Google has commenced the testing of Put on OS 5.1, its upcoming working system (OS) for Android-based wearables comparable to smartwatches, in accordance with a report. Check builds of the OS are stated to have been noticed for the Pixel Watch 2 which means that it could be based mostly on a unique model of Android. Google first introduced its Put on OS 5 platform at I/O 2024 in Might, highlighting a number of of its options comparable to enhancements to the Watch Face Format and grid-based app launcher.
Google’s Put on OS 5.1 Check Builds
In line with a report by Android Authority, Put on OS 5.1 could also be based mostly on Android 15 – the upcoming OS for Android gadgets. That is stated to interrupt the development of earlier years the place Put on OS has been based mostly on the Android model from a 12 months prior. As an illustration, Put on OS 3, which was launched final 12 months, was based mostly on 2022’s Android 13.
An identical sample was noticed with the Android 14-based Wear OS 5 that debuted with the Galaxy Watch 7 in July within the type of One UI 6 Watch. If this purported OS certainly launches, it would mark the primary time in two years that Google introduces an interim level replace, with the final related replace being Put on OS 3.5 which got here out in October 2022. Nevertheless, the report provides that the moniker isn’t official and the tech big could select to vary it previous to its launch.
Put on OS 5.1’s take a look at builds are reported to have identifiers beginning with “AP4A”. Nevertheless, there isn’t any details about any of its options or the discharge timeline.
New Watch Face Format
With Put on OS 5, Google confirmed that watch faces developed for smartwatches with out utilizing the Watch Face Format (WFF) will now not be supported on the Google Play Store. Whereas smartwatches working Put on OS 2 or later will nonetheless have entry to the prevailing non-WFF watch faces, knowledge will not be carried over if the consumer decides to modify to a Put on OS 5-powered smartwatch. Moreover, choose watch faces is probably not accessible for obtain both.
This variation arrived after the introduction of WFF by Google in 2023, in partnership with Samsung.
