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12 of the best new features in Android Lollipop

12 of the best new features in Android Lollipop
Google’s approach for rolling out the latest version of Android, Lollipop, is a little different. There are the usual things we see every year — a new Nexus phone and a new Nexus tablet — but instead of a big event, the company is posting details in blog posts and on the main Android site. So if you’re tracking the rollout closely, you probably have a sense of what’s new and what’s cool in the OS. If you’re not, though, getting a sense of what Lollipop is actually like and what it actually does isn’t easy.
Luckily, we got a chance to sit down with some Google execs last week to get a walkthrough of the coolest features. We won’t know everything until we actually have a chance to use the final version, but there are some clever additions we saw last week. Here are some of our favorites.
Tap and Go: Android has never been particularly good at transferring your settings and apps from an old phone to a new one. It’s always been a crap shoot as to whether all your apps would actually be downloaded from the Play store, to say nothing of your home screen and wallpaper. That’s partially Google’s fault, but it’s also a difficult problem to solve because of the diversity of hardware and software in the Android ecosystem. "Tap and Go" is a small step towards resolving that. You can pair them with NFC and your old Android phone will then use Bluetooth to send over all the details of what your phone should have installed over to the new phone.
Ok Google: Several of the enhancements on Lollipop were inspired by Motorola. The first is the ability to say "Ok Google" even if your phone is in standby mode. Your phone will wake and then you can use voice to search, send texts, and more. It requires compatible hardware, though, and so far we only know for sure that the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 support it.
Double tap to wake: Speaking of waking up your Android device, you can just double tap the screen of the Nexus 9 tablet to wake it up. Like the advanced "Ok Google" command, it requires compatible hardware. We also hear it works on the Nexus 6.
NEXUS GETS SOME OF THE BEST FEATURES FROM THE MOTO X
Ambient Display: Another feature that’s made it over from the Moto X is the idea of displaying bits of information on your screen as it comes in without turning the whole thing on. On the Nexus 6, it’s much more advanced — basically you get black and white versions of what would normally be on the lock screen anyway. It requires an OLED screen to work, so for now it seems like this is going to be a Nexus 6-specific feature.
Face unlock: Android’s face unlock feature has never really worked all that well. It’s kind of magical that it can recognize your face, but it’s often slow and usually needs really good lighting conditions to work. In Lollipop, Google has tweaked it so that it starts running silently as soon as you turn on your screen. Since you can interact with notifications on the lock screen now (see below), the idea is that you’d power it on, mess with a few notifications, and by the time you’re done Face Unlock has already kicked in and unlocked the phone.
Lock screen notifications: As with the iPhone, Android Lollipop will put notifications right on your lock screen. But on Android, the notifications on your screen are basically the same as those that appear in the drop-down notification shade. Why does that matter? Because on Android, you get a lot of control built-in to those notifications. You can archive email, tap reply, expand notifications to see more information, and so on. Now, you can do it directly on your lock screen. As a small bonus, if you have apps with sensitive information that you want to see notifications from but don’t want to display their contents, you can set them to be "redacted" when they show up on the lock screen.
Priority Mode: But the best notification enhancement in Lollipop is something Google calls "Priority Mode." It’s a little bit like "Do Not Disturb" on iOS but it seems much smarter here. You can easily choose which apps can still disturb you when in Priority Mode (the rest won’t bug you). Even better, when you set it, Android gives you the option to set a duration before it goes back into normal notifications. That way, you won’t forget to switch it off. There’s also a total silence mode that will turn everything off — including alarms.
Guest Mode: Android has allowed multiple user accounts on tablets for awhile, but in Lollipop there’s a new option called Guest Mode that works on both phones and tablets. The idea is that it creates a clean, safe, and disposable workspace that anybody can use. Your guest can even quickly log in to their account to check email. You or your guest can get rid of the data inside the guest account at any time.
THE NEXUS 9 IS EASY TO HAND TO YOUR KIDS
Pin Apps: Sometimes Guest Mode is too much work, and all you really want to do is launch a game and hand your phone to your kid — but not let them leave that game to mess with your email. Lollipop has a new feature (enabled in settings) that adds a pin to each card in the mulititasking view. When you tap it, that app won’t let you leave without entering a passcode. It’s similar to the "Guided Access" feature in iOS, but a little easier to use.
Improved Quick Settings: Quick Settings have been reorganized again, and they’re a bit easier to figure out now. Plus, the brightness slider you’ll find there is a little bit smarter: by default it responds correctly to ambient light at any brightness level. Speaking of sliders, the volume slider that pops up when you hit the volume key is also smarter: it has the buttons for the various Priority Notification modes right there.
Overview: The multitasking view now has a new name, Overview, and a new Material Design look. Each app is a big card, stacked up, and you can scroll through many more recent apps than you used to be able to. But the best feature is that any app can create multiple "cards." So, for example, when you compose a new email your inbox is still in the overview, so you can switch back and forth between tasks in a single app.
Material Design: The best and most obvious feature in Lollipop comes last. It’s a complete redesign that we already got a good look at this past summer, but there are new designs pretty much everywhere. One example: the contact card. Android adds a dynamically-created color overlay to each photo based on an accent color from the photo itself. Red lipstick, red overlay. Orange sweater, orange overlay. It’s a nice touch.
Source: http://www.theverge.com/2014/10/28/7082875/12-best-new-features-android-lollipop-nexus

"Upgraded" from Honor 8 - Several questions/issues

I recently upgraded from an Honor 8. The Honor 8 was excellent. It is going to be handed down in my family as we all shift up one step in phones.
I am happy overall with my purchase of the Honor V10, but it does have some issues, so this post is sort of a review/gripe/questions all in one.
Details: Official US version (BKL-L04) Emui 8.0.0 Android 8.1.0 I have not received an OTA since purchase. It was purchased the day of, or the day after it became available on the HHonor USA site.
When I purchased it, It said that the free wired, metal earbud headset was "out of stock", but it was in the box when it arrived. I also got 2 cases, the promised one with the ugly cartoon dude on the back (Like I am going to go to work with that on my phone), and a clear one. I usually do not use cases, but I have the clear one on for now.
-- See discussion here about the included screen protector showing finger prints:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/honor-view-10/help/screen-protector-phone-box-remove-t3746590
-- Over all the screen is excellent, but I noticed 2 issues:
While the screen is larger, and 18:9, it really just means I got ~200 rows more of pixels for an extra $300 (over the cost of the Honor 8). The DPI is actually lower than my Honor 8.
It looks like they "subdued" the blue color of the little Icons in the short-cut pull-down as compared with the Honor 8 . I think this is an Emui change, not just the screen, but it made me think the entire screen has less color, but this is probably not really the case.
-- Camera: The camera app on mine seems to be different than described for other versions of this phone. Camera mode is across the bottom, and this changes by swiping left/right. There is no settings panel that swipes in from the left. There is a settings icon at the top.
There are only 4 resolution settings (in Photo Mode) -- All very high, and IMHO, "Non-standard". There is no 16:9 resolution option. It would be nice if there were some standard lower resolution settings for general shots.
My daughter attempted to take some pictures of my R/C airplane yesterday in bright sunlight. The pictures were dark, overly contrasty, and the pavement (our "runway") looked like some sort of pattern from an extremely highly compressed JPEG. Despite this, the file sizes were huge (see note above about resolution options.) I am assuming she inadvertently got it in the wrong mode.
-- Worst problem -- notifications. My Huawei Watch (original) is not receiving any call notification at all. This was working on the Honor 8 with the same watch, and the same F/W on the watch. Previously, I had it so that both the phone and watch vibrated on calls. The Honor V10 vibrates on calls, but the case largely absorbs this. The watch does nothing. I have checked all settings. "Vibrate in Silent mode" is on, and "SIM 1 vibrates while ringing is on" (I have only 1 SIM). (Note that these settings seem largely redundant to me.) On the watch "Also vibrate for calls" is on. I have factory reset the watch at least 3 times, Cleared the Data for Wear OS, unistalled and reinstalled Wear OS, etc. The watch still does absolutely nothing when I receive a call. Watch notifications (including vibrate) work for other things (email, etc.) It also has a notification for missed call after the fact :-/
On the phone, in Settings --> Apps and notifications --> Notifications, it says 1 app blocked from sending, but in this menu, none are. I selected "Batch management" --> "All" on, but it still says "1 app blocked from sending" on the Apps and notifications screen.
I have also tried to search in Permissions to see what app is blocked, but I have not found it yet.
My only remaining option is to factory reset the phone.
EDIT: SOLVED -- I went to Settings --> Apps and & notifications --> Apps --> Wear OS by Google --> Permissions --> Phone --> [enable switch] and now I am getting on screen notification, rings, and vibration on the watch.
-- Related: It is constantly telling me "Power intensive app found. Wear OS is consuming power in the background."
At this point, Android Wear (or Wear OS, or whatever they are calling it this hour) is pretty much less useless.

Hacks, tricks, news and updates for Wear OS smartwatches (TicWatch, Fossil, Missfit, Skagen, Xiaomi, Oppo, Suunto...)

​Hi, I use and enjoy a Ticwatch Pro 3 watch, and before I had a TicWatch Pro 2020. During this time I have been learning tips for this watch, and some others I knew from when I was playing around with smartphones and I have moved them to the Wear OS world.
I want to share these tricks and hacks that I know that enhance the experience in this watch, in the same way, I invite you to post:
That trick they know, and a novice at this is completely unaware.
That super useful application, and that is not the usual one.
That hidden function, and that you discovered by chance.
That bug still not fixed with a firmware, and you solve it somehow.
I think it will be interesting for the community, so we will all take advantage of the collective knowledge. I will be compiling the most interesting tips in the initial post, of course mentioning the source.
Although I tested the tricks on Ticwatch Pro 3, they of course work for any Wear OS watch released as of February 2017 (wear OS 2.0).
- Mobvoi: Ticwatch C2, Ticwatch S/E, Ticwatch Pro, Ticwatch Pro 3​- Fossil Gen 5, Fossil Gen 6, Fossil Sport...​- Missfit Vapor X, Missfit Vapor 2​- Skagen Falster, Skagen Falster 2, Skagen Falster 3​- Xiaomi mi Watch​- OPPO Watch​- Huawei Watch 2​- Suunto 7​- Casio Pro Trek​- and more​
INDEX:
- Some Shorts answer solutions.​- Uses & Customization. What can the smartwatch do for you? What can you do for the smartwatch?​- How to Transfer files to/from watch via Wifi (even if you are not at home)​- How to send files to the watch without Wi-Fi network.​- How to use an alternative keyboard​- How to prepare watch for advanced features​- How to install apps on Wear OS. All methods.​- How to install apps from the phone (Wear Installer)​- How to install apps from a computer (ADB commands)​- How to install apps from the phone (bugjaeger Mobile ADB)​- Interesting apps outside the Play Store​- Watch Faces from the Play Store that I like​- Interesting apps in the Play Store​- Useful ADB commands​- Speaker drain (Ticwatch Pro 3 only)​- How Wear OS watches are updated.​- How to force firmware update (Ticwatch Pro 3 only)​- System updates of the most popular Wear OS watches.​- Most common Wear OS issues and how to fix them.​- 'OK Google' does not activate Google Assistant​- Loses GPS signal, when you get separated from the phone​- Google Assistant in certain (too many) situations does not work properly.​- Google notifications and reminders are notified on the phone, but NOT on the watch.​- When you receive missed calls with the watch connected to the phone via bluetooth, the missed call notification is discarded from phone.​- How to Change Watch resolution​- How to troubleshoot boot problems. Bootloader Mode and Recovery Mode​- Functionality of Ticwatch Pro 3 buttons (Ticwatch Pro 3 only).​- Measures to extend the battery life of watch.​- How to disable watch bloatware. Mobvoi applications. (Ticwatch Pro 3 Only)​- How to use Google Pay with unsupported banks.​- How to use Google Pay in unsupported countries​- How to take long screenshots with the Wear Stitch tool.​- Conclusions on the current state of the Wear OS catalog.​- What is the best app for running, cycling and hiking routes?​- How to take photos/videos remotely on your phone with a Wear OS watch.​- How to take photos/videos remotely on your phone with a Wear OS watch (only bluetooth shutter button).​- What is known about water protection on Ticwatch Pro 3 and Ticwatch E3.​- How to port Unity Games to Wear OS​- All-in-One tool for Windows: Wear OS Tools​- Easter Egg in Wear OS​- How to Pair watch with another smartphone / Tablet without factory reset.​- How to stay informed about Wear OS​- How to solve doubts about Wear OS​- How to Record the watch screen (ScreenCast)​- Wear OS watch Accessories​- How to make a homemade charging and data cable for TWP3​- How to 3D print a charging dock.​- Compilation of all the games adapted to Wear OS​- How to scale the interface of your apps in Wear OS (WearModder)​- How to make a homemade charging and data cable for Ticwatch Pro 3 (easiest method)​- How to customize ringtones, notifications and Alarms sounds in Wear OS​- WhatsApp, everything you can do on Wear OS​- Telegram, everything you can do on Wear OS.​- How to change the font style or font size of the Wear OS Interface​- What is the downside if you use Galaxy Watch 4/5 paired with a phone that is NOT Samsung?​​​
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USES. What can the smartwatch do for you?
From apps built into the smartwatch:​
The obvious, show time, call and receive calls.
Receive notifications I receive on my phone.
Keep the phone unlocked while wearing the smartwatch (Smart Lock).
Remember daily agenda (Google Calendar)
Answer questions on some issues, on other issues it's like asking a monkey (Google Now)
Set an alarm (Google Clock)
Pay for purchases (Google Pay)
Locate lost phone (Google Find my Device)
Display weather forecast (Google Weather)
Do quick math calculations (Calculator)
Monitor physical activity and sleep tracking (Google Fit)
Monitor heart rate (Google Fit)
​From third-party apps:​
Take photos/videos remotely with smartwatch (Wrist Camera).
Remotely view images from my IP camera (Tinycam Monitor Pro)
Turn on a smart socket or home lights remotely (Macrodroid).
Listen to podcasts and music from smartwatch (Spotify/WearMedia/Wear Casts).
Control music/podcasts from your phone (Music Center for Wear).
Identify the songs you listen to (Shazam).
View photos on the smartwatch that are contained in the phone (Anytime Gallery for Wear).
