Sony Steers Clear Of Android Wear

Recently Google launched Android Wear. The company has developed this SDK to expand Android onto wearable devices. Two of the first companies to commit to Android Wear are LG and Motorola, both of them will be using Android Wear for smartwatches. LG has shown of its G Watch while Motorola’s Moto 360 has been dropping jaws since it was unveiled. Sony fans hoping for the company to jump on the bandwagon as well are out of luck. Head of Sony Mobile U.S., Ravi Nookala, tells CNET that the company won’t be adopting Android Wear for its wearable devices.

Instead, Sony is going to stick with its existing SmartWatch platform, which is based on forked Android. Nookala says that Sony has already invested considerable time and resources into this platform, so its going to stick with it for now. He doesn’t rule out the possibility of shifting to Android Wear entirely, presumably Sony will consider its options once the nascent SDK achieves a certain standing.

The company is definitely spent a lot of time building up its SmartWatch platform, it even released its smartwatch before Samsung’s first Galaxy Gear was launched last year. That device was followed up by the SmartWatch 2 as well as the SmartBand activity tracker.

While the company has made its intention of not adopting Android Wear straight away clear, Nookala does say that Sony and Google continue to work closely on products.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Gadgets
Tags: Android Wear, Smartwatch, Sony