Google is further expanding YouTube Music’s availability on Wear OS to even more older watches. The company initially launched the app on Wear OS 3, with exclusivity to the Galaxy Watch 4, but rolled it out to a selection of older smartwatches powered by the Snapdragon Wear 4100 platform last month. A new report notes that smartwatches like the Moto 360 can now get it, too.
Google has confirmed the expanded selection, but the company did not share exactly which watches were eligible. Instead, Wear OS users are encouraged to check the Play Store and see if their device is eligible. As it has been seen on the Moto 360 and TAG Heuer Connected watches, 9to5Google speculates it could be rolling out to watches powered by the Snapdragon Wear 3100. This should encompass quite a few Wear OS watches, including the Fossil Gen 5, the Montblanc Summit, and the Suunto 7.
Google announced YouTube Music for Wear OS at its Google I/O event in May. The app offers users streaming of their YouTube Music libraries, access to playlists, and support for offline playback while on the go if you’re a premium subscriber. It was at first thought the app would be exclusive to Wear OS 3 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, but Google later announced that it would slowly be rolling it out to older devices. The rollout started last month with Snapdragon Wear 4100. Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 watches were among the first of the older batch to access the new app.
Google had earlier courted controversy by removing the older Google Play Music app from Wear OS before preparing a replacement. While alternatives existed in Spotify, that app did not support offline music streaming and wasn’t a perfect replacement for some of the most dedicated Wear OS customers. As Spotify has now added offline playback to Wear OS, users of the platform now have options going forward.
The OnePlus Buds Clip are a new pair of open-ear earbuds built around a simple convenience. They join Sony’s LinkBuds Clip in the growing ear-cuff category, but either OnePlus bud can go on either ear.
Sensors recognize how the earbuds are being worn and route the audio channels accordingly. There’s no label to check before putting them on, and the feature also works when only one bud is used.
We buy fitness bands and activity trackers to keep tabs on our exercise, but it is easy to forget to start tracking or switch modes when moving between different activities. For Fitbit and Pixel Watch users, that could soon become a lot less annoying, as Google is rolling out a major upgrade to automatic activity tracking that can recognize more than 100 types of exercise, up from just 10 before.
Google first showed off the improved tracking earlier this month alongside the Fitbit Edge. It is now coming to Fitbit Air and the Pixel Watch 3, 4, and 5, and Google claims the added context behind the system makes workout detection nearly twice as accurate while cutting missed activities by more than half. Fitbit Edge will support it too.