Google has announced major visual changes to Wear OS with the introduction of new Wear Widgets, which replace the existing Tiles. These widgets are already ready to integrate with some third-party apps, which is welcome news for both the Pixel Watch and the Galaxy Watch.
See also: Wear OS 7: New widgets and 10% better battery life on smartwatches
Wear Widgets come in two sizes: 2×2 (large) and 2×1 (small). Their design is very reminiscent of Android widgets, and that’s no coincidence. Between Android and Wear OS devices, widgets now share a common design structure, allowing developers to make widgets more easily available for the Pixel Watch.
Google is moving from full-screen tiles to widgets in Wear OS. This change means that Samsung's Galaxy Watches will be able to work with the same widgets and integrate them into the tile stack system.
See also: Pixel Watch allows payments without opening Wallet
The Galaxy Watch 8 series introduced a new tile design on the hybrid Wear OS 6/One UI Watch 8 that it runs. This system allows multiple information cards and tools to be stacked on pages next to the main watch face. This move, overall, aims to make development easier.
Google claims that the widgets will be “flexible and dynamic,” though only two sizes are described, with little information on how flexible they will be. We’ll likely have to wait until Wear OS 7 is released to see what Wear Widgets will bring in place of Tiles.
See also: Snapdragon Wear Elite: Qualcomm's new chip for AI wearables
When Wear OS 7 launches, Google says that several apps have already started turning tiles into widgets. The list includes Spotify, WhatsApp, Peloton, and Todoist.