View videos on the smartwatch that are contained in the phone (Video Gallery for Wear OS).
Use the smartwatch as a remote control for Kodi (Yatse)
Use the smartwatch as a PC computer mouse or a wireless game controller (WearMouse).
Learn languages with the smartwatch (Duolingo).
Take notes, make shopping lists and remember tasks (Google Keep).
Translate conversations (Google Translator)
Generate 2FA two-factor authentication codes (Authenticator Pro)
Display my Covid Green Pass QR code (Wear Codes)
Use my smartwatch to decide things for me with random numbers (Flip)
Start my car (Dronemobile)
Display the altitude and atmospheric pressure of your location (altimeter-barometer).
Record a conversation (Wear Audio Recorder).
Follow a strength training session (Seven)
Follow a hiking route and guide you (ViewRanger).
Follow the most recommended route on foot and by car and guide you (Google Maps).
Follow the most recommended route by public transport and guide you (CityMapper).
Request a transport to go from one place to another (Uber).
Show my loyalty card when I go to the supermarket (Stocard).
Being able to chat via messenger (Telegram)
Make video calls (Glide)
Relax when I'm stressed or nervous (Calm)
Entertain me with a casual game (Infinity Loop)
Remind me to drink water (Water drink reminder)
CUSTOMIZATION. What can you do for the smartwatch?
Watchfaces and bands.
Invert the watch interface 180º so that it can be used by left-handed people (Lefty)
Configure the smartwatch's physical buttons to launch your favorite apps (Button Launcher)
Add shortcuts to your favorite apps (Wear Favrite Apps Launcher)
Add shortcuts to "Tilt to wake" and "Always on screen" modes (Toggler)
Improve the way you receive notifications (Informer)
Customize vibration patterns for each notification that arrives on the watch (Feel the Wear)
Replace keyboard more adapted to small screens like the smartwatch (Multitap Wear Keyboard)
Replace animation when you are charging the smartwatch (Wear Charging Widget)
Fix known bug for notifications coming from Google apps (Wear Remidwer 2)
Fix known bug so you can call and send SMS and whatsapp messages using voice commands (Wear Text)
Fix known bug so you can open watch apps using voice commands (Wear Voice Opener)
Fix known bug to use the GPS signal of the watch instead of the phone (Wear GPS Fix)
SOME SHORT ANSWER SOLUTIONS
1. How can I contact Wear OS technical support to report issues and request new features?
There are several ways:
In the Wear OS app on your phone, click on the 3 dots in the top right corner and select Help & Feedback > Send feedback.
By starting an issue in Google Issue Tracker (or supporting others if it is already created by another user in the tracker).
In Wear OS by Google Help Community, and click "Ask now" (search first if your question is already generated by another user).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2. How can I contact Mobvoi technical support and other manufacturers?
All manufacturers have some way to contact technical support, I give as an example 3 manufacturers:
Mobvoi (Ticwatch): by sending an email to [email protected] or on the official mobvoi forum (Mobvoi employees usually answer).
Fossil: On the official support page.
Samsung: By phone, chat or email also via Twitter or the official forum.
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Click to collapse
3. How can you set up so that only certain apps send notifications to the watch?
In the Wear OS app on your phone, click on "Notifications" and then select "Change watch notifications". Finally, disable the apps that you do not want to be notified in the watch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4. How to use the watch's own GPS?
Disable GPS or Bluetooth on your phone. The watch by default first acquires GPS positioning through the phone, and if it does not detect it (for example because it is not connected by Bluetooth) it will activate its own GPS module.
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Click to collapse
5. How to automatically unlock the phone with the help of the watch and Smart Lock?
To avoid entering the PIN on the phone every time the screen goes off when you are near it, go (on the phone) to setting > security > smart Lock, and add as trusted device the watch.
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Click to collapse
6. How to get to the buttons in the corners of non-optimized apps on Wear OS?
There are apps on Wear OS that don't fit completely on the screen and there are buttons on those apps that you can't reach, to fix this go to Settings > Accessibility and enable "Magnification gestures". Now tap 3 times in a row on the corner you can't reach to Zoom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
7. How to take a screenshot?
From the phone:​
In the Wear OS app on the phone, click on the 3 dots in the upper right corner and select "Take screenshot of watch". For this to work, you must have "Developer options" enabled on the watch.
With the Bugjaeger app, connect via Wi-Fi, click on the "Screencap" tab and press the button at the bottom.
From the computer, by adb commands: previously, you must have installed the adb tools and enabled the developer options. Once connected (adb connect <watch_IP:5555), enter command adb shell screencap -p /sdcard/screenshot.png and then adb pull /sdcard/screenshot.png (to send the capture to the computer).​​Another method is to simultaneously hold down 2 watch buttons. However, I think it only works with Mobvoi watches.​
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
8. Where to download latest ADB Tools?
You can download ADB Tools from here. You make sure you get the latest update of ADB Tools and Fastboot. ADB is necessary to be able to send commands from the PC command line, fastboot tool is similar to adb but is used in bootloader mode.
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9. How do I force a system upgrade?
Make sure it has at least 60% battery and is connected to a Wi-Fi network, also plug the watch into the charger. Then go to Settings > System > About > system updates. When it reports that it is up to date, press on the center of the screen for about 5 seconds and after a few seconds it will start updating.
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Click to collapse
10. Where can I see the code name of the watch?
There are several ways:
From the Wear OS app on the phone, press the 3 dots in the upper right corner, then on "Take bug report on watch". Wait 1 or 2 minutes, and an error report will be generated, now select the option "view watch bug reports" and in the name of the generated file you will see the internal name of the watch (codename).
From the Bugjaeger app on the phone, when you enter the IP and connect the phone to the clock, next to the IP the codename is displayed.
From the bootloader mode on the watch. To enter that mode hold down 2 buttons simultaneously until it feels a vibration, about 8 seconds, and it will reboot into that mode. Once inside, the internal name is "Product_Name". To exit bootloader mode, select "HOME".
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Click to collapse
11. How do I reset to factory default?
There are several ways:
From the "Disconnect & reset" option in settings > System.
From the recovery mode. To enter this mode you can enter from the options offered in Bootloader mode. The watch will reboot, once rebooted you will see an exclamation mark on the screen, press and hold the top button while sliding on the screen one finger from bottom to top. You will then see the Recovery mode with several options, select the "Wipe data/Factory Reset" and "Wipe cache partition" option.
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Click to collapse
12. Can I root and flash a Custom ROM on the Ticwatch Pro 3 GPS/LTE?
Yes, recently it has been possible to root it and a Custom ROM has been released. Here they explain how to do it and from here you can download a Custom ROM. However, in order to unlock the bootloader and root you need a cable that transmits data (the cable that comes with the watch only serves to charge it), this link explains how to make a homemade cable.
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Click to collapse
13. How to prevent (or allow) the display to turn on when tilting the wrist?
For many users it is a nuisance that the watch display lights up when tilting the wrist of the hand when you are especially in the dark, for example, in the car driving, at the cinema or in bed, apart from the obvious battery consumption by constantly illuminating the screen. To disable this feature, go to settings > Gestures and disable "Tilt-to-Wake". Personally, I prefer the "Touch-to-Wake" feature in Settings > Gestures, so that the screen is activated when you tap on it.
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​
14. How to prevent (or allow) the backlight to be activated in essential mode when tilting the wrist (Ticwatch only)?
In the same way as "Tilt-to-Wake" from the main screen, it can also be very annoying. Go to the list of applications, and open "Essential Mode" app, then press the "Tilt to light up backlight" option and disable "Essential Mode" and "Smart Mode".
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Click to collapse
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15. How to prevent the display from turning off when tilting the wrist, i.e. only turning off for the value that has been set for the screen timeout.
This feature on other non-Wear OS watches is called "Tilt-to-Sleep", currently there is no built-in option in Wear OS to enable/disable this and therefore no way to disable it, it is that once the screen is activated if you tilt your wrist, the screen turns off, regardless of what you have set on the watch for the screen timeout for example 5 seconds (in Settings > Display > Screen Timeout). An Issue about the bug has been created on the Google IssueTracker here.
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Click to collapse
​
16. How to force the display to stay permanently on when you are doing sports such as running or similar?
To keep the display on and be able to track your running pace in real time or any other metric when running or hiking, install the “Turn Off Ambient Mode Switch” app on your watch, open the app and select "ON". The advantage over the "Always On Screen" option in Settings > Display is that with this app, the screen does not switch to Ambient Mode (black and white screen for battery saving) after a few seconds. Being in ambient mode is enough to see your running metrics easily, but I have the impression that it doesn't update the metrics in real time in the same way as when the screen is fully active. When you activate the app you will notice that it will only go into ambient mode when the watch is in the main watchface, but if the watch is for example with the running workout in Google Fit the screen stays on without going into ambient mode. Once the training is finished remember to disable the option in the app to avoid unnecessary battery drain, also if you install the version of the app for the phone you can activate a timer up to 1 hour to automatically disable the option.
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Click to collapse
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17. My watch constantly asks me for my PIN or unlock pattern, how can I avoid it?
If this happens, something abnormal is going on, as by default the watch will only ask for a PIN or unlock pattern if you take the watch off your wrist, or in the morning when you return from essential mode on Ticwatches (if you have programmed it that way). The heart rate monitor and proximity sensor on the back of the watch is used to detect that you are wearing it on your wrist, and if it does not detect that you are wearing the watch it could be for one of the following reasons:
Your watch band is too loose around your wrist.
You have tattoos on your wrist, just below the watch face.
Too much body hair on the wrist.
A bracelet that prevents you from detecting your wrist.
If the watch is running abnormally in general because water has entered the circuit.
Any other reason that prevents you from detecting that you are wearing it on your wrist.
If the reason is that you have a tattoo on your wrist, there are users who have solved it by sticking a 1 inch epoxy sticker on the sensor, here is the link to the stickers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
18. Every time I make a payment with Google Pay it asks me for my PIN or unlock pattern, how to avoid it?
Same answer as the previous question.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
19. How to replace ringtone sound with a custom sound?
You simply have to insert in the "Ringtones" folder of the SdCard the audio file of your choice (in ogg, mp3, wav or amr format).
There are several ways to access the sdcard folders and transfer files to the watch, for me the easiest is to install the app from the watch NavExplorer, then go to the top menu of the app and click on the Wi-Fi icon. It shows you an address with the structure: ftp://IP_Watch:2122. This activates an FTP server. Now, from your computer open Windows Explorer, and at the top of the window, in the folder path, type the full IP address. You will see all the folders of the watch sdcard, now you only have to copy the audio you prefer in the folder "Ringtones". Once done, on the watch, select "Watch ringtone" in settings > sound, and select the audio.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
20. How can I customize the notifications I receive on my watch?
For now, it seems that there is no possibility to customize with a sound notification for each of the notifications you receive on the watch and thus be able to identify without looking at the watch or the phone if you have received a notification more urgent than another. There is an app called "Vibration Center for Wear" that allows you to customize the vibration pattern according to the notification you receive. There is also the better known "Feel The Wear", but it has the drawback that its developer has not been supporting it for some time and the app is currently not compatible with the latest versions of Wear OS, also although it is free, the most interesting (premium) features require a payment. "Vibration Center for Wear" is free, although it is not hosted in the Play Store and for it to work you must install the version for the watch (with Wear Installer or Bugjaeger) and the version for the phone (like any other APK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
21. How to activate any eSIM in any Wear OS watch with 4G/LTE connectivity?
As an example, Ticwatch Pro 3 LTE only supports eSIM from Vodafone and Orange; and Samsung Galaxy Wach only supports eSIM from Movistar and Orange, but there are more operators that have eSIM service, but they are not officially supported, there are two methods to bypass the limitation:
If you have your phone rooted....
With the help of TicEsimFix, it is a module for Xposed that allows you to emulate that you have a Vodafone UK line associated with your phone and thus activate any eSIM on Ticwatch Pro 3 LTE (probably works on any Wear OS watch).​
On your phone, install TicEsimFix.apk (previously, you must have the phone rooted and Xposed installed).
Open Xposed and activate TicEsimFix.
Force stops the Wear OS app and reopen the Wear OS app.
Go to mobile network settings under advanced settings and select "Configure carrier" and follow the on-screen instructions.
If you do NOT have the phone rooted...
It would be to buy a Prepaid Vodafone UK SIM from Amazon or eBay (approximately 4 €/$) and follow the following steps:​
Sign up for eSIM service from your preferred carrier.
In your phone, insert the Vodafone UK SIM and in Settings > SIM card and mobile data set Vodafone UK as the main operator for calls.
Open the Wear OS app, go to mobile network settings in advanced settings and select "Configure operator". You will be prompted to configure the watch with Vodafone UK.
Go back to Settings > SIM card and mobile data and select your preferred carrier for calls.
Open the Wear OS app again, go to mobile network settings under advanced settings and select "Set up carrier" and follow the on-screen instructions. An attempt will be made to connect to the active network, which in this case will be your preferred carrier.
Finally, on the watch, go to settings > connectivity > "Your mobile network" and select active.
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22. How to avoid that when you receive missed calls with the watch connected to the phone via Bluetooth, the missed call notification is discarded from the phone?
On the phone, disable the phone app notification through the Wear OS app, this way when you receive missed calls the notification remains on the phone and on the watch.
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23. How to force Google reminders and notifications to be notified on the watch?
There is a temporary solution (until Google deigns to officially fix this bug that has been happening for years). It is by installing the Wear Reminder 2 app by Malcolm Bryant. What Wear Reminder 2 does is that it replicates Google notifications (news, weather updates, sports...) and reminders that arrive on the phone to also receive them on the watch. The app is installed on the watch and on the phone as a bridge. You can configure the importance of reminders and notifications (sound, vibration, text-to-speech...), also if you dismiss a notification on the watch, it is also dismissed on the phone, and vice versa.
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How to transfer files to / from watch via Wi-Fi (even if you are not at home)
To send to the watch and/or receive from the watch files (e.g. music) the easiest way is through the USB cable but there are some watches, like the Ticwatch Pro 3 that can only be sent through the Wi-Fi network (Mobvoi does not include USB data cable with the watch). If this is your case, or because you prefer other methods, here's how.
It is possible to remotely access the watch from your computer or phone wirelessly, using the FTP protocol. You can copy the files you have stored in the internal storage of the watch to the computer, or send files from the computer to the watch, like music, videos, texts, etc. The only requirement is that both devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
To do this, follow the steps below:
Download from the Play Store and install the NavExplorer application on the watch.
