Wear OS 5 wishlist: What I want to see and what we know so far

The Wear OS landscape is gaining traction with more names in the field than ever, including Google’s own smartwatch line. We’re only a few months out from the next round of major Wear OS device launches (looking at you, Samsung), and I’m already eager to see what a potential Wear OS 5 launch might look like.

If I could have my way, there are several improvements I’d want to see on the next Wear OS update. Some of these are long shots. Others are niche and picky, but they’re also very doable.

My most obvious ask for Wear OS 5 is that Google generously makes Fitbit features available to all Wear OS users. At this point, the Google/Fitbit conglomerate has run its course, and it is time to stop treating Fitbit’s ecosystem as a separate entity. Many Wear OS users beyond the Pixel Watch would benefit from the option to access Fitbit’s approachable fitness tracking tools and fantastic sleep platform. Health Connect was an okay stopgap, but anyone double-fisting a Fitbit and a Wear OS device should be able to move between their devices without losing data.

Novelty in general

The second very general ask is just for something new and exciting. Wear OS 4 brought some helpful improvements to users’ wrists but wasn’t terribly imaginative or novel. I’d love to see Wear OS 5 reinvigorate Apple’s biggest rival in the same way Wear OS 3 did back in 2021.

Though the Galaxy Watch series offers customizable quick settings, this feature isn’t consistent across all Wear OS devices, and it should be. The panel is much more usable when your own priorities are given prime locations. I also wish the quick setting menu could be accessed from other screens, not just the home screen.

Double Tap for Android users

Though at first I doubted its necessity, Double Tap is now a feature I rely on regularly when wearing my Apple Watch Ultra 2. The gesture control makes the smartwatch more accessible with just one hand free. This may sound lazy, but I want the same convenience on my Wear OS watches. Single-handed use is applicable in many more situations than I anticipated, and not just when my other one is clutched around an oversized to-go coffee.

The voice assistant landscape is shifting, and frankly, it’s an exciting feature to keep an eye on. Between added AI capabilities and on-device processing, smartwatches offer more powerful assistance than ever. Within the Wear OS 5 update, I hope to see the platform keep up with the competition by expanding and refining the user experience. (Will we see Gemini on the wrist?)

Meanwhile, as voice assistants become more complex, I also want to see Wear OS manage the user experience with intention. For example, Wear OS 5 should make simple queries manageable offline and locally so users don’t need to be connected to a phone.

Improved arrangements and modes (niche but needed)

Finally, there are a few subtle but significant UI tweaks that would improve the Wear OS 5 user experience. AA’s own Rita El Khoury points out that currently, not all watches change orientation when charging, leaving your time displayed wonky when using a sideways stand or charger. Likewise, Bedtime and Do Not Disturb modes are coupled unnecessarily. Wear OS 5 should introduce the option to sync your bedtime mode so the device switches to bedtime mode when you charge your phone at night, but DND is kept separate.

• Wear OS 3: August 2021
• Wear OS 3.5: August 2022
• Wear OS 4: August 2023

There have already been some minor rumors about Wear OS 5 development based on Android 14, though I don’t expect the new software to arrive until August 2024. For the past three summers, new Wear OS builds have launched on Samsung’s Galaxy Watches. Wear OS 3 arrived in 2021 on the Galaxy Watch 4 series, and the 5 series launched with Wear OS 3.5 a year later. Then, in July 2023, shoppers were introduced to Wear OS 4 on the Galaxy Watch 6 Series.

We are most likely to see Wear OS 5 follow this same schedule and launch with the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 this summer. It will likely be announced at Samsung’s summer unpacked event in mid to late July and hit shelves a few weeks later. Based on the past two years, Wear OS 5 will then be released in a more pure form on the Pixel Watch 3 in the fall.

Will there be a Wear OS 5 beta?

Just like last year, I expect Samsung to release a Wear OS 5 beta version leading up to the software’s official launch. This allows users to provide feedback about bugs and shortcomings while also getting a sneak peek at the new software. We will keep this hub updated once the beta program is made available.

So far, rumors are sparse regarding what users can expect from Wear OS 5. Even if the new software lacks any showstopping updates, it’s safe to expect at least the same level of improvement users found in Wear OS 4. Wear OS 4 brought small but significant improvements to various Wear OS apps, added a few useful Google apps, and finally introduced backup and restore support. According to Google, it also improved power consumption and performance, and I expect Wear OS 5 to continue fine-tuning these metrics as well.

Wear OS rollouts haven’t been especially smooth in recent years. Many Wear OS 3 compatible devices took much longer than expected to receive the update. Likewise, Wear OS 4 hasn’t yet made its way to every watch, though all compatible older Galaxy Watches and the original Pixel Watch have received the update. I expect Wear OS 5 to follow a similar trajectory, launching on the Galaxy Watch 7 and Pixel Watch 3 and rolling back to older devices over time. It’s likely that any watch compatible with Wear OS 4, like the OnePlus Watch 2, for example, will also eventually receive a Wear OS 5 update.