Why Wear OS still needs to improve

Wear OS by Google, formally known as Android Wear, is the version of the Android mobile operating system optimized for wearable computers, such as smartwatches and fitness bands. There are many similarities and differences between the smartphone and smartwatch versions of the operating systems, but one that stands out is its size as a platform, and its background.

Both versions of the Android platform are used by a variety of different manufacturers on their devices. However, one big difference is how the platform can be used. With the smartphone version of the operating system, any manufacturer is able to use the system for their own liking, as the platform is completely open-source. This is backed by the fact that Android is made by the Open Handset Alliance (OHA), rather than just Google. Although most iterations of Android include the Google Mobile Services, it is not required. With Wear OS, it is a different story. As the new name implies, the system is made completely by Google, rather than the OHA. While Wear OS uses the open-source Android Open Source Project (AOSP) code, like all versions of Android, there isn't a wearable-specific open-source version. Because of this, only companies who partner with Google can use Wear OS.

Why is this an issue? Well, with Android, you have a unique arrangement of devices, not just from the OHA members. Most of the other manufacturers still use the Google Mobile Services, without being members. This is what brought dominance to Android. With Wear OS, only certain partners are using the platform, including deluxe fashion brands, such as Kate Spade. While there are many brands out there which do use the platform, it is still a small fraction of that which uses the smartphone iteration of Android.

The main attraction to Android over many other operating systems is that it consists of devices for an affordable price tag, With Wear OS, a majority of the new devices still consist of a high price point, and each of them are from big names in the wearable technology industry. If any manufacturers want to make devices without Google's services, they would have to start from the AOSP source code. While Wear OS may be getting more compatible with other platforms, and improving over what was formally Android Wear, it still has a long way to go before it can match what its smartphone counterpoint has accomplished.

WebOS is going Open-source, again

LG WebOS, originally developed by Palm Inc, then Hewlett-Packard before making it open-source, and then licencing to LG Electronics, has come a long way from when it was first developed, and plays a far different role. When originally introduced, it way made as the modern successor to Palm OS for use on smartphones, before being purchased by Hewlett-Packard (HP) for its wide range of devices (but failed at it), but it is currently an operating system which has been used on multiple different platforms for LG since purchased in 2014. From smartwatches, smart-fridges, and projectors, LG's iteration of WebOS has lived, but kept a home in their smart televisions. The next biggest step for LG was to take it open-source.

LG stated their their reason for bringing an open-sourced version of their operating system was to bring in developers who would like to use the operating system, as well as benefit from the WebOS tools built-in. This would also help grow the iconic platform once more, and allow developers to become more familiar with it. Partnerships and platform building was key in the decision to make the source code available.

We are unsure of when exactly the source code will become available and open-source, or if it has already been done.  Going forward, LG plans to bring their software, carefully and slowly, to a wider range of their devices, similar to how Samsung is using their own Tizen operating system; which was also built off of legacy platforms. Let's hope this version of WebOS doesn't face the same fate as HP's Open WebOS did just a few years ago.

Why Android Wear had to change

Looking back at the history of mobile operating systems, we see that the first couple of them, mainly developed within the late 20th century, we not necessarily developed for smartphones or tablets, but rather personal digital assistants (PDAs). While there wasn't a noticeable different at first, the difference began to show more. As more time went on, these operating systems struggled to keep up with those based off of code made for heavier computing. Operating systems such as Palm OS, BlackBerry OS, and Windows Mobile heavily suffered from these, and led to the companies replacing them with the more modern WebOS, BlackBerry 10, and Windows Phone operating systems, respectively. Although, many of those which took longer to change, such as Symbian, went from dominance to non-existence. Android Wear almost suffered the same fate.

In the modern age, smartwatches and other wearable technologies ("wearables") are still a relatively new concept. The operating systems which adopted them included Android, which was modified in the form of Android Wear. This iteration of the system was shrunken over time, and used similar versions of the same Android features, rather than ones built specially for the new trend. Although this may have led to consistency with the smartphone platform, it led to holding the new one back.

Android Wear devices mainly only worked well with devices running the Google Android operating system, and was very limited when paired with devices running Apple's iOS; however, refused to function with other operating systems completely. Also, although some of the system's faults can be blamed on lack of optimization, the real culprit is the fact that the code was never originally made to work on wearables.

The system's biggest competitor, watchOS from Apple, was also built off the basis of its mobile platform, but in contrast is its own operating system built for the specific purpose to be on the face of your smartwatch. Even Samsung's Tizen, which also leads ahead of the Android-based platform, is optimized for a majority of different devices, due to a flexible common framework.

Google recently took action to fix the issue, by modifying parts of the operating system to be specific to the wearable operating system, a big part of why it suffered beforehand. In addition to that, it also renamed the wearable platform from Android Wear to Wear OS. Despite the name, it is still the wearable version of the traditional Android operating system, but now consists of its own true versions and individuality from being apart of a smartphone operating system. As technology advances, so does the systems, with the risk of being left behind. Although Wear OS has a lot of catching up to do, with its wide range of partners, it should be able to reach the same level of the others soon enough; as long as it doesn't become the modern Symbian.