Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority
No matter what smartwatch you put on, there’s no scarcity of enticing faces accessible. From smooth minimalist designs to data-packed dashboards, the enchantment of a smartwatch face lies in how a lot you’ll be able to tailor your look. But when the watch face is my wearable’s outfit, I not often change its garments. Swapping is simply clunky sufficient that weeks go by earlier than I understand I’ve been caught on the identical one, though I’ve downloaded dozens. That’s why rumored face randomization on the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 has me genuinely excited, and I hope different manufacturers are paying consideration.
Based mostly on Android Authority’s APK teardown of leaked One UI 8 Watch software program, Samsung seems to be testing a function that might let customers robotically rotate between saved Galaxy watch faces. Textual content strings within the software program recommend the watch will be capable of shuffle between customers’ watch faces, so long as two or extra are saved. This might happen at set intervals or every time the display screen wakes, we will’t affirm precisely the way it will work, nevertheless it’s a setting no main smartwatch presently gives out of the field. Most platforms, together with Put on OS and watchOS, merely allow you to retailer and swap between a number of faces, however switching between them is a handbook, typically even buried activity.
Samsung is rumored to be bringing randomized watch face shuffling to the Galaxy Watch 8, and I need it on each wearable.
In different phrases, watch face randomization would offer a layer of easy personalization. A strong watch face library is nice in principle, however mine is extra of a graveyard than a gallery. I sometimes keep in mind to change issues up. Robotically using extra faces would give actual which means to the hours I’ve spent scouring the Play Retailer for recent builds from indie builders. Our teardown additionally revealed that Samsung could even make recommendations based mostly on customers’ current collections, making the function much more dynamic.
Randomizing watch faces is probably not a sweeping {hardware} improve or a novel addition, nevertheless it’s the type of ignored, quality-of-life tweak that would simply change into a typical function throughout the panorama. I put on plenty of completely different units. I don’t put on plenty of faces per machine, however Samsung is prepared to assist. When you think about what number of distinctive Put on OS faces you could find from third-party builders, I recognize it.
The Put on OS platform, specifically, has too many good builders to let watch faces go stale.
As of now, automation capabilities aren’t clear. There’s no signal (but) of setting particular faces to particular occasions, for instance, however that’s a logical subsequent step. Personally, I’d like to get up to a data-packed possibility together with sleep insights and climate, and by the point I hit my desk, have my watch robotically swap to a much less distracting, calm aesthetic. Within the night, a fitness-focused decide could nudge me to get transferring. And so forth. Through Apple’s Focus modes, I can create this sample on my Apple Watch, and it’s genuinely helpful (although the enjoyment I get from seeing my “sleep” watch face suggests I’m not going to mattress early sufficient). But Apple doesn’t supply practically the identical watch face help and may’t compete with the expertise provided by Put on OS watches.
Smartwatches don’t at all times get enormous innovation leaps, however considerate, user-centric updates like this may positively enhance each day use. As soon as it hits Samsung, I hope the thought sticks and spreads.
