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Android Wear's latest update adds GPS support and offline music playback
Android Wear, Google's four-month-old wearables platform, is off to a good start. But like all nascent systems, there are still plenty of areas that need some TLC. It's got a lot of features and developer support, but it's practically useless if you want to use your smartwatch as a fitness tracker and leave your phone at home. Over the next few days, Google will push a new update to the LG G Watch, Moto 360 and Samsung Gear Live that will make your smart timepiece more useful when it's not tethered to your handset.
Apple Watch vs. the competition: Is it worth the wait?
Long rumored and eagerly awaited, the Apple Watch is now a reality. It's certainly not the first smartwatch on the block, but could it be the best? The features look impressive, but we'll still need to get one on our wrist and write a full review. In the meantime, there's always the specs to look at. How does the Apple Watch fare against some of the other wearables on the market? Just take a look below to see where it stands against notable smartwatches like the Pebble Steel, Moto 360 and the Samsung Gear Live.
Android Wear review: Taking smartwatches in the right direction
When I was a tiny tot, I watched Knight Rider and pretended I was Michael Knight, talking to KITT on my watch. Yet now that there are real-life watches that can do even more things, I don't find myself quite as excited as my 5-year-old self was. Smartwatches have been around for over a decade already (remember Microsoft SPOT?), but the category hasn't evolved at the same pace as smartphones. It's not because there's a shortage of digital wrist-worn timepieces. The problem is that there's no common platform for third-party apps, which means there's little potential for growth. There also doesn't seem to be any vision. Some watches act as Android phones with SIM cards and tiny touchscreens, while others try to establish their own platform to entice developers. Still others have even tried to put fitness bands and smartwatches into one device, to limited success. Even worse, most of the watches on the market today are what you might call "fashionably challenged" -- they simply aren't attractive enough to entice the masses. Google's solution is to extend its Android platform -- which has very strong market share and developer support -- to the wearables genre with Android Wear.
