Google has released the fourth developer preview of Android Wear 2.0. This latest preview confirms that standalone app support will be the key feature of the next Android Wear platform.
Android Wear 2.0 Developer Preview 4 includes a number of APIs that can help you build powerful standalone apps. Also, there is a legacy embedded app mechanism that makes the new Android Wear platform compatible with the apps designed for its previous version.
In the official blog post, Google has described additional features such as seamless authentication, in-app billing and cross-device promotion APIs. The search giant has also re-introduced swipe-to-dismiss feature after receiving its multiple requests from users.
The developer preview comes with some new APIs for OAuth to make it seamless for users to authenticate the device. There is also in-app billing support to open new possibilities of monetising your app on Android Wear. Further, PlayStoreAvailability and RemoteIntent APIs are available to help you navigate users to the Play Store on a paired device.
Cronologics’ acquisition
Google is aiming to enhance Android Wear to make it a strong competitor against Apple’s watchOS. Recently, the company acquired open source smartwatch technology startup Cronologics. The acquired entity had developed a cross-platform OS that was first featured on Amazon Alexa.
The team from Cronologics will join the Android Wear team at Google. This would uplift the developments ahead of the final public release of Android Wear 2.0 that is expected to be announced sometime in 2017.
