Wear OS 5: Everything to know about the wearable operating system

Wear OS 5 brings significant updates to the wearable software, including new features, enhancements, and improved battery life. It also focuses on fitness and the measured data around it. Wear OS 5 is the successor to Wear OS 4, which has been the most polished and feature-rich Wear OS thus far.

Google announced the Wear OS 5 update at Google I/O 2024. Later, Samsung revealed that it would be the first to launch the update to its new Samsung watch lineup: the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra. The stock version of the latest operating system will launch with the Google Pixel Watch 3. Here’s everything there is to know about the latest operating system for Android smartwatches.

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What is Wear OS 5?

Wear OS 5 is the latest version of the smartwatch operating system. It is based on Android 14 and follows the previous generation of smartwatches that ran on Wear OS 4. Wear OS 5 isn’t much different than Wear OS 4. Still, it improves battery life and performance. It has new features that add detailed running metrics, watch face format enhancements, and the ability to receive accurate readings for sustained performance. Google and Samsung have readied their newest smartwatches to run on Wear OS 5 since the Google I/O announcement in 2024.

What features are included in Wear OS 5?

Wear OS 5 comes with the expected security and optimization updates. It also shows improvements in battery life and performance. Google cited that it takes 20% less power to run a marathon with a Wear OS 5 watch compared to one that supports Wear OS 4. Launching apps on a Wear OS 5 watch takes less time, making the performance more efficient than the previous OS. Wear OS 5 also supports different screen sizes for improved system navigation and a denser app selection screen.

Wear OS 5 has notable upgrades, and it brings new features and quality-of-life improvements in other areas, especially for app developers. These include:

• Grid-based app launcher
• Media output device choices
• Watch Face Format enhancements
• Screenshot detection
• Health Services updates

Wear OS 5 has a new grid-based app launcher

The new grid-based app launcher is one big UI update in Wear OS 5. This launcher displays icons in a grid with columns and rows, similar to what you’d see in an app drawer on a smartphone. You can choose between grid-based and list-based as the default launcher. App developers should use adaptive icons when opting for the grid-based launcher so that app icons stay consistent across smartwatch models.

Wear OS 5 lets users choose which device the media outputs

With Wear OS 5, app developers can now incorporate a selectable media output device within apps. This means that if the media-playing app is running and connected to a smartphone (also connected to the watch), you can choose whether the media-playing app plays on the smartphone or the watch. It’s a nice quality-of-life feature, allowing the output and information for currently playing media to show up on a single device, saving battery life on the other. App developers can integrate this feature to bring more flexibility to media apps.

Wear OS 5 brings more enhancements for Watch Face Formats

Thanks to Google’s partnership with Samsung, Wear OS 4 introduced the Watch Face Format. The idea is to allow developers to focus on creating ideas instead of worrying about code optimization between the executable and APK code. It does this by using a declarative XML format to configure the appearance and behavior of watch faces. Wear OS 5 updates the Watch Face Format with Watch Face Format version 2.

The new version includes several enhancements, such as flavor (preset configurations for companion apps), goal progress complication type, weighted elements complication type, weather conditions, and a heart rate system data source. With the new standard of Watch Face Format in place, older watch faces may not be compatible with the Watch OS 5 update. Google iterates that users can only access “watch faces that have met our performance and quality standards.”

Wear OS 5 includes screenshot detection

One of Android 14’s security and privacy features is screenshot detection. Apps can use an API that notifies apps when someone takes a screenshot. For transparency, Android informs the user when an app detects a screenshot being captured by displaying a toast message at the bottom of the screen. As an extension of the operating system being built on Android 14, Wear OS 5 also supports the screenshot detection API feature.

Wear OS 5 adds updates to Health Services

Health Services sees significant improvements with Wear OS 5, bringing detailed metrics for runners and more precise health and fitness tracking data. Health Services supports additional data tracking, which includes ground contact time, stride length, vertical oscillation, and vertical ratio. Fitness apps can share this data from within the Health Connect app while running in the background and pull data for an entire workout history.

It also supports debounced goals, allowing app developers to create apps that monitor specific metrics (heart rate, for example) over time. If a debounced goal is used, it waits for the condition to be met for a duration or range. Using debounced goals prevents false positives, allowing more accurate measurements in Fitness apps.

When did Wear OS 5 come out?

Wear OS 5 debuted with the Samsung Watch 7 and Samsung Watch Ultra at Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked launch event in Paris on July 10th, 2024. During the Made by Google event (August 13th, 2024), Google revealed that Wear OS 5 will come with the Pixel Watch 3. However, Samsung has a custom One UI skin for its brand of smartwatches, leaving only the Pixel Watch 3 as the true preview for the stock version.

Eligible watches to receive the Wear OS 5 update

Smartwatches dating back to 2021 will receive the Wear OS 5 update. These watches include the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, Galaxy Watch 5, Galaxy Watch 6, and its premium variations, Galaxy Watch 4 Classic, Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, and Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. The Google Pixel Watch 1, Pixel Watch 2, OnePlus Watch 2, and OnePlus Watch 2R are also eligible for the new update.

Google Pixel Watch 3 is coming with Wear OS 5

Google opened pre-orders for the Pixel Watch 3 during the Made by Google 2024 event. These watches come with the stock version of Wear OS 5 and a handful of new features. One is the new Morning Brief feature in Fitbit. It allows the Pixel Watch 3 to show a breakdown of key daily health stats, including notifications of your tracked metrics, like HRV or SpO2, that are outside your normal range. Additionally, the Wear OS update supports more factors for daily reading in the Fitbit app, including resting heart rate and heart rate variability, while also showing measurements of cardio load and target cardio load.