Yesterday, we had a good look at the Apple Watch. And when we were done with that, we turned our attention to the Android Wear tickers adorning our wrists. We've grown pretty fond of them in the span of a few months, but we're also objective - Android Wear is work in progress. Lurking beneath the pretty watchfaces, there are the rough edges, the questionable omissions, the "playing-it-safe" feel of technology that was put on the market a little bit early. Nothing deal-breaking, but we have to say, Apple really took its time with this project. In the process, it came up with some nice ideas about the Apple Watch's functionality that Android Wear developers & Google should borrow if they want to see the platform progress.
Here they are!
1. Wi-Fi connectivity
Android Wear does not support Wi-Fi connectivity at the moment, which is mildly annoying. Here's an example - Lord forbid you leave your smartphone on the desk and leave to use the restroom! Some 40 meters on your way to business, the watch loses connection to the handset and goes buzz-nanas - like "OMG, did you lose your phone or something?!" Huh, does it really have to be like this? What keeps the two from staying connected over the in-house Wi-Fi? Additionally, Wi-Fi connectivity would be of benefit for app installs, side-loading, development, and smartwatch apps & tasks that could use a faster connection - take the Wear Internet Browser, for example.
2. NFC for payments and extended connectivity
Thanks to NFC, the Apple Watch is tightly integrated with Apple's mobile payments system and it could interact with optional gadgets and accessories by virtue of this connectivity. But there's a difference here - Apple has an actual, marketable, profitable use for NFC support. Google doesn't have a payment system and by the looks of how its Android Pay platform is shaping up, big G is sidestepping the card-less payment market in favor of advancing Google Play purchases. However, NFC will probably make it in Android Wear down the road.
3. Shazam
Right now, Android Wear lacks a reliable song identification app like Shazam or Soundhound. Alternatives like EchoWear and Sony TrackID are plagued with issues - the former disappeared from the Play Store, the latter doesn't show up on the watch, and vice versa. Last we heard, Shazam was "looking into" Android Wear... a year ago. Come on, what's taking so long?
4. A livelier UI
Looking at the Apple Watch interface going through its motions, we couldn't help but notice how lively and animated it seemed. The watchfaces move exceptionally smooth, the apps' menus and elements are meticulously animated and rich with color and detail. The whole thing is very eye-pleasing. Android Wear - not so much. Google's cards are quite sympathetic, but all they do is show up on the screen and disappear as you casually dismiss them. There's little on your Android Wear watch to really intrigue you into toying around with its touch-sensitive watchface. We know, that's Google's vision for Android Wear in the first place - minimalist, quick, non-distracting, and useful. Curiously enough, Apple has a similar mentality - it expects you to interact with watch apps in 10 second bursts , but it also made sure they are very aurally pleasant 10 second bursts. Step up your UI game, Google - we like our wearable eye candy!
5. Force Touch
Apple's force touch touchscreen discerns between light and firm taps, which seems like a pretty useful invention - it expands the simple usability mechanic of tapping with even more possibilities for interaction without altering it or otherwise mingling with it. It's pretty great technology - it's even good enough for the next iPhone, rumors say, and we think Android Wear is more than a worthy candidate for adopting it.
6. Communicating with pulses
The Apple Watch lets you respond to notificationsand messages by tapping a patern or drawing something on your screen, and beaming it over to a friend of yours' Apple Watch. It's less cumbersome than typing, more accurate than dictating a message, and nobody else but the recepient knows what you wanted to say with the pattern. It's a cool feature that we hope someone will code into Android Wear or a 3rd party Wear haptic messenger app. After all, AW watches already have touchscreens and vibration motors, so the hardware base is covered!
7. Better heart-rate sensors
The heart rate sensor on the Apple Watch is second to none in the mobile devices category. Dissatisfied with the simple units found on today's smartphones and wearables, it built its own solution with four - yes, four - lenses on the back of the watch to facilitate accurate heart rate measurements. The sensor on your smartwatch right now is halfway between a toy and something actually usable in comparison.
8. More fashion choices
We are impressed with how Apple developed and priced the three different Apple Watch variants. If Android Wear watchmakers - and smartwatch makers in general - want their products taken seriously, we think they too should offer different personalization options and price points to consumers. Take the gorgeous Huawei watch for example - its alleged price of $1000 makes it strictly a luxury watch. What if Huawei made the same pretty and functional watch out of more mundane materials materials, and put it on sale for $250 with different color options. Sounds more appropriate than going full-on after the wealthy types.
0 comments:
Post a Comment