Open app and go to the top menu, click on the Wi-Fi icon.
It shows you an address with the structure: ftp://Watch_IP:2122. This activates the FTP server.
If you would like to access from...
From the computer, open Windows Explorer, and in the upper part of the window, in the folder path, type the address of point 3.
From the phone use an advanced file manager, for example Solid Explorer. Open the application, select Storage Manager > "+" > FTP, and follow the instructions, basically put the address and the port number, which is 2122.
Bugjaeger Mobile ADB
Another alternative, in this case from the phone and via Wi-Fi, is to use the Bugjaeger Mobile ADB app. You don't need to install anything on the watch, the app is an adb command emulator that can be run from an android phone. To connect and be able to run the functions, just do the following:
On the watch, go to Settings > System > About and tap "Build number" several times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Then go to Settings > Developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
Make sure both your watch and mobile are connected to the same wifi network, momentarily disable bluetooth on your watch if Wi-Fi is not enabled on the watch. Now go to Settings > Connectivity > Wifi, click on the network you are connected to and enter the IP of your network.
In the Bugjaeger app on your phone, click on the plug icon, enter the IP of your network and click "Connect".
When connected you will see a notification appear on your watch where you have to give permission to link the phone to the watch, so click on "Always allow from this computer". Now in the app you will see the notification "Connected" and you will see the list of apps that are on the watch.
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How to send files to the watch without Wi-Fi network (from outside the home).
Sending files to the watch from a smartphone can be done in 2 ways: Via USB cable and via Wi-Fi network. It happens that there are times when you are not at home and you want to send music to the watch or send an APK file to install it. The solution to this is by activating the shared Wi-Fi connection of the phone, and pretend it is your home network.
On the phone, go to settings > Other wireless connections and turn on "Wi-Fi data sharing".
Within the Wi-Fi data sharing settings, replace the Wi-Fi network name and password and enter the same name and password as your home Wi-Fi network, this way the watch will connect automatically and you won't need to enter the password on the watch.
Now, on the watch and if you haven't already done so, go to Settings > System > About and tap "Build number" several times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Next go to Settings > Developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
Next make sure both your watch and phone are connected to the same wifi network, momentarily disable bluetooth on your watch if Wi-Fi is not enabled on the watch. Now go to Settings > Connectivity > Wifi, click on the network you are connected to and enter the IP you will see.
On your phone, install Bugjaeger (if you haven't already) and run it, click on the plug icon, enter the IP of your network and click "Connect".
When connected you will see a notification appear on your watch where you have to give permission to link the phone to the watch, so click on "Always allow from this computer". Now in the app you will see the "Connected" notification and from the app you will be able to send files (Files tab) or install APKs (Packages tab).
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How to use an alternative keyboard
One of the most uncomfortable functions in the smartwatch is having to use the keyboard on a 1.4 inch screen. You rarely need to write something from the watch, at least I do, but sometimes it happens, like when an app asks to log in with a username and password. Typing from the watch's built-in keyboard is tormenting. Smartwatches are not designed to answer messages, although of course it is possible.
To solve this problem there are applications like AOSP WIFI Keyboard that allows you to link the keyboard of your Computer to the watch by using the local Wi-Fi network, so that the computer keyboard can be used to type on the watch. The only requirement is that both devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network .
To link the keyboard and start using this typing option, follow these steps:
Download the application here and install it on the watch (for example, with Bugjaeger). The application is in the Play Store, but since it is not an application optimized for WearOS, you will not find it from the watch's Play Store search engine.
Once installed go to Settings > Personalization > Input methods > Manage keyboards , and activate the option AOSP Wifi Keyboard.
Now when you want to use Wifi Keyboard, press and hold the keyboard icon in any text input field and select AOSP Wi-Fi Keyboard.
Open your computer's browser, and type 'http://watch_ip:7777', for example, http://192.168.1.92:7777. A web page will open from which to write, and each time you press ENTER the text will be transmitted to the watch.
Considerations: ​
If you don't know how to install apk files like the one in step 1, go to "How to install apps on Wear OS. all Methods".
The smartwatch IP is obtained in the Wi-Fi settings. Pressing on your Wifi network.
To go back to the previous keyboard, just do step 3.
How to prepare watch for advanced functions
What you are doing with the following steps is enabling the watch to receive instructions via ADB. The ADB stands for Android Debug Bridge. As its name suggests, it is a tool through which the command console of our computer will act as a bridge between it and the phone. Thanks to it, we can send commands to the phone, such as install applications, take screenshots, etc.
On your computer, download and install the ADB tools, such as 15 seconds ADB Installer.
On the watch, go to Settings > system > About and repeatedly tap ' Build number ' until You see a message that says 'You are now a developer'. Then go to Settings > developer options and enable 'ADB debugging' and 'Debugging over Wi-Fi '.
How to install apps on Wear OS. All methods.
Currently in Wear OS there are six methods (that I know of) for installing apps on the watch, each more convenient to use depending on the situation:
The first method is the obvious one, that is, through the Play Store of the watch, you search for the app you are interested in, install it and that's it. In the watch's search engine only apps optimized for Wear OS will appear.
The second method, is installing apps from Play Store on your phone (or computer). You search in the Play Store for a Wear OS compatible app (from the Wear OS category in Apps > Categories > Wear OS or search and activate the 'Watch' or 'Watch faces' filter). Once you have located a Wear OS compatible app, when you open the app's tab you will see a drop-down in 'Install' button that allows you to select, or uncheck, if you want that app to be installed on the phone and/or watch. By default the apps will be installed on the phone and watch.If you already had an app installed on your phone and now you also want to install it on your watch, you will see a dropdown called 'Available on more devices'. When you open its options you will see that it will allow you to install the app on the watch.
The third method, is installing apps from the phone, using an app called "Wear Installer" (by the developer u/malbry) which will act as a bridge between the phone and the watch. This method is recommended when the application not found in the Play Store and you want to install uses the old embedded application model, which means that the version of an app for Wear OS is added inside the version for Android phones. This application filters the applications installed on the phone (or simply downloaded to the internal memory) that contain the app optimized for Wear OS. When you choose to install, it sends it over Wi-Fi and installs the Wear OS-specific module that is contained within the phone app. In the section "Install apps from the phone (Wear Installer)" I explain how to install it.
The fourth method, is installing apps from a computer and through ADB commands. This method should be used when you want to install from your computer applications that is not found in the Play Store. With this method you could install any android application whether it is optimized for Wear OS or not. I explain this method in the section "Install apps from a computer (ADB commands)".
The fifth method, is installing apps from the phone, using an app called "Bugjaeger Mobile ADB". No "bridge" app is needed on the watch, the app is an adb command emulator that can be run from an android phone. This method is recommended when you want to install an app that is not found in the Play Store, or the app is not optimized for Wear OS. Below I explain in more detail in the section "Install apps from the phone (Bugjaeger Mobile ADB)".
The sixth method, is installing apps from the phone, using an app called "Easy Fire Tools". It is very similar to Bugjaeger and therefore would be recommended in the same situations as for Bugjaeger.
3rd Method. Install apps from the phone (Wear Installer).
This method should be used when you want to install from the phone applications that are not hosted on the Play Store, however these apps must be optimized for Wear OS. The steps for installing and using Wear Installer are as follows:
1. On the phone, download Wear installer here and install.
2. On the watch, open Play Store and click on the "Apps on your phone" option.
3. There you should see the "Wear installer" app. Finally install it.
4. On the watch enable debugging, to do this go to Settings > system > About and tap several times "Build number" until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Next go to Settings > developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
5. On the phone open "Wear installer" app and press OK. You will see 2 tabs, the first one is the list of all the apps installed on your phone, and the second tab is the list of the apps you have downloaded to the phone (apk files) and found in the "Download" folder.
6. Select the app you want to install on the watch, it must have the Wear OS apk inside for it to be installed. Accept the debugging on the watch and Wear Installer will extract the component, send it and install it on the watch.
4th Method. Install applications from a computer (ADB commands)
This method should be used when you want to install from your computer applications that are not hosted on the Play Store. With this method you could install any android application whether it is optimized for Wear OS or not. The steps for Windows environment are as follows:
1. If you have not done so yet, follow the steps in 'Prepare watch for advanced functions '.
2. On your computer, open a command window, to do this in Windows type 'cmd' in the toolbar.
3. Then enter the following command to connect to the watch. Then accept a message on the clock that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect watch_ip:5555
4. Now, it is the step to send the apk application to the watch, install it and delete apk file finally. Make sure to enter the path correctly in the following commands.
Code:
adb -e install filename.apk
- Step 3 and 4 you can also do in one command:
adb -s watch_ip:5555 install -r filename.apkadb push filename.apk /sdcard/
5th method. Install apps from the phone (Bugjaeger Mobile ADB)
Another alternative, in this case from the phone and via Wi-Fi, is to use the Bugjaeger Mobile ADB app. You don't need to install anything on the watch, the app is an adb command emulator that can be run from an android phone. To connect and be able to run the functions, just do the following:
On the watch, go to Settings > System > About and tap "Build number" several times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Then go to Settings > Developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
Make sure both your watch and mobile are connected to the same wifi network, momentarily disable bluetooth on your watch if Wi-Fi is not enabled on the watch. Now go to Settings > Connectivity > Wifi, click on the network you are connected to and enter the IP of your network.
In the Bugjaeger app on your phone, click on the plug icon, enter the IP of your network and click "Connect".
When connected you will see a notification appear on your watch where you have to give permission to link the phone to the watch, so click on "Always allow from this computer". Now in the app you will see the notification "Connected".
Now go to the "Packages" tab, click on the "+" icon at the top, and choose to install on the watch an apk file that is downloaded to the phone, or an application installed on the phone.
Interesting apps outside Play Store.
Now that you know the different methods for installing apps I'm going to recommend several apps that are outside the Play Store servers, and explain which is the proper method to install them:
Wear Text: (Download here). (Installation method 3, 4 and 5)​​Wear Text is an app for making phone calls or sending a text or WhatsApp message using voice commands. Currently (and for a long time now) Google Assistant does not allow you to do this and hasn't fixed it either.​​Installation and configuration:​
Download and install Wear Text on the phone. Then install the watch version of the app using Wear Installer or Bugjaeger.
Open the app on the phone and accept the permissions to manage calls and SMS messages. Once inside the app enter the name of a contact with one word, followed by a comma and the phone number without spaces (you must include the country code). If you want to send messages to certain contacts, preferably whatsapp messages instead of SMS messages, include the letter "W" after the phone number. As an example, it would look like this: Susana,+34666123456:W.
If the language you speak is not English, set in your own language the word "call" in the option "Set Call Word" found by pressing the 3 dots in the upper right corner.
On the phone, set your watch as a trusted device for smart lock and grant accessibility access to Wear Text. This way you will be able to send WhatsApp messages using Wear.
Finally, press "Save" and you're done.
​How Use:​​The idea is that you can assign the app to a physical button (I recommend the Button Launcher app for the possibilities it offers you) and then open other apps by just saying its name.​
Launch the Auto Text app on the watch. You can assign the app to a physical button (I recommend the Button Launcher app for the possibilities it offers).
If you want to send a message say a sentence like "Susana I will be home in 30 minutes. As in that contact the "W" mark was included the message will be sent by Whatsapp.
If you want to initiate a call , say "call Susana"
​Considerations:​
Note that once installed on your watch, Wear Text changes its name to Auto Text, which is easier to name it for voice recognition.
Before putting your contact names and numbers in the phone app, delete all the sample text that is already there.
To send whatsapp messages the screen must be enabled and unlocked, so to do that automatically you need the watch to be set as trusted device in Smart Lock and enabled accessibility permissions in the phone settings.
The phone needs Internet access to be able to parse the voice command on the watch (either wifi or mobile data).
On Xiaomi Phones it seems that Google Smart Lock does not work for WearOS devices, therefore Wear Text will not be able to activate the phone to send WhatsApp messages or make phone calls.
Especially if the language you speak is not English, the voice recognition on your watch may not recognize the contact's name correctly. If this happens try changing the contact's word to something more easily recognizable.
In recent months the Google Assistant function to launch an app by saying "Open (app name)" has also been "capped". I recommend customizing a physical button to launch Wear Text (Auto Text), or configuring it from the "Button Launcher" app. You can also launch the app from Wear Voice Opener which would be an alternative solution while waiting for the official one. This app is described below.
Fit Strength Training: (Installation method 3, 4 and 5)​
Update May 11, 2021: Unfortunately, the latest Google Fit update has broken this solution. Google has completely removed the old strength training code.​
Application that restores the strength training functionality (weight machines, dumbbell exercises...) that was removed from Google Fit for Wear OS in November 2020. This functionality very accurately detected repetitions and automatically recognized the exercise you were performing based on the repetitive motion you were performing. It was also possible to time the rest times between sets. Now the new Google Fit, for strength training, is only limited to track heart rate and cardio points, also showing on screen the time and the stopwatch. More info about this.​
Download here​
Alti-Barometer: (installation method 3, 4 and 5)​
Application that collects every 5 minutes the atmospheric pressure and altitude in real time. It also shows a graph of the atmospheric pressure and altitude of the last 6 hours and notifies in case of possible storm in the place where you are according to the acquired meteorological data.​
Download here​
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AOSP WIFI Keyboard: (installation method 4 and 5)​
Application with which you can write on the watch from the computer, I explain in detail in the section "Using an alternative keyboard" of first post. This app was not created for Wear OS, but it is fully functional.​
Download it here​
Spotify Lite MOD: (installation method 4 and 5)​
Spotify Lite is a reduced version of the official application in terms of size and features, however it is only intended for android phones. This version is modified and adapted to small screens such as watches with Wear OS and also, unlike the official version of Spotify for Wear OS, you can play music without depending on having the official app on the phone. It is not a player to listen to music that you have inside the watch, only to listen to streaming music.​
Download here. The latest published version is based on Spotify Lite v1.5.84.89.​
How to install them on the watch:
The applications that are indicated to be installed with the third method of the six methods currently available is because the specific component for Wear OS is inside the specific application for the phone, it is explained how to install from that method in the section "Install applications from the phone (Wear Installer) of first post, for now you can also install from the play store of the watch.
