In Google Play, there was never really anyway to figure out if an app was compatible with Android Wear so you could use it on your smartwatch. Of course, you could always tap on the link from inside the Android Wear companion app on your phone. But the actual page in the Play Store for each individual app never really showed you that it was compatible with Android Wear. That was until today. Google has rolled out a subtle new feature to the Google Play Store which shows a watch icon just above the “Read More” shortcut to view the whole description of the app. It’s subtle but it does show you that the app is compatible with Android Wear.
The icon does show when it’s collapsed, but when you expand the description you will also see the Android Wear compatibility in the section with the rating and other features like Editor’s Choice and whether they are a “Top Developer” or not. Next to the icon it’ll say “Enhanced for Android Wear” so there’s that. It’s a nice update for the Google Play Store.
According to reports, it appears that this started appearing for a few users earlier this week. But it’s now popping up for everyone. It appears to be another server-side change – similar to the big redesign from last week – which means there’s no new APK to download and side load onto you device. If you don’t have the update already, you’ll just have to sit back and wait until Google decides that it’s your turn, unfortunately.
Currently, this does not appear on the web version of the Play Store. However, Google has been working hard to give us the same experience on the desktop as we have in the App, so I’d imagine that it’ll make its way to the desktop version of the Play Store rather soon. This is definitely an easier way to see if an app is compatible with Android Wear, than by downloading the app and seeing if it appears on your watch. There is a section in the Google Play store already for Android Wear apps as well.