Wear OS is set to lose music streaming features "within weeks"

More features disappearing from Wear OS
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If you’re enjoying streaming music using your Wear OS smartwatch, unfortunately those days are numbered.

Currently Google Play Music is the sole service that can play music from the wrist, but Google is preparing to shutter the service by the end of the year.

But Android Police has spotted that support for Wear OS will end a lot sooner – in fact, “in the next couple of weeks”.

“Users will no longer be able to use or download Google Play Music on their Wear OS by Google smartwatches. Google is investing heavily in improving integrated music services through all of your connected devices with YouTube Music,” reports Android Police, from a Google forum.

To those not in the know, Google is moving over to YouTube Music for its streaming service.

But there’s no sign that YouTube Music will have a Wear OS app any time soon – if at all.

That’s really frustrating for Wear OS users, and just adds more fuel to the argument that Google’s heart isn’t in its smartwatch OS.

When you consider the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is taking the fight to Apple with features like offline Spotify playlists, ECG, fall detection, stress monitoring, Spo2 and more – Wear OS isn’t even in the picture.

With Wear OS now losing features, it’s little wonder that the company is looking to buy Fitbit to advance its wearable tech ambitions.

TAGGED Wear OS

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James Stables

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James is the co-founder of Wareable, and he has been a technology journalist for 15 years.

He started his career at Future Publishing, James became the features editor of T3 Magazine and T3.com and was a regular contributor to TechRadar – before leaving Future Publishing to found Wareable in 2014.

James has been at the helm of Wareable since 2014 and has become one of the leading experts in wearable technologies globally. He has reviewed, tested, and covered pretty much every wearable on the market, and is passionate about the evolving industry, and wearables helping people achieve healthier and happier lives.


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