1. From the phone, click and download from the links of each app and install.
2. On the watch, open Play Store, and click on the "Apps on your phone" option.
3. There you should see the app you installed on the phone. Finally you install it and that's it
It is not useful to install these applications from fourth or fifth method because if you do it, the version for the phone will be installed on the watch.
The applications that are indicated to be installed with the fourth method are those that are NOT optimized for Wear OS because they were created for phones, but work without problems on the watch. It is explained how to install from that method in the section "Install apps from a computer (ADB commands)" of first post.
The apps noted that can be installed interchangeably with the third, fourth or fifth method are those that are optimized for Wear OS.
Why are they not on the Play Store?
Because Google does not approve this kind of apps, for example, Fit Strenght trainig recovers a function that google removed (I still don't know why).
Watch Faces from the Play Store that I like
When it comes to customizing your watch the watch face you display on the screen is of utmost importance. It should fit your personal style, display the information most important to you and look good. Personally I like watch faces that have a clean, minimalist style and are easy to use, and at the same time are functional and I can customize them with the complications I use the most. There are many in the Play Store these are the ones I like the most and that more than meet the conditions outlined above, and all are free.
Note: Complications are the non-interactive widgets that are implemented inside the watch faces, for example, a distance traveled indicator is a complication.
​Looks Watch Faces (Download here).​​It is a collection of 9 types of watch faces for different tastes and daily needs. You can fully customize the complications. Personally I like the Portions and Quoti models the most.​​
​​​Moods Watch Faces (Download here).​​Another collection of watch faces from the same developer that Looks for different styles and same level of customization.​​
​​​A/D Watchfaces (Download here)​​It is characterized by combining an analog watch with a digital watch. It supports up to four complications, You can configure the font and colors, also has several numerical designs.​​
​​​Pixel Watch face - Minimal pixel style watch face (Download here)​​Minimalist design, optimized for the greatest possible energy savings.​​
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How to install Watch Faces on the watch:
From the watch:
1. Open Play Store, search for the watch face and press install.​2. Press and hold the current watch face and swipe to the right until you see "add more watch faces".​3. Select the new watch face and customize it​.
From the phone:
1. Make sure the phone is connected to the watch.​2. Open Play Store on the phone, search for the watch face and press install.​3. In a few seconds the watch face will appear on the watch, and finally customized​
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Interesting apps in the Play Store
After having talked about apps that I use and that are outside the Google circuits, I will highlight other apps that I use regularly and that I find very interesting and which are within the Play Store, and like the previous ones I reviewed, are all free.
Wear GPS Fix: (Download here).​
There is a known bug from Google (not yet resolved) where when you start a training activity on the watch that requires GPS (e.g. running or walking) and at that time you are connected via bluetooth to the phone (you should note that the watch already had acquired GPS positioning from the phone at that time). If that happens the watch will not acquire the GPS position independently and the run will not be tracked. Normally to avoid this error what you do is to turn off the bluetooth of the phone every time you want to run a workout with the watch, but it is uncomfortable to do that. The app fixes this bug. What it does is that it gets a correction independent of the GPS positioning on the watch. While waiting for a GPS correction, the app shows you the satellite status in real time so you can see how many satellites have been found and how many are used in the correction. Once the correction is acquired, Wear GPS Fix immediately opens your preferred workout app (Google Fit, Runtastic, Strava...), transfers the GPS correction to the app and you are ready to start your workout and you can get accurate GPS tracking.​
At the moment, Wear GPS Fix works with the following sports apps and map apps: Google Fit, Ghostracer, Google Maps, Myzone, Nike Run Club, Runtastic (Adidas Running), Sporty Go, Strava, TicExercise, Viewranger.​
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Wear BT Monitor: (Download here).​
App that alerts you if the Bluetooth connection is broken between your Android phone and WearOS device (e.g. your phone goes out of BT range of your watch). This replaces the stock option that alerts you when the phone and watch lose their BT connection as it is not working. The app is managed from the phone, from there you can customize the vibration pattern that will sound when the bluetooth connection is lost so you recognize it when you feel it. From the watch you can activate, or deactivate when you think it is necessary. To test it, simply turn on airplane mode on your phone; your watch should vibrate in the custom pattern you have chosen.​
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Wear Voice Opener: (Download here).​​This is an app to open other apps on your watch using your voice, it is a workaround until the Google Assistant gets back (hopefully) the ability to launch apps that Google removed a few months ago without any explanation. This feature is very useful when driving or any other time when it's awkward to interact with the watch screen.​​The idea is that you can assign the app to a physical button (I recommend the Button Launcher app for the possibilities it offers you) and then open other apps just by saying their name.​​Installation and use:​
Install on the phone the app Wear Voice Opener (Play Store). Wait a few seconds, and install the app on the watch from "phone apps" in the Play Store. Once installed on the watch, you can uninstall the app on the phone.
On the watch, open the app (I recommend customizing a physical button to open it). You will see a sentence "Say app name to open...", say the name of an app you have installed on the watch, for example "calculator" and it will run next.
​Usage considerations:​
Wear Voice Opener opens apps based on partial matches, i.e. to open Google Fit just say "Fit".
The app works correctly with UK English and may not work as well with other languages.
You cannot open an app whose name is not recognized by voice command (e.g. 'AIDA64').
Informer: (Download here).​
This is an app that improves the way you receive notifications and their management on your watch. The free version allows:​
Present instant cards (better than Wear OS notifications) and allow you to reply to messages with a single tap.
Give instant replies with predefined messages or by "voice to text".
View images received via WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Telegram directly on the watch.
Receive WhatsApp call notifications.
Set notification vibration patterns according to contact.
Display notification history and missed calls.
You can set the do not disturb time (phone and watch will be in silent mode).
The Premium version (0,99 €/month) also allows you to listen to WhatsApp voice messages, accept WhatsApp voice and video calls (and answer them by voice), adjust the notification font size, among other things. For much more extensive info and tricks enter here.​
Considerations:​
To receive notifications you must grant permissions to read notifications and storage permission, you must also install the app on the phone and watch.
To avoid duplicate notifications (stock and informer), disable stock notifications in the Wear OS app on the phone, go to notifications > Change notifications watch and disable duplicate apps.
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Feel The Wear - Notifications TTS (Download here)​​The app creates custom vibration patterns for notifications that come to your watch (up to 5 different ones), you can assign them to the phone apps you prefer, this way, you can identify the notification without taking the phone out of your pocket. The app has in the Play Store the version for phone that is from where you configure the notifications you want to customize. You can also customize a vibration pattern that will sound when the bluetooth connection is lost, useful for when you are moving away from the phone, like the app "Wear BT Monitor" discussed in the section "Interesting apps outside Play Store".​​
​Wear Reminder 2: (Download here)
Application that solves an old Wear OS bug that still remains and manages to replicate Google notifications (news, weather updates, sports...) and reminders that come to the phone also receiving them on the watch. The app must be installed on the watch and on the phone as a bridge. You can configure the importance of reminders and notifications (sound, vibration, text-to-speech...), also if you discard a notification on the watch, it is also discarded on the phone, and vice versa.
​Nav Explorer (Download here).​​It is a very powerful file explorer for Wear OS, it also has root support to navigate through the system folders in case you have a rooted watch. It also allows you to easily transfer files to/from your computer, phone or tablet. The app creates an FTP server and communicates directly through your local WiFi connection, even also through Bluetooth to transfer files easily and quickly. In the section "Transfer files to/from internal storage" I explain in detail how to transfer files with Nav Explorer. The app has in the Play Store the version for phone/tablet that serves as a bridge to the watch either via Wi-Fi or via bluetooth.​​
​​​Button Launcher (Download here)​​Allows you to customize the use of the watch's physical buttons to choose which apps or functions to launch quickly based on the combination of button presses. The application uses a combination of short presses and long presses to launch applications. A watch with a single button is limited to four different shortcuts, but if the watch has two buttons, you can use up to eight shortcuts.​​
​​Wear Favorite Apps Launcher (Download here).​​Generate a window with shortcuts to your favorite apps for quick access, you can access from physical buttons, from a dial complication, from cards or in combination with Button Launcher.​​
​​Toggler (Download here).​​It is an application that generates shortcuts to enter Tilt-to-wake mode, Always-on display mode or a shortcut to quickly turn off the clock. The shortcuts are accessible just like any other app in the app drawer, so you can assign it to the physical buttons with the help of apps like Button Launcher or put it on the watch face as a complication. In my case I use it as a shortcut to have the screen always on when I go running and see the metrics in Google Fit without the screen turning off during the session.​​
​​MultiTap Wear Keyboard (Download here)​​Alternative keyboard to the traditional QWERTY, it is the multi-touch keyboard style of the old Nokia. In watches with screens smaller than 2 inches it could be a solution for many if they find the keyboard integrated with the watch uncomfortable.​​​
​​MGRS Wear (Download here)​​Displays your current GPS location. A button at the bottom toggles the displayed location between MGRS, UTM and geographic coordinate systems. Very useful when you are oriented on a map and you need to know your position on the map and you don't have a reference point where you are.​​
​​​Fit Companion (Download here).​​It is a vitaminized Google Fit. Google Fit shows statistics of the activities you do throughout the day but these statistics may not be enough for some users, as they need to get much more comprehensive statistics on their physical activities. The app acts by analyzing the data collected by Google Fit and displays it in a comprehensive way. Some things it can do:​
You can create custom fitness goals, these goals can be by activity time, distance or by metrics (steps, active calories, Google Fit heart points and more).
You receive alerts in case of sedentary for prolonged periods.
It has a phone version where you can see all the statistics.
Data is displayed in the form of intervals ranging from one minute to one month.
You can combine data from two sources to compare and correlate the impact caused by both.
Breaks down heart rate into different heart activity zones.
Allows you to view data for up to a year at a time, while allowing you to change the date so you can view activity from any time in the past.
The app is free, and is fully functional, however there is a paid pro version that extends features such as adding more than 2 custom fitness goals and exporting data to an excel file and being able to analyze it in depth. More info here.​​​
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Wear Logger (Download here)​
Wear Logger is a free app for tracking sports workouts (running or cycling) and uploading the results to Google Fit and/or Strava. The advantage over Google Fit, Strava, Ghostracer, Runkeeper or Nike Run Club is that you can clearly see in real time the distance you have run, the elapsed time and the current heart rate. It also always gets the GPS position from the watch autonomously, without relying on the phone. Also and unlike most sports apps you don't need to register to use it.​​Characteristics:​
Displays real-time display of distance traveled, elapsed time, heart rate, pace and running cadence.
Allows you to toggle the display between elapsed time, real time, battery level and real time satellite status.
The display uses a large font, designed to be easy to read while running.
The watch display can be always on, at 1 second update intervals or at longer update intervals.
Works in standalone mode, while running/walking without your phone. Avoids that known bug, and not fixed by Google of losing GPS signal when you move away from your phone.
Starts automatically when GPS fix is acquired.
Allows auto pause for running/walking (based on pedometer) or auto pause for cycling (based on GPS based movement).
If GPS is lost during a run, it continues to record distance based on your real-time pace (leading to higher accuracy of total distance).
You can use the pedometer for step counting (for Google Fit) or alternatively it estimates steps from distance run.
Displays real-time satellite status while waiting for GPS connection (and optionally during the run).
Vibrates on laps (you can adjust the lap distance and the duration of the vibration)
Allows you to receive status messages to keep you informed: when updating watch settings from the phone, when locking/unlocking, when pausing, when finishing, when writing data to phone
Automatically lock the screen after 10 seconds, unlock by swipe, long press or button press.
Allows you to upload race results to Google Fit and/or Strava, manually or automatically. You can usually see the results in a few seconds. Data such as location, steps, heart rate and cardio points.
Allows you to delete any data uploaded from this app to Google Fit (to be 100% sure).
You can export workout data to a standard GPX file or CSV file (for use with any spreadsheet application).
No registration is required; no personal data is stored anywhere other than your existing Google Fit account.
​
​Installation and Setup:​
Install from the Play Store Wear Logger on the watch and phone.
On the watch, grant permissions for location and sensors.
On the phone app, sign in with your Google account.
​Instructions for use (watch and phone):​
Open Wear Logger on your watch and wait for the GPS to lock on (you need to be outdoors and ideally with a clear view of the sky).
Press the top button to start the workout (if you press it again, it will pause/resume), and press the bottom button to end the workout, press it again to send the activity data to your phone
Now in the phone app, select "Add Session" from the menu to upload your workout details to Google Fit
​WearMedia (Download here).​​It is a music player. It is one of the few music players for Wear OS that allows you to play music when you go for a run/walk without the need to also carry your phone as it can Play music contained in the watch's internal storage. The music player also includes an equalizer and supports many formats such as MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, etc. Wearmedia also has in Play Store the version for phone/tablet that serves as a bridge to transfer music to the watch, however for transferring music (or any file) I find it more practical Nav Explorer.​​​
​​Wear Casts (Download here).​​It is a podcast player that allows you to download, manage and listen to your favorite podcasts directly from your watch without the need for your phone. You can sync podcasts and receive notifications of new podcasts you follow. Wear Casts also has a phone version, but it is only useful for adding podcasts to the watch, however you can add them from the watch itself. Other things you can do:​
Automatically downloads new episodes and automatically deletes played episodes.
Remembers the last played position for each podcast.
​​
Shazam (Download here)​
This is the watch version of the well-known application that identifies the songs that are playing around you. For it to work properly you must have the app installed on the phone and have the phone nearby connected via bluetooth to the watch. The advantage provided by the app on the watch is that you don't need to take the phone out of your pocket and you can quickly identify songs you listen to. When identifying the song, it just shows the name of the song and the singer, however, in the phone the search is registered in your shazams and you can see the lyrics and video clip of the identified song.​
Yr (Download here).​
A very cool weather forecast app, the weather service is provided jointly by NRK and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute. It is one of the most popular weather services in the world. At a glance you see day-by-day and hour-by-hour details in the forecast, alternative to the stock weather app.​
Bugjaeger Mobile ADB: (Download here)​
The app is an adb command emulator that can be run from an android phone. Personally the app has become my preferred tool to send and install apps on my watch via apk. You won't need to install any app on the watch to make it bridge like Wear Installer, you just need to connect it via Wi-Fi and that's it, no computer. Also with the app you can do many more things, it is very powerful, I list the most useful to control the watch:​
Commands tab: Execute ADB commands or custom shell scripts to control the watch.
