As it stands, Google has the lead when it comes to wearables in the market. There are multiple smartwatches in the market at the moment powered by Android Wear, and the Apple Watch has yet to be released. But if there was one way Google could really steal some market away from Apple, it would be to make Android Wear devices compatible with iOS.
Unfortunately as it stands, it is not compatible meaning that even if you loved devices like the Moto 360, unless you’re willing to get an Android phone to use with it, well you’d be out of luck. That being said, we’ve seen Google release their products and services for iOS before, and it looks like Android Wear will be no different.
Speaking to the Huffington Post, Google’s Android Wear product manager Jeff Chang was quoted as saying that support for non-Android platforms is something Google is very interested in. “We always want as many users as possible to enjoy our experience, so in terms of enabling more people to use Android Wear we’re very interested in making that happen.”
However it seems that it isn’t as easy as just making the platform compatible with iOS or Windows Phone or BlackBerry devices. Chang notes that there could be technical constraints not on their end that would prevent compatibility. “We would love to have Android Wear reach as many people as possible but I’ll just say that it’s not 100 per cent under our control.”
On one hand opening up their platforms to Android Wear would basically drive customers away from purchasing the company’s own wearables. However at the same time, this could ultimately force users to swap to Android for their next purchase if the need to own an Android Wear-based wearable is compelling enough, but what say you?
Filed in . Read more about Android Wear, Google and Wearable Tech.