Which Android Wear Watches Work with iPhone?

Yesterday, Google finally released iPhone support with Android Wear smartwatches. Here are Android Wear watches that currently work with the iPhone.

iPhone support for Android Wear has been rumored for a while, with many hoping that Google would make it official at its annual I/O conference earlier this year, but unfortunately that was MIA. However, the company revealed the news by making a surprise statement yesterday.

This means that smartwatches running Android Wear not only work with Android devices, but also iPhone; This means that the Apple Watch and Pebble are no longer the only smartwatches that work with the iPhone.

All you have to do is download the Android Wear iPhone app, which lets you pair your Android Wear smartwatch with your iPhone and customize the settings and notifications your watch receives. You can also use the app to change watch faces.

Android Wear works with the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus and will likely work with the iPhone 6s when it launches next month.

As for which Android Wear watches work with iPhone, that’s another question entirely, and Google is a bit confused about which smartwatches work with iOS.

Here’s what Android Wear watches currently work with the iPhone.

Android Wear Watches on iPhone

Officially, Google lists only one specific Android Wear smartwatch that works with the iPhone, and that’s the new LG Watch Urbane. However, the company says that all new Android Wear devices coming from now on will be compatible with iOS:

“All future Android Wear watches, including those from Huawei, Asus, and Motorola, will also support iOS, so stay tuned for more.”

What Google has left out is that older Android Wear smartwatches actually work with the iPhone as long as the watch is updated to the latest Android Wear 1.3.

According to users’ experience, LG G Watch, G Watch R, Moto 360 and Samsung Gear Live work fine with iPhone. We haven’t heard of any other reports of other Android Wear devices working with the iPhone, but if your smartwatch runs Android Wear version 1.3, it will likely work with the iPhone.

Of course, as time goes on, more Android Wear watches will be released and there will be an even larger selection of smartwatches to choose from for your iPhone, so that’s just the beginning.

What Android Wear Can Do on iOS

Perhaps one of the biggest questions is what exactly an Android Wear smartwatch can do on the iPhone and what is supported.

Frankly, there’s really not much you can do. You can receive any notification from the iOS Notification Center, including iMessage notifications, but you cannot act on these notifications from the watch.

Other than that, that’s all you can do. You can use Google Assistant on your Android Wear watch, so that’s definitely a plus, but compared to the Apple Watch, Android Wear watches can’t do much on iOS.

Because the Apple Watch works seamlessly with iOS, there are tons of things Android Wear devices can’t do that you can do with the device. That said, it’s easy to see why some iPhone users prefer an Android Wear smartwatch over the Apple Watch, especially if you like the Moto 360’s rounded design. It saves you over $200 off the price of an entry-level Apple Watch.

Hopefully Google opens up more functionality for Android Wear, but it’s possible that most of the downsides are Apple’s fault, as the company likes to shut many of its features to third-party developers and manufacturers.