Log tab: read and export clock message log (logcat).
Packages tab: Install/Uninstall Apps, list and filter installed apps, open apps remotely, extract apk files from installed apps and send them to the phone.
Screencap tab: Take screenshots and send them to the phone.
Device tab: Information and specifications of O.S., CPU, memory, battery and screen.
Files tab: Send files from phone to watch (and vice versa), delete files from watch, modify watch file permissions.
Backup tab: Backup the watch (and restore it).
To connect and to be able to execute the functions, you only have to do the following:​
On the watch, go to Settings > System > About and tap "Build number" several times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Next go to Settings > developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
Make sure both your watch and mobile are connected to the same wifi network, momentarily disable bluetooth on your watch if Wi-Fi is not enabled on the watch. Now go to Settings > Connectivity > Wifi, click on the network you are connected to and write down the IP of your network.
In the Bugjaeger app of the phone click on the plug icon, enter the IP of your network and press "Connect".
When connecting you will see a notification appear on your watch where you have to give permission to link the phone to the watch, so click on "Always allow from this computer". Now in the app you will see the notification "Connected" and you will see the list of apps that are on the watch.
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​
Lefty(Download here)​
This app inverts the interface 180 degrees so that the watch can be used on the right wrist, ideal if you are left-handed and you usually put the watch on your right wrist. With this app you avoid that the buttons are facing your body, when they should be facing outwards. Install Lefty on the watch and once you open the app for the first time, enable permissions for "Display other apps" and "modify system settings", and then enable accessibility for "Lefty". Finally, tapping the purple "Rotate" button in the app will invert the entire watch interface 180°. This will affect apps, the watch face, settings, basically everything on the watch.​​Note: Some users report that the battery saving modes and some other functions may briefly interrupt the app from time to time, but overall it works great.​
WearMouse - Wear OS Air Mouse (Download here)​
WearMouse allows you to remotely control your computer mouse by moving your hand. You can use this app to connect to virtually any computer or device running Windows, Linux, Chrome OS, Mac OSX, Android, Android TV, without any additional software, it just requires it to have a Bluetooth receiver. Once the app has paired with the device you could do the following:​
Use it as a pointer for Powerpoint presentations (and also swipe slides by touching the sides of the watch screen), watch this video to see what it looks like.
Play games like Fruit Ninja with your arms (e.g. by downloading it on Android TV or installing it on a Chromebook from the Play Store).
Control a media player from the couch (e.g. when using a computer connected via HDMI).
Impress your friends with some telekinetic powers.
​
Installation and Configuration:​
Install WearMouse on the watch. Once the app is running on the watch you will see the list of previously paired devices. Select "Available devices" and select the device you want to pair.
When you have a paired device, connect to it.
Now you can choose between the 4 emulation modes and you're done.
​Modes:​​The application has four emulation modes:​
Virtual mouse mode: You move the cursor with your wrist, on the watch screen you will see two buttons to emulate when you click with the left and right mouse button, also a top drawer to configure the motion tracking depending on how you will use the watch (on left wrist, on right wrist, or held in hand as a laser pointer), and a bottom drawer for some additional functions: click and hold and middle click. If the watch is equipped with a rotating crown, you can also use it for scrolling.
Touchpad mode: Swipe the watch screen to move the cursor, tap to click, tap and hold to drag, tap with two fingers to right-click, swipe with two fingers to scroll. To exit this mode, touch the screen or press the right button of your watch (if you have one).
Cursor keys mode: The watch screen is divided into cursors that allow movement around the screen of the connected device. In addition, this mode allows gestures to expand the possibilities. Tap on the sides of the screen to activate the corresponding keys, double tap in the center to activate the Enter key, hold down the key to exit and there are also swipe gestures for Escape, Backspace, Space and Tab keys.
Keyboard mode: Allows you to use a mini keyboard on screen or by voice commands.
​Considerations:​
If your watch has additional buttons, you can use them to quickly switch between different input modes.
There are also some settings available. You can choose to stabilize pointer movements (this will smooth out smaller movements like waving your hands), enable diagonal movements for the cursor keys (which are useful for those cardboard games), or reduce the data rate (which is useful when using the app with an older Nougat-based Android TV box, and the mouse pointer just can't keep up). You can also choose whether to keep the clock connected when you minimize it (disabled by default).
If you connect and find that the mouse pointer is moving unsteadily, try turning your watch's Airplane mode on and off and then reconnecting it.
If you want to adjust the "sensitivity", do it from the pointer settings on the connected device, not in the app itself.
If you are using the app with a device that is connected to a TV, it is recommended that you switch your TV to "Game" picture mode, this should disable any post-processing that may cause lag on the TV.
Disable wrist gestures in the watch settings when using mouse mode, otherwise there is a high chance that the "back" or "go home" gesture will be activated.
Other well-known apps:
Apps that need no introduction, and also very useful on Wear OS....
​- Spotify - Streaming music player.​​- Adidas Running by Runtastic - sports tracking app.​​- Strava - Other sports tracking app.​​- Google Keep - Notes and reminders.​​- Duolingo - Language learning​
Useful ADB commands
ADB is a tool that allows us to interact with our watch in a more advanced way. It should be clarified that this interaction is done via command line. Usually, these commands are executed from a Windows or Linux computer; or a Mac with MacOS. ADB commands can be used for many tasks. These include resetting the watch, manually installing applications, extracting files, etc. To be able to execute ADB commands, if you have not done it yet, follow the steps in the section "Prepare clock for advanced functions" from the first post of this thread. Below I list the most significant ones to apply and useful to apply to a Wear OS.
I recommend this page and this where much more information about the parameters of each adb command is provided.
Code:
adb reboot --> Reboot
adb reboot recovery --> Reboot and boot to recovery mode
adb reboot-boot-bootloader --> Reboot and boot in bootloader mode
Code:
adb connect <Watch_ip> --> Connects the device via Wi-Fi
adb disconnect --> Disconnect device
adb devices --> Show connected devices
adb shell --> Execute adb commands in a terminal
Code:
adb shell getprop ro.build.version.release --> Displays Android Version
adb shell getprop ro.serialno --> Displays Serial Number
adb shell dumpsys battery --> Displays battery status
Code:
adb push file.png /sdcard/file.png --> Copy files from the computer to the watch
adb pull /sdcard/file.png --> Copy files from watch to computer
Code:
adb shell ls -a /mnt/sdcard --> Show list of folders and files, including hidden files
adb shell ls -d /mnt/sdcard --> Displays only list of folders
Code:
adb install <app_name.apk> --> Install applications
adb install -r <app_name.apk> --> Reinstall (update) applications
adb uninstall <app_name.apk> --> Uninstall apps
Code:
adb shell pm list packages mobvoi | sort --> List installed applications in alphabetical order and only with the word "mobvoi".
adb shell pm list packages -d --> list disabled applications
adb shell pm list packages -e --> list enabled applications
adb shell pm list packages -3 --> list of installed third-party applications
adb shell pm list packages -s --> list system applications list
adb shell pm list packages -i --> list with source of installation of each package
adb shell pm list packages -f --> List of applications with path
Code:
adb shell pm enable <package_name> --> Enable app
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 <package_name> --> Disable app
adb shell pm clear <package_name> --> Clear all data associated with a package
adb shell pm reset-permissions -p <package_name> --> Reset all permissions of an app
adb shell pm grant <package_name> <permission_name> --> Grant a permission to an app.
adb shell pm revoke <package_name> <permission_name> --> Revoke a permission of an app.
Code:
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.CALL -d tel:+34666123456 --> Make a call.
adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.SENDTO -d sms:+34666123456 --en sms_body "Test message" --ez exit_on_sent true --> Send an SMS message.
.
Code:
adb shell wm density 288 --> Adjust screen density.
adb shell wm density reset --> Restores default density
Code:
adb shell screencap -p /sdcard/my_screenshot.png --> Take screenshot
adb shell screenrecord --time-limit 20 --output-format raw-frames --verbose /sdcard/my_video.raw[ --> Records the activity on screen for 20" in RAW format
Code:
adb logcat -d > bugerror.txt --> Saves a logcat to a file on the local device
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Speaker drain (Only Ticwatch Pro 3)
After swimming or showering, water can get into the speaker (this is the hole on the right side of the watch), and the sound quality may change. Holding down the lower button, a menu is displayed, choose 'speaker draining' and it will play a kind of audio trill that will expel any water that has accumulated in the Speaker.
How Wear OS watches are updated.
There is quite a bit of confusion with this as to what the latest update is and where to look (system version, Wear OS version or firmware version?), plus it is also confusing how Wear OS watches are updated as it is somewhat different than Android phones.
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In order to clarify concepts for the future update of the watch, I briefly explain how it is about updates in Wear OS.
Wear OS watches receive improvements through updates that arrive through 2 ways.
Through Play Store, updating "Wear OS by Google" app.
This is the most frequent type of update you will receive on the watch (every few days). These updates usually provide bug fixes, design updates and new features. They are completely controlled by Google, usually done "silently" with no user intervention required for the update to be applied and no reboot required afterwards.
What version do you have on your watch? It is checked in Settings > System > About > Versions > Wear OS by Google
How to update if available? From Play Store and also by tapping on Home App in Settings > System > About > Versions.
Through system updates.
On the other hand, the watch manufacturer applies specific improvements for the device via OTA through full firmwares, in these updates are also implemented large updates from Google (H Wear OS updates) where improvements are applied that from Play Store can not reach, for example security patches. These updates do require a reboot afterwards. Each manufacturer sets the pace of updates, for example, Mobvoi or Fossil update the system more frequently than Asus. Usually with these updates the watch receives important improvements such as in battery life, new functions that require special hardware features and/or security patches.
What System version do you have on the watch? It is checked in Settings > System > Info > Versions > System Version
What about the firmware version? It is checked in Settings > System > About > Build number
How to update if available? It is updated from Settings > System > About > System Updates
How to force update if available? Go to the "Force firmware update" section of the first post.
As an example, these are the latest versions as of today for the Ticwatch Pro 3 GPS:
Wear OS version: 2.30
System Version: H-MR2
Firmware Version: PMRB.210624.001
To put in context the pace of updates you can see Version history section of this link, the rate of updates that Wear OS receives, that does not mean that the partners (Mobvoi, Fossil...) apply updates to their watches on the release dates of each Wear OS update, as I said above the partners set their own pace. In the same way, you can see in the link the improvements planned with H-MR2 and others more distant based on Android 11.
How to force firmware update (Only Ticwatch Pro 3)
To make sure you have the latest firmware update for your watch, follow these steps:
Plug the watch into the charger, and make sure it has at least 60% battery power and is connected to a Wi-Fi network. If there is, the update should start automatically.
If it doesn't update, go to settings > System > About > System Updates. When it reports that it is updated, press in the center of the screen for about 5 seconds and after a few seconds it will start updating.
Latest Firmware version:​
For TicWatch Pro 3 GPS: PMRB.220111.001 (dated January 26, 2022).​​For TicWatch Pro 3 LTE: PMRL.220111.001 (dated February 16, 2022)​
Update History:
Ticwatch Pro 3 GPS​​PYDA.200427.061.MRB.200911.001 - September 2020 (Initial version).​PYDA.200427.064.MRB.201023.001 - 10 November 2020​PYDA.200427.080.MRB.210114.001 - 01 February 2021​PMRB.210407.001 - 24 April 2021​PMRB.210624.001 - 13 July 2021​PMRB.220111.001 - 26 January 2022​
Ticwatch Pro 3 LTE​​PYDA.200427.075.MRL201116.001 - December 2020 (Initial version).​PMRL.210414.002 - 01 May 2021​PMRL.220111.001 - 16 February 2022​.
System updates of the most popular Wear OS watches..
In the link below there is a list with the most representative Wear OS watch models currently available in each brand, where I put when and what was the last update of each model.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wm81Hv9Z898If86O3olsXlnyFNYv-1TR_ynh0leqO1c/edit?usp=sharing​
Most common Wear OS issues and how to fix them.
'OK Google' does not activate Google Assistant
Numerous Wear OS users have noticed that their watch does not activate the Google Assistant when saying the voice command "OK Google". Although Google months ago acknowledged the problem and fixed it in a March update to the Google app many users were still reporting that it was not working.​
Google Issue Tracker: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/172776291
Who is affected?: All Wear OS watches of any model.
Solution:
Make sure that "OK Google detection" is enabled in the Google Assistant settings.
Now it's about removing the Google app updates, so go to Play Store and click on My Apps > Google > Uninstall. You can also do it from Watch settings > Apps & Notifications > App Info > System Apps > Google > Remove Updates.
Say "OK Google" and check that it works correctly, restart if necessary.
Go back to Play Store, and update the Google app, also reboot if necessary.
Note: From essential mode it will not detect "OK Google", only from watchface.​​
Loses GPS signal, when you get separated from the phone
There is a known bug from Google (not yet resolved) where when you start a training activity on the watch that requires GPS (e.g. running or walking) and at that moment you are connected via bluetooth to the phone (you should keep in mind that the watch already had acquired GPS positioning from the phone at that moment). If that happens the watch will not acquire GPS positioning independently and the run will not be tracked when you move away from your phone.​
The ideal is to use the GPS of the watch itself (actually it should say GNSS), as it will normally be more accurate than positioning with the phone, remember that the watch can simultaneously make use of several navigation systems, in addition to GPS these are, GLONASS, BEIDOU, GALILEO and QZSS. Normally the phones do not receive the signal of all these systems, although there are more and more phones that do, but in general terms, it is normal that the watch is better positioned. In addition to this, it would also be to avoid dependence on the phone when you go for a run. What happens? That after you have done the training session you check that the GPS was not detected and therefore nothing was recorded.​
Google Issue Tracker: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/183515540 and https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/176625267
Who is affected? All Wear OS watches of any model.
Solution 1:
When you go out for a run/walk disconnect the bluetooth from the phone to lose the phone-watch link, and wait for the watch to position itself. The downside is that it usually takes quite a while for the watch's GPS to become active.​
Solution 2:
Another more recommended solution is through the app Wear GPS Fix, what it does is that it gets the GPS location on the watch. While you wait for the GPS location, the app shows you the real-time satellite status so you can see how many satellites have been found and how many are used in location detection. Once purchased, Wear GPS Fix immediately opens your favorite workout app (Google Fit, Runtastic, Strava...), transfers the GPS location to the app and you are ready to start your workout and you can get accurate GPS tracking. You can install the app from the Play Store on your watch.​
Google Assistant in certain (too many) situations does not work properly.
