US-based fashion designer and watch manufacturer Fossil announced that it will bring Android Wear 2.0 to its smartwatch lineup next month. The news broke on the company’s official Twitter page where one user inquired about the availability of Android Wear 2.0 on the Fossil Q Founder. Fossil answered his question by saying that the Fossil Q Founder will receive the update alongside all other Android Wear-powered Fossil devices around mid-March.
Android Wear 2.0 debuted earlier in February along with the release of the LG Watch Sport and the LG Watch Style. The update is expected to extend its reach to more smartwatches in the coming weeks, and it seems that Fossil aims to be among the first smartwatch manufacturers to the latest iteration of Google’s operating system for wearables. Assuming that everything goes without a hitch, Fossil intends to release Android Wear 2.0 to its product lineup in a matter of weeks. As for which Fossil smartwatches will receive the upgrade, it’s safe to assume that the update will not cover hybrid models and will only be launched on devices like the Fossil Q Founder, Fossil Q Wander, and the Fossil Q Marshal, all of which are running the first version of Android Wear.
Regarding what users can expect from the update once it arrives, Android Wear 2.0 makes the whole smartwatch experience more convenient as it includes new features expanding upon the functionality of its predecessor. With Android Wear 2.0, smartwatches can take advantage of standalone applications that can work independently from connected smartphones. Android Wear 2.0 also includes its own version of the Google Play Store, allowing users to browse and download new applications directly from their wrists. Additionally, Google’s new OS version facilitates messaging with the inclusion of a new on-screen keyboard and extends the functionality of watch faces with new data collected from apps and services like Google Fit. Overall, Android Wear 2.0 includes a redesigned user interface with reworked notifications and brings Google Assistant to your wrist while introducing Android Pay to smartwatches equipped with NFC support. Sadly, neither one of Fossil’s Q smartwatches ships with an NFC adapter so Android Pay integration will not be an option for the time being.