WhatsApp Rolls Out On Wear OS Smartwatches Starting Today.

If you own a Wear OS 3 wristwatch, Meta has just revealed that WhatsApp will officially begin rolling out to Wear OS smartwatches starting today, as first hinted at Google I/O.

The app itself isn’t rocket science to use. Users will be able to answer calls, reply to messages, and start new conversations all from their wrists. In addition, they will be able to reply via voice messaging, emoji, standard text, and rapid replies. Additionally, users won’t need to have their phone close by to respond to messages if they have a Wear OS 3 watch that supports LTE.

Timing and reach are crucial in this case. First off, the Samsung Unpacked event takes place next week, and there is a good chance that the new Galaxy Watch 6 and, if rumors are to be believed, the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic, will be on display. Similar to how the Galaxy Watch 4 range was the first to introduce Wear OS 3, it’s likely that Samsung’s new watches will be the first to run Wear OS 4. The Wear OS app’s immediate release boosts interest in Unpacked and increases Wear OS’s appeal to WhatsApp’s 2.24 billion active users. Additionally, Meta has the opportunity to increase the wearable footprint of a well-known platform, especially given that it cancelled its own wristwatch ambitions last year.

This is also part of Google’s ongoing effort to strengthen the ecosystem of third-party apps for Wear OS. In addition to WhatsApp, the company mentioned during I/O that Peloton recently released its own Wear OS software, and Spotify will be releasing new Tiles for its Wear OS app this year. In other words, everyone benefits from the situation.