This bug has been known for at least 2 years (and unbelievably not fixed by Google). The fact of not having fixed this problem makes palpable the huge neglect in which Google has subjected Wear OS considering that the Google Assistant is one of the big claims (if not the biggest) when announcing the watches. One day you find yourself as a brand new owner of such a watch and you simply find that the Assistant does not work, it is very frustrating. Below I relate a few situations where the user experience is terrible when interacting with the Assistant:​
- "Call xxxxx" (from your phonebook) and it will say "Sorry , I can't do that anymore". Interestingly if you call a spelled out number (even if it is in the phonebook) it works correctly.​
- "Send text message to xxxxx Hi, how are you? " (from your phonebook or a spelled out number), it then asks for confirmation of what to send with the "cancel" or "send" buttons, I click "send" and screen is shown "Couldn't connect to your phone" .​
- "Send whatshap/telegram to xxxxx", It asks "to whom?", but never recognizes the contact, it always asks "to whom?".​
- "Play music", then says "here you go" (or something similar) and screen is displayed "Couldn't connect to your phone"​
- "Nearby restaurantss", and clicking on one of them displays the screen "Can't reach the phone at the moment" (can't reach the phone now). Any suggestions about places or businesses that you ask for and the assistant offers will do the same.​
- "When you open McDonals", if there are more than one it shows a list of locations, and when you click on one of them, it says "Can't reach the phone at the moment".​
- 'Browse to McDonals"​
If there is more than one destination, it shows you a list of locations, and when you click on one of them, it will return the error "Can't reach the phone at the moment"".
If there is only one location, it will say it understood but a black screen will be displayed and will not indicate anything.
- "View appointments from my calendar" (calendar).​
If there is more than one entry, it will describe the first entry and announce that you will see the remaining ones, finally it does not show them, just a black screen.
If there is one entry, it will describe the entry but you will not be able to see more details, just a black screen.
- "Search results for xxxxxxxx", it will say "this is the main result", but you will only see a black screen. This happens whenever the wizard needs to show you results from your request.​
- "Show pictures of 'Cats'" and it will respond "Showing your photos of cats". However, it will not show any pictures, you will only see a black screen.​
Google over the years has been tentatively fixing the interaction in some situations through Wear OS updates, for example, it has frequently been reported that reminders and notes could not be added through the assistant, currently those functions work correctly.​
Google Issue Tracker: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/174344676 and https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/174594748 and https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/182882377.​
Who is affected? All Wear OS watches of any model.​
Solution: ​
There is currently no solution, however there are several indications that suggest that soon will be released an update to repair all these problems, these are:​
In March this year they finally fixed the bug where the assistant did not recognize the voice command 'OK Google'.
A few days ago they released the first app for Wear OS in years, the Gboard keyboard for WearOS.
This week, many users are receiving a notification via phone to take a Wear OS satisfaction survey.
And finally, at the annual Google I/O 2021 conference held in mid-May the partnership with Samsung was announced which could definitely boost the development of Wear OS, also rumored to launch before the end of the year Wear OS 3.0.
​Alternative Solution:​​As I was saying there is no official solution to this by Google, but if an alternative solution for part of these problems, specifically when you want to:​​"Call xxxxx" (from your address book).​"Send text message to xxxxx Hi, how are you?" (from your contact book).​"Send whatshapp message to xxxxx".​​It is through Wear Text app (developer Malcolm Bryant). This app allows you to make phone calls or send a text message or WhatsApp using voice commands. This post explains about installation, configuration and use of Wear Text.​
In the same way, we can all push the solution through the internal bug tracking system that Google uses, Google Issue Tracker for Wear OS developers to listen to our complaints and prioritize solutions to this major bug. Enter the tab of this bug in the tracker and give it a vote by clicking on the star in order to give it notoriety, you can also give your opinion in the issue tab if you think you can contribute something new. I recommend that you enter the tracker, right now is the most direct way for us to be heard by the developers.​
Google notifications and reminders are notified on the phone, but NOT on the watch.
This bug has been occurring for a long time in Wear OS watches, it consists in that all notifications that come from the Google app and that are notified on the phone are not notified also on the watch (Google notifications about news, weather, sports, etc.) nor the reminders that had been created with the Google Assistant (even if they had been created on the watch), it is always notified ONLY on the phone, but not on the watch. If the reminder is created from the calendar it notifies correctly on the watch and on the phone, therefore this error only happens with the Google app and Google assistant, the other third party apps work normally in terms of receiving notifications (WhatsApp, Telegram, etc.)​
Google Issue Tracker: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/188096935​
Who is affected? All Wear OS watches of any model.​
Solution: ​
There is currently no official solution from Google, we just have to wait. We can all push the solution through the internal bug tracking system that Google uses, Google Issue Tracker so that Wear OS developers hear our complaints and prioritize solutions to this major bug. Enter the tab of this bug in the tracker and give it a vote by clicking on the star in order to give it notoriety, you can also give your opinion in the issue tab if you think you can contribute something new. I recommend that you enter the tracker, it is currently the most direct way for us to be heard by the developers.​
Workaround:.​
There is a temporary workaround (until Google deigns to officially fix this problem). It is through the app Wear Reminder 2 by Malcolm Bryant (other apps of his among several others are Wear GPS Fix and Wear Installer). What Wear Reminder 2 does is that it replicates Google notifications (news, weather updates, sports...) and reminders that arrive on the phone by also receiving them on the watch. The app is installed on the watch and on the phone as a bridge. You can configure the importance of reminders and notifications (sound, vibration, text-to-speech...), also if you discard a notification on the watch, it is also discarded on the phone, and vice versa. Here a video of how Wear Reminder 2 works.​
When you receive missed calls with the watch connected to the phone via bluetooth, the missed call notification is discarded from phone.
Another bug that has been maintained for years, is that when you receive a call that you do not answer (missed call) and the watch is connected to the phone via bluetooth, the missed call notification disappears (is discarded) automatically from the phone and remains only on the watch, if the bluetooth is disconnected (i.e. the phone-watch link is lost) the missed call notification remains on the phone. This is a major bug because it is easy to not realize that someone has called when the notification disappears, being only present on the watch.​
Google Issue Tracker: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/182682216​
Who is affected All Wear OS watches of any model.​
Solution: ​
There is currently no official solution from Google, we just have to wait. We can all push the solution through the internal bug tracking system that Google uses, Google Issue Tracker so that Wear OS developers listen to our complaints and prioritize solutions to this major bug. Enter the tab of this bug in the tracker and give it a vote by clicking on the star in order to give it notoriety, you can also give your opinion in the issue tab if you think you can contribute something new. I recommend that you enter the tracker, it is currently the most direct way for us to be heard by the developers.​
Workaround:​
While waiting for the official workaround, follow the steps below and you will be able to receive missed calls and it will show the notification on your phone and watch without being automatically dismissed.​
On the watch, go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > App Notifications > Show All> System Apps > Call Manager and uncheck "Missed Calls".
Then go to Settings > connectivity > bluetooth and make sure you have "Listen to phone voice call on watch" checked.

How to change the watch resolution
The smartwatch screen is about 1.4 inches, there are applications especially those that you install outside the Play Store that are not optimized for Wear OS although they are functional. This implies that elements of the application interface are hidden because the screen is so small. For this there are some adb commands to temporarily modify the screen resolution (DPI) by following the following steps:
1. If you have not done it yet, follow the steps in the section 'Prepare watch for advanced functions '
2. On your computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type 'cmd' in the toolbar.
3. Then enter the following command to connect to the watch. It then accepts a message on the watch that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect watch_ip:5555
4. Now, is the step to change the density of pixels on the screen (DPI), type one of these commands:
Code:
adb shell wm density ---> To display the current screen density
adb shell wm density 180 ---> To apply a custom density, for example 180
adb shell wm density reset ---> To restore the default density of the watch
Considerations:
Note that altering its DPI can cause the Google Play Store to incorrectly label the watch as incompatible when downloading apps. This is because developers limit the compatibility of their application based on the DPI value of a device. So if for any reason you get an error, all you have to do is go back to your original DPI and download the app again. Once you have installed the application, you can go back to its custom DPI.
As an alternative to using ADB commands, you can change the screen density with Budjaeger app, via phone.
How to troubleshoot boot problems. Bootloader Mode and Recovery Mode.
In addition to the normal boot, there are two other system boot modes. Bootloader or Fastboot mode and Recovery mode. Both modes can be entered through combinations of the physical buttons or by using adb commands. Knowing these boot methods can save you from a tricky situation where, for example, the screen is unresponsive or the watch is locked.
Bootloader mode can be entered by simultaneously holding down the 2 buttons until you feel a vibration, about 8 seconds and it will reboot into that mode, I don't know what the procedure is with 1 or 3 button watches. Recovery mode can be entered from the options offered in Bootloader mode.
You can also enter these 2 modes from a command line by typing "adb reboot bootloader" or "adb reboot recovery". Follow only the first 4 steps to enter these modes in the section below where I explain how to unlock the bootloader.
-
What is the Bootloader.
The Bootloader is like the BIOS on a PC computer. It is the first thing that is executed when the clock starts, from there the instructions to boot the kernel of the operating system are launched. The manufacturer, in this case, of the watch, usually keeps this bootloader locked as a security measure, and it is basically to make sure that only the version of the operating system that he has created can be booted.
However, many watches (and Android devices) can be unlocked so that custom firmwares can be installed or the device can be rooted. For now, this is not the case for the Ticwach Pro 3 as no effective way to root it has yet been discovered and no custom ROM has been created; however, on the Ticwatch Pro there is a lot more movement, and in fact there is a thread in forum where they explain how to flash an interesting custom ROM and root the watch, basically flashing from bootloader mode through the command line with ADB instructions. During the half year that I used this model I had flashed this ROM, it was clearly perceived a greater fluidity and a significant improvement in battery life. I recommend it for those who have enough knowledge to do it, I must say that if you unlock the bootloader, except in rare cases, you lose the warranty, as this is a deep modification in the software. In fact, some android devices (I guess Wear OS watches too) have security mechanisms so that, even if we close the bootloader again, there is a record that this was previously opened, and with this data would be enough to not provide warranty. On the other hand, when you unlock the bootloader, it resets the watch to factory state (factory reset) so your personal settings and apps that you had installed will be deleted, since important changes are made in the way the watch manages the boot.
In short, if you want to customize your watch as much as possible, unlocking the bootloader is a good option. On the contrary, if you want to use the original firmware and not take risks, it is better to leave it locked, to make sure that there is nothing "strange" at the level of deep system modifications. I reiterate that with the Ticwatch Pro 3 little you can do (for now) with the bootloader unlocked, in other watches for sure this is more advanced.
How to unlock the bootloader
If you haven't done it yet, follow the steps in the "Prepare watch for advanced features" section of the first post.
On the computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type "cmd" in the start bar.
Then enter the following command to connect to the clock. Accept then a message on the clock that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect IP_of_watch:5555
Now, it is the step to reboot the clock in bootloader mode.
Code:
adb reboot bootloader
Already from bootloader mode will not work debugging via Wi-Fi, as the watch in this mode does not connect to the Wi-Fi network, it will only work with a USB cable. If you have already plugged in the cable, run any of the following commands (whichever works) to unlock the bootloader on your Wear OS watch.
Code:
fastboot oem unlock
OR
fastboot flashing unlock
Press the top button on the watch to accept the bootloader unlock request, the watch will be formatted and rebooted back into bootloader mode. On the bottom line on the bootloader screen you should read "unlocked:yes" . Now you can reboot your watch in normal boot using the following command:
Code:
adb reboot
What can you do in Bootloader Mode?
Besides unlocking the bootloader, to root the watch and/or flash another ROM, from this mode you can choose several options. You scroll with the lower button and choose with the upper button.
Recovery Mode - Logically enter recovery mode.
Boot to FFBM - Factory Boot Mode. Resets the watch to factory settings although I didn't notice any difference compared to a normal boot on the Ticwatch pro 3.
Enter Ship Mode - This is a low power state that prolongs battery life and protects the battery when there are extended periods of non-use. It appears to be used by the manufacturer in the stage prior to sale and shipment to the end user. You exit this state by pressing and holding the top button.
Also at the bottom of the screen it shows key watch information such as the bootloader lock status or the serial number of the watch. Also, from bootloader mode you can use ADB commands like "fastboot format userdata" to do a factory reset, or "fastboot format cache" to clear the clock cache.
What is and what can you do in Recovery mode?
Recovery mode is exactly what its name suggests, recovering the system in case of problems. Actually it is similar to Download mode, however the goal of Recovery mode is to fix problems with the system, Download mode is more focused on changing the system completely by flashing another ROM for example.
Recovery mode is entered from Download mode, once you have rebooted you will see an exclamation mark on the screen, press and hold the top button while swiping the screen with your finger from bottom to top. You will then see the Recovery mode with several options, you scroll the same as in Download mode, in this case it is also enabled touch scrolling. From the options I highlight "Wipe data/Factory Reset" and "Wipe cache partition" to remove personal settings and leave the watch as factory default, techniques that can solve some problems with the watch.
Functionality of Ticwatch Pro 3 buttons.
Wear OS devices predominantly use the touch screen for interaction, but physical buttons can also be used. Below I list the default functions of the Ticwatch Pro 3 buttons.
From normal mode:
- Top button short press (from essential screen): Activates AMOLED screen.​- Top button short press (from AMOLED screen): Opens app drawer.​- Top button long press: Activates Google Assistant.​- Top button double press: Increases screen brightness to maximum.​​- Bottom button short press: Activates the application of your choice.​- Bottom button long press: Activates menu with different functions, such as speaker drain water, switch to essential mode and reboot/shutdown.​- Bottom button double press: Activates Google Pay (in countries that support it).​​- Top button and Bottom button (simultaneous) long press: Take screenshot.​- Top button and Bottom button (simultaneous) long press (+ than 8 seconds): Reset in Bootloader mode.​.
From Essential mode (low power mode):
- Top button short press: Turn on/off display backlight.​- Top button long press: Reset watch.​​- Bottom button short press: Measures heart rate.​​
Also with the help of a third party app, Button Launcher, you can increase the functionality of these buttons, and you can program them to activate the apps or functions you want depending on the combinations of short presses and long presses you make.
