Android Wear 5.1.1 brings along some awesome changes to the interface and software that anybody who owns an Android Wear smartwatch can appreciate. Some of the more notable features are things like WiFi support (for most of the watches though not all) so users can connect their Android Wear devices to the network without being linked to a smartphone, and the support for gestures to cycle through notification cards will garner the most attention, but there are fun additions too, like the ability to draw emojis on screen to send emojis in messages via Android Wear. Yes, emojis are seemingly everywhere.
Not all Android Wear devices have gotten the latest software update yet, and it could be a little while before every Android Wear device that is currently on the market actually receives the software. Today though it seems two devices join the rather exclusive club known as Android Wear 5.1.1, which happens to be LG’s first and second generation Android Wear smartwatches, the LG G Watch and G Watch R. While some users are starting to get these updates today, not everyone will be getting the update immediately as software updates are usually in staged roll outs, meaning Google staggers them out to smaller groups before sending the software out to everyone.
If you’ve already gotten the update on your G Watch or G Watch R and you’ve been attempting to connect it to WiFi, you’ve likely noticed it may not be working and there is a reason for this. Neither device supports WiFi for a connection. In the case of the original LG G Watch, there is a lack of hardware support for the feature so unfortunately, users of the G Watch will never have WiFi support. This does however leave those users open for the opportunity of an upgrade at some point, as most of the newer Android Wear devices will be able to support the functionality. Android Wear 5.1.1 also includes heads-up notifications, which should not only be infinitely more useful when new cards come in and you’re doing something else on the watch display, but all Android Wear devices will support this feature, which also means LG G Watch and G Watch R owners can look forward to interacting with it. If you haven’t seen the update come through yet, you can always check the software update status manually by navigating to the settings menu.
