Android Wear feels like a companion to your smartphone, with access to all the essentials without being too much of a distraction. On the flip side, the Apple Watch is akin to a miniaturized version of your phone, offering a lot of what your phone can also do, including taking phone calls directly from the watch, and making purchases with Apple Pay.
Most of the disparity really has to do with the app selection. Even though the Apple Watch is very new, there is already a wide selection of apps available that you won’t find on Android Wear, at least not yet, and with better integration, at least in some cases. For example, while you can receive notifications from Instagram and Twitter on Android Wear, you will still have to get your phone out to use the app. With the Apple Watch, you can scroll through Instagram or Twitter and like, comment, favorite, and retweet just like you would on the mobile, and even book an Uber ride directly from the watch.
Of course, all of this could change in just a short period of time, as both platforms continue to evolve and compete, in much the same way their mobile OS counterparts have. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, and while they share a lot in common, the implementation and overall experiences are very different. At the end of the day, it is all going to come down to personal preference, just like it always has, in this never ending competition between Apple and Google, with a focus now on the domination of your wrist.
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