For watches with 1 button, only two actions can be programmed:​​- long press​- long press (2 times)​​For watches with at least 2 buttons, up to eight actions are allowed to be programmed:​​- Top button long press: You could replace the default (Google Assistant).​- Top button long press (2 times).​- Top button long press + Bottom button short press.​- Top button long press + Bottom button long press​​- Bottom button short press​- Bottom button short press (2 times) ​- Bottom button short press + top button long press ​- Bottom button short press + Bottom button long press​​Note: In order for you to configure combinations starting with the bottom button, you must select "Button Launcher" under Setting > Customization > Customize Hardware Buttons.​​
Measures to extend the battery life of watch
If you don't need...
Adaptive brightness (auto brightness), you can turn it off in Settings > Display > adjust brightness, and adjust the brightness to an intermediate level. Remember, the brighter the screen, the more battery is used.
"Tilt-to-Wake", you can disable it in Settings > Gestures, also from the Wear OS app of the phone. With this feature enabled when a notification arrives the screen lights up when you lift your wrist, if you disable this feature the notification will still arrive but will not be displayed on the screen until you turn it on with the button.
"Touch to Wake", you can disable it in Settings > Gestures. With this feature enabled when a notification arrives the screen lights up when touches the screen, if you disable this feature the notification will still arrive but will not be displayed on the screen until you turn it on with the button.
"always-on Screen", you can disable it in Settings > Display, also from the app Wear OS of the phone. By disabling this option the screen turns off when not in use, also in Ticwatch this feature is less necessary than in any other watch as it replaces the screen is completely off by a screen in essential mode so it would always show the time.
"OK Google Detection", you can disable the option in Settings > Personalization. The Google Assistant can also be activated by pressing and holding the top button, or by sliding the watch face to the left.
Wi-Fi connection, you can disable it in Settings > Connectivity > Wi-Fi. In this way you avoid that it is constantly looking for connection when you are not at home, or away from any Wi-Fi network you use, however Wear OS automates this issue, and disables it automatically if it is not necessary, for example, when it is connected by bluetooth to the phone disables the Wi-Fi connection.
Notifications (or certain notifications) that appear on the watch, you can configure the notifications you do not need in the phone app "Wear OS by Google", in the option notifications. By default the watch constantly synchronizes all emails, messages and reminders, you can thus disable the notifications that you do not need to be notified by your watch.
Background heart rate monitor (from Google Fit), you can disable it in the settings of Google Fit. If you do not have any cardiac pathology there is no reason to be measuring your pulse all day if you are not doing some kind of sport.
Watch face with bright colors, animations or with various interactive capabilities, try another watch face. I recommend for low resource consumption Pixel Watch face.
In Mobvoi apps if you don't need to have activated...
Mobvoi, Fossil, Oppo, Xiami, etc. preinstall their own apps in their watches that complement Google applications, most are usually sports-oriented applications. Below I list monitors that act in the background in Ticwatch watches, however it can be extrapolated to the watches of other brands as they will have these monitors or similar.
24 hour Tracking (heart rate monitor): Same opinion as the Google Fit monitor. You can disable it in the settings of TicPulse.
24 hour automatic background monitoring (blood oxygen monitor): It makes oxygen saturation measurements every hour, in normal health conditions continuous monitoring is not necessary. There are leaks that in upcoming updates of Google Fit will implement a SpO2 monitor, for now there is no alternative. You can disable it in the settings of TicOxygen.
24 hour stress monitoring: Check stress level every half hour. You can deactivate it in the settings of TicZen.
Automatic sport detection (TicMotion): Detects the activity you do according to the type of continuous movement you do for a few minutes. If you don't see it useful or you prefer to manually select the sport you are going to practice it can be disabled in the settings of TicExercise.
Other meassures:
TicSleep: The application requires to have the heart rate monitor and the blood oxygen monitor activated to monitor while you sleep. From the app, in the settings you can customize the non-monitoring times for heart rate and blood oxygen, for example so that it only monitors at your usual sleep time.
Do track in the "Wear OS by Google" phone app which apps are consuming the most battery. You see it in Advanced Settings > Watch Battery. It also gives you information on the estimated battery life remaining and a graph showing how it has been draining.
Disabling Mobvoi's preinstalled apps, personally I don't use any of their health and fitness apps, I find more reliable for now, Google Fit (even though I have to do without SpO2 measurement). Disabling the apps I make sure they are not running in the background, another time I will expand information about this.
These are several measures that can help, however, there are no miracles, and if now it lasts 1 or 2 days at most and applying all the measures you will gain maybe 1 day more, it is not a super improvement if in return you have limited many of the functions that the watch can offer you. My advice would be a middle ground and that you will disable what you need the least, or that will interfere the least in your daily use of the watch.
Also you have to take into account the use that you give to the watch, if you daily monitor your workouts that you do, like running, walking, elliptical, etc, 1 hour for example, the battery will last much less than if you only use it to receive notifications. The old Nokia phone battery lasted several weeks, with the advent of smartphones you were forced to recharge the phone almost every day, hopefully every 2 or 3 days, because with the smartwatch is happening the same thing, we must be aware that the smartwatch consumes a lot of battery, and are not old casio that lasted you the watch battery years.
How to disable the Watch's Bloatware. Mobvoi applications.
The Ticwatch watches, and specifically the Ticwatch Pro 3 has preinstalled several health & fitness apps with which you can monitor your sports workouts and sleep cycles, as well as other apps to measure your stress level and ambient noise level. Also preinstalled on the watch are several watchfaces created by Mobvoi and other applications such as calculator, voice notes and an alternative to the Wear OS launcher. All of these apps are from Mobvoi.
To put this post in context, I give my opinion about Mobvoi apps:
TicExercise in each update is improving but today I personally miscounts the distances in the workouts I do. In this case I use Google Fit and Runtastic although they are not perfect either, they lack for example to monitor blood oxygen (it seems that in future updates of Wear OS they will implement it in Google Fit) and of course a much more complete statistics.
TicSleep, TicZen/TicBreathe and TicHearing, I do not use them either, in my case I do not need to monitor my sleep cycle, nor the level of stress I have, nor the level of ambient noise.
TicHealth, TicPulse, TicOxygen, for what has been said in the two previous points are not necessary for me.
The Mobvoi preinstalled watchfaces I don't like any of them.
Calculator, voice memo and launcher are perhaps the only things I use from Mobvoi.
Those who regularly use apps to monitor their sports workouts with the phone already have a favorite (such as Strava, Runtastic, Google Fit and a few others). Many of us have used them with the phone and in the servers of these apps we have our history of records, so many of us want to use these apps on the watch, and here comes the question, why do you want all that "bloat" of Mobvoi if you do not use it, which in many cases is working in the background and consuming battery without giving any use.
To remedy this you can disable Mobvoi apps that you don't need. In the Ticwatch Pro 3 are preinstalled all you see in the list below. There are 20 packages. They can be disabled in 2 ways, via ADB commands, or through the watch settings. In the table, the 1st column is how the application is identified when you use ADB commands, and the 2nd column is how it is identified from the watch settings.
Disable from watch Settings (note the considerations below).
Go to settings > Apps & Notifications > App Info > System Apps. From there you can disable (and enable again) all the mobvoi apps I show in the box (second column), except com.mobvoi.wear.mcuservice.aw and TicSystem. These if you want to disable them will have to be through ADB commands.
Disable through ADB commands (note the considerations below)
If you have not already done so, follow the steps in the "Prepare watch for advanced functions" section of the first post.
On the computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type "cmd" in the start bar.
Then enter the following command to connect to watch. It then accepts a message on watch that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect IP_of_watch:5555
.
Now, it is the step to check which Mobvoi applications are installed. The -e parameter (will filter enabled applications) can be replaced by the -d parameter (disabled applications):
Code:
adb shell pm list packages -e mobvoi | sort
To disable Mobvoi applications one by one (it does not uninstall), you can use the following command:
Code:
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 <package_name>
Example:
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.mobvoi.wear.fitness.aw
If you would like to re-enable movboi apps, use the following commands:
Code:
adb shell pm list packages -d mobvoi | sort
adb shell pm enable <package_name>
Considerations:
Disabling these apps will not damage the watch in any way. You will simply lose access to the services they provide, which, if you don't need or use them you won't care. You also prevent any personal data or metrics from being collected by Mobvoi.
I recommend NOT disabling com.mobvoi.wear.mcuservice.aw. If you disable it it will not go into essential mode when restarting the watch. Doing tests I check when I disable this package it enters in essential mode but when I reboot it doesn't, the package was kept in RAM memory.
If you want to keep the secondary button menu (when you long press), do not disable com.mobvoi.wear.system.aw and com.mobvoi.wear.mcuservice.aw.
If you also want to keep the water draining function from the right-click menu of the previous item, do not disable com.mobvoi.wear.fitness.aw.
If you want to keep the animation shown on watch when you charge watch, do not disable com.mobvoi.wear.system.aw. If you disable it, it will charge anyway, it is only aesthetic, you can install as an alternative Wear Charging Widget, it applies a nice animation when you charge the watch.
If you want to keep TicMotion (Automatic sport detection), don't disable com.mobvoi.wear.health.aw and com.mobvoi.wear.fitness.aw.
If you disable TicSleep, and you are interested in monitoring your sleep cycles, there is an alternative app that is highly recommended, Sleep as Android.
If you disable LauncherTic, the default Wear OS launcher will run (you can test this by disabling "Enable other launcher" in Settings > Customization).
If you disable Watchface, you can install other watch faces from the play Store, I recommend some in the "Watch Faces from the Play Store that I like" section of the first post.
If you do a factory reset all mobvoi apps will be re-enabled, and I think when you update the firmware as well (I haven't checked yet). However, the disabling process is done in a few minutes.
On some watches the performance should be considerably improved. I must say that the Ticwatch Pro 3 is a performance monster, and not at all Mobvoi apps affect its performance, maybe other watch models with more limited performance.
More info on this at this XDA thread.
How to use Google Pay with unsupported banks.
As of today, Google Pay has spread in most of Europe, USA, Canada, Brazil, Chile, Australia, New Zealand and some countries in Asia such as India and Japan, and in each of these countries there are banks that are compatible with Google Pay contactless payment and others that are not (here complete list of banks by country), for example, in Spain which is the country where I live, there are many banks that have already joined Google Pay. If you are a customer of one of the supported banks you can easily add your credit and debit cards to Google Pay and pay from your phone or watch without problems but unfortunately, there are 2 major banks (and several more minority ones) that currently do not support Google Pay payments, these are CaixaBank and Banco Santander.
What happens to cards issued by entities such as these that have not joined Google Pay? In principle, you might think that there is nothing to do but, fortunately, there is a solution.
Basically it is to use a debit card that does support payments with Google Pay, and that you can associate with your usual debit card. In other words, it consists of having the card act as a "bridge" between your bank and Google Pay. It is an interesting option, since it does not imply having to become a customer of another bank or accept their conditions if you become a customer (in some cases, having a minimum amount of money in your current accounts or having your salary paid directly into your bank account). In European countries there is a solution, which is not associated with traditional banks, supports Google Pay and serves perfectly as a bridge, it is the Curve card. If you check the list of supported banks by country you will see that it is compatible in almost all European countries, in fact this card operates in 31 European countries. If Curve is not integrated in your country, either inside or outside Europe, investigate the compatible cards in your country from this list in case there is an alternative such as N26, Revolut, Monzo, etc.
In the case of the Curve Mastercard, it is a physical card that is sent to your home free of charge and is not associated with any bank account, but with one or more credit/debit cards that you own. Therefore, once received at home, you must activate the card in the mobile app and then upload the cards you want to associate with Curve. When you pay with the Curve card, the charge is made to the card you have chosen at any given time. Now if you want to make payments through Google Pay you just have to add it as any other since as I said before the Curve card is supported by Google Pay. Every time you use Google Pay to pay with the Curve card, the charge is made to the card you have associated. Here more info about the Curve card and here with an explanatory video.
Although I consider that the great advantage is that you can use the card with non-compatible banks, the Curve card also has other advantages:
You can choose which of your VISA or Mastercard you want to pay with, by using the Curve Mastercard, you no longer need to carry the other cards in your wallet.
You can withdraw money from any ATM without commission (up to 10 times a month).
If you are traveling, you can withdraw money from any international ATM without commission (up to £200 / 220€) and you can also pay in foreign currency without commission (up to £500 / 550€ per month).
If you lose it you can block the card instantly from the mobile app.
The card is free, you don't pay anything for registration or maintenance and they don't charge commissions for making payments with it.
Steps to link your card to the Curve card, and then add it to Google Pay.
Follow the steps to open a free account on curve here.
Now to add it to Google Pay, open Google Pay on the watch.
Tap "Add card" and the setup will continue on the phone.
Tap on the card already set up on the phone, or "Add a new card" if it had not yet been set up on the phone.
Click "Enter details manually" to enter your card number, CVC and validity date.
Enter your billing address and phone number, then press "Save".
Read and accept the "Issuer Terms and Conditions".
Finally, you will have to choose a verification system for the bank to verify your identity. By default the SMS option is checked, so make sure your number is correct and continue. When you receive the message, enter the code and that's it, you will have the card configured in the watch.
Note: When paying for a purchase, if Contactless payment asks you for a PIN, always enter the one you have with the bank card, not the unlock code of the watch.
How to use Google Pay in unsupported countries such as Iceland, Slovenia, Mexico, Israel or Turkey.
There are several countries in the world that support Google Pay for contactless payments, Here the list of countries supported to use Google Pay on phones and here the countries supported to use Google Pay on smartwatch (much less). Users in many countries are unable to use Google Pay because they do not yet have official support for Google Pay. Google has informed that in the coming months they will support 26 countries in additionfrom the 11 countries currently supported. Although there is a workaround for this, basically it is to bypass Google's verification of the country you are in based on the IP address which causes Google Pay app to be hidden in seconds if used in an unsupported country. Therefore, to avoid this you need an IP address of a supported country, for this you use a proxy or a VPN, so you can pay in any country where the merchant has Contactless payment. For a much more extensive info and considerations about the trick enter here, basically the steps to follow are as follows:
Download the app Permanent Proxy from this link and install it on the watch. The app is designed for Wear OS devices and allows anyone to use Google Pay in regions where it is normally blocked.
Go to Settings > system > About and tap "Build number" multiple times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Next go to Settings > developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debug over bluetooth".
Run Permanent Proxy app, it will ask for permissions, accept "always allow".
Now create a personal proxy service that is reliable and avoid changing the IP address frequently, for example in Google Cloud.
Enter the IP address and port of the proxy you created, and enable it. Después de habilitar el VPN/proxy, sal de la aplicación, dale a tu reloj algo de tiempo y luego vuelve a verificar en la aplicación de proxy permanente para ver si tu IP externa ha cambiado a la que ingresaste como proxy. Si es así, buen trabajo, ¡estás conectado!
Disable W-Fi on the watch. Don't download Google Pay on your watch. It should enable itself. If it doesn't do it automatically, download Play Sore from Play Store.
Considerations:
Proxy services can be found online and can be from any country. However, make sure you completely trust the proxy you chose before you enter it. It is possible that all your watch data will be sent through that proxy, including sensitive data, so act at your own risk. It is recommended that you create your own proxy. This can be easily done using Google Cloud (trial version).
An alternative to "Permanent Proxy" is to use a VPN on the phone that routes Internet traffic from the Wear OS app on the phone through it. To make it work you have to disable WiFi on the watch, only use Bluetooth connection and keep the VPN on the phone always on.
"Permanent proxy" may not work if the watch is connected directly to the Internet (watches with eSIM).
There's no relation between GPay for phones and GPay for Wear OS. if there is an official support for given country it is not ( and for many EU countries it is the case) always valid for watches.
Only bank cards that you can use to pay with your phone in stores can be added to Google Pay on your watch. This means you will need a card from a country supported by Google Pay.
GPay app is installed by default on the watch, but it is hidden for the countries without official support. Don't download Google Pay on your watch. It should enable itself. If you disable Wi-Fi on the watch and start a VPN on your phone, the app should appear in a while.
You can make your watch refresh its Google Pay availability check in two ways.: Either by setting the IP/port again in the Permanent Proxy app, or by tapping "Home App" in Settings > System > About > Versions.
Even if you are using "Permanent proxy", sometimes GPay is disabled after update of some related Google apps, Services framework, Play services, Google main app. In this case manual install of this Google Pay (Wear OS) app version and after watch restart it appeared again.
Free VPNs may work, but they usually stop working within a couple of days if they work at all.
If Google Pay does not work, delete Google Pay data in the watch settings. Also try to delete updates.
Google Pay will work if you see the icon in the quick settings of the watch.
"Permanent proxy" only works for IPv4 networks. If you are on a network that uses IPv6, in theory, Google can still verify which country you are in. Turn off WiFi if necessary.
Uninstalling the proxy permanently will not stop the proxy. Stop the proxy using the application before uninstalling it, or stop the proxy using the ADB command below.
Code:
adb shell settings delete global http_proxy
adb shell settings delete global global_http_proxy_host
adb shell settings delete global global_http_proxy_port
adb shell settings delete global global_http_proxy_exclusion_list
adb shell settings delete global global_proxy_pac_url
adb shell reboot
For more information go to the original XDA thread here.
How to take long screenshots with the Wear Stitch tool.
If you want to take an long screenshot, showing an entire conversation or menu, you can do it with the help of adb and a Python script called Wear Stitch. This tool takes a screenshot, scrolls a bit, takes another screenshot and so on until it reaches the end of the screen. It then performs some image processing to combine the screenshots into one
Previous requirements:
Install Pyhon on the computer. Download it here.
Follow the steps in the "Prepare watch for advanced features" section of the first post.
Download the Wear Stitch tool here, and unzip the zip. It is an open source Python script that is available on GitHub.
Steps:
On the computer, open a command window and change to the directory where you saved the wear_screenshot_stitch script.
If you haven't done it yet, install the Pillow library in Python with the following command
Code:
pip install pillow
Then enter the following command to connect to the watch. It then accepts a message on the watch that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect IP_of_watch:5555
Now to run the script and be able to make long snapshots, enter the following command:
Code:
python ./wear_screenshot_stitch.py --round
Here you have more info to modify the command parameters. If everything went well, the script will start taking screenshots while scrolling the watch screen. When it has a few screenshots ready, it joins them all into a final image which is an long image. The process may take a few minutes.
Conclusions on the current state of the Wear OS catalog.
For some time now, on the Reddit forum there has been uploaded a spreadsheet where all the models (I think) of watches with Wear Os that have been launched on the market since its inception are recorded (and have been recorded). Click here to see it. If it is true that some information is missing, but it gives you a clear picture of how Wear OS has been doing since it launched in 2014. Now that it looks like Wear OS is going to turn around in a few months thanks to its partnership with Samsung I've been taking a look at this log and have come to some quick conclusions. Does anyone draw any interesting conclusions from this database?.
Since June 2014 some 125 models of watches have been released.
There are 25 brands that are currently launching or have launched watches with Wear OS. These can be structured into 3 groups:
- Technology companies such as Mobvoi, Huawei, OPPO and Xiaomi.
- Watch manufacturers such as Fossil, Misfit, Skagen, Casio, Polar and Suunto.
- Fashion brands such as Diesel and Emporio Armani​.
Fossil has released 17 models with Wear OS, the last one launched in January 2021, Fossil Gen 5. The watch brands Skagen and Misfit also belong to Fossil, and Fossil also manufactures under license for fashion brands such as Diesel, Emporio Armani, Puma, Michael Korps, Kate Spade NY and Tory Burch so the Fossil group would currently be the manufacturer of 40% of the models of watches with Wear OS that exist in the market.
The first watch with Wear OS (Android Wear at the time) was LG G Watch model launched in June 2014, and the first watch with Android Wear 2.0 was LG Watch Sport, launched in February 2017. I don't think this trend will continue, it looks like the first watch with Wear 3.0 will be a Samsung.
Interestingly, Samsung launched in June 2014 a watch with Wear OS, Samsung Gear Live, along with LG G Watch, as a presentation to the world of Android Wear at Google I/O 2014 and never again. It focused on its own operating system, Tizen.
The vast majority of Wear OS watches have been manufactured with round dial, only a few models such as the Xiaomi Mi Watch and OPPO Watch have been manufactured with a square dial, they are also among the few that carry a custom layer of Wear OS, MIUI and ColorOS respectively.
Only 13 watches allow to activate eSIM or NanoSIM and thus have autonomy with respect to the phone to receive internet signal. Some of them are Fossil Gen 5, OPPO Watch 2, Xiaomi Mi Watch and Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 3.
Only 3 watches have the Qualcomm SnapDragon Wear 4100 processor: Ticwatch Pro 3, Ticwatch E3 and Oppo Watch 2 (last 2 aren't visible in the spreadsheet, they have been launched recently). The most powerful on the market for Wear OS for now, actually the current watch catalog is divided between Snapdragon 2100 and 3100. Interestingly, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 will have an Exynos W920 processor, which seems to improve the efficiency of Snapdragon 4100.
If I had to choose 1 or 2 of the most representative watches (in my opinion) by each of the top brands it would be:
- Mobvoi: Ticwatch Pro, Ticwatch Pro 3.
- Fossil: Fossil Sport, Fossil Gen 5
- Skagen: Skagen Falster 2, Skagen Falster 3
- Misfit: Misfit Vapor 2
- Suunto: Suunto 7
- Polar: Polar M600
- Casio: Casio Pro Trek
- Xiaomi: Xiaomi Mi Watch
- Oppo: Oppo Watch
- Huawei: Huawei Watch 2
​What is the best app for running, cycling and hiking routes?
Ghostracer is the best app currently available on Wear OS to monitor your running or cycling (also trekking or hiking) workouts. I consider that it is currently way ahead of other apps for Wear OS maintained by big sports brands like Nike Run Club, Adidas Running o Strava. These apps and others designed for hiking (which I will talk about later) such as Locus Map , Oruxmaps , komoot o Outdooractive have fantastic versions on Android, but their Wear OS versions suck, they barely get the attention of these companies. Ghostracer is developed by someone who uses Wear OS watches. and it shows, gives the feeling of running all at once with a better sports watch. The app is developed by an active British Wear OS watch user who updates it frequently. The app is not new, in fact, it was released for Wear OS a few years ago, in 2014, so it is very refined.
Personally, to an app for running, cycling or hiking with the watch I ask at least three conditions, that is, that it is autonomous from the phone, that it supports offline maps and that it can follow routes with GPX files. Ghostracer meets these and more:
It is optimized for use from the phone, and from the watch, even standalone from the phone. Using the application from the watch does not require a GPS signal from the phone, nor does it require carrying the phone with you or having an Internet connection.
You can download offline maps from MapBox Maps, both on your phone and on your watch (Premium version only).
Allows you to view/track routes on the map (even offline).
You can navigate with maps from Google Maps or Mapbox.
You can add GPX files from your phone to follow the marked route also from the watch on the map.
The information displayed on the watch screen (fully customizable) is clearly visible when you train. Up to 6 fields of information can be displayed per screen. Provides a lot of training data, more than 40 parameters that you can view in real time.
Allows you to automatically upload your workouts to Strava, SmashRun or RunKeeper.
Allows you to export your workouts in GPX or TCX format.
You can compete against virtual opponents (Ghosts) through Strava segments or GPX files.
Compatible with Bluetooth and ANT+ accessories such as speed, heart rate, cadence and power sensors. It is also compatible with the Wahoo RFLKT Bike GPS.
Ghostracer has a free version, which is fully functional and another premium version, which I recommend, as it has a one-time payment of €3.49, but it activates in the free version, 3 very interesting features
Allows you to download offline maps from Mapbox Maps to create a truly offline experience both on the phone and on the watch, for me the most essential feature of these 3, which just for that alone already deserves to buy the premium version. If you really use the app in places where there is always internet, the free version is enough.
Allows you to enable unlimited ghosts per activity (the free version only allows two ghosts).
Allows you to add more screens on the watch (the free version only allows 3 screens).
I. Installation and setup.
Install Ghostracer from the Play Store on your Android phone and Wear OS watch.
Make sure the phone is paired to the watch via Bluetooth.
On the watch, open the app and grant location and sensor permissions. Swipe to the right to enter the settings window:
Select standalone or paired mode, whether you want the training to be synchronized on the watch and on the phone at the same time, or not. If you choose standalone mode, the sensor settings are enabled.
You can choose the type of training (running or cycling). You can also download offline maps to the watch that must be previously downloaded to the phone.
In the display settings, select whether you want to keep the display on permanently or not. If you have a Ticwatch with the TFT display it gives compatibility problems, so I recommend selecting for these cases "Display always on" and then restart.
4. On the phone, open the app and grant location permissions. Go to settings (top right):​
Select the type of activity you want between running and cycling, if you select running it is also valid for hiking or trekking activities.
Fill in your personal data (age, maximum heart rate, etc).
If you have it, link your Strava, Smash Run or RunKeeper account, this way your workouts will be uploaded to your account.
In sensors option, you can connect for example your chest heart rate monitor.
In display option, you can customize the workout information display with your phone as you like.
In Map option select the type of map between Google Maps and Mapbox and the style (Satellite, offroad, Streets, etc). From here you can also download offline maps.
In Android Wear option, you can customize the watch screen with a multitude of options, for example the font size of the screen and force the use of the GPS of the watch. I recommend looking at this option carefully, and adapt it to your needs.
​II. Description of Ghostracer on the watch.​When you open the app on the watch, you will see several options by swiping from top to bottom:​
Main Screen: From this screen, you will be able to start/stop the training. You can also see the quality of the GPS signal (other apps just report and if there is GPS coverage or not).
Training information screen: Sliding screens from left to right you will be able to see in real time, distance run, race pace, heart rate and your position on the map. From here you can choose the parameters that best suit you among more than 40 alternatives.
Ghosts screen: From this screen you can choose the virtual opponent of your choice, such as a GPX file, a Strava segment or a custom interval. In order for you to select them, you must add them from the phone.
​III. How to use Ghostracer for hiking and trekking.​Until a while ago I used Viewranger as a hiking app on my watch, but shortly after it was bought by Outdooractive they deactivated the app. The truth is that there are not too many alternatives that are similar, however I consider Ghostracer and although it is not a specific app for hiking, it is the one that best meets my needs.​
A. ADD ROUTES TO THE WATCH AND FOLLOW THEM.​​Before following a route, you have to get it and add it to the app.​
Get the track of the route to follow, for example, from a Wikiloc route that you download. The track must be in GPX format (not KMZ). To download Wikiloc tracks from your phone in GPX format, log into Wikiloc from the browser and search for a wikiloc route, inside the web page click the green "Download" button, select the "file" tab and finally "download".
On the phone, start Ghostracer click on "+" at the top and then on "GPX file". Select the GPX file you have downloaded from Wikiloc and finally click on "Add Ghost".
On the watch, open the app and swipe to the "Ghosts" screen, click on the icon to update and select the GPX track.
The track is now displayed on the map, on the watch start the workout (not mandatory to follow the route, go to the workout info screen and swipe right until you see the map, this way you can follow the route on the watch (also simultaneously on the phone if you wanted to).
​B. CONSIDERATIONS WHEN FOLLOWING A ROUTE.​
What is a track? A track is a record of the itinerary where you have moved. Within the track it contains statistics such as length, speed and elevation.
You can see the location where you are on the map. View the route itinerary on the map, and zoom and pan the maps.
While following a route, you can start, pause or stop the activity.
When recording the route you can view live route statistics such as distance traveled, trip duration, altitude, total ascent, walking speed and heart rate.
When you finish following a route, go to the main screen and select "Stop".
Here is a video generated by the app developer explaining how to add offline maps to the watch.
IV. Alternatives to Ghostracer for hiking.​There are not really too many alternatives, and none of them meets all the conditions (offline maps, independent of the phone, follow GPX routes and free), however there are several interesting apps besides Ghostracer:​
GPS Navigation
Wristmap
Locus Map 4 Free
Oruxmaps GP
Standalone Wear Maps
I have omitted in the comparison Outdooractive and Komoot. In the case of Outdooractive you pay a monthly subscription which means that you would pay up to €60 per year! and in the case of Komoot you pay for having maps of regions (very few square kilometers in each region), if you make a bike route, and you leave that region, which is very easy, you will have to pay for another region. Each region has a cost (except the first one), which means that if you do long routes when you realize you have spent 30 or 40 euros in maps. As I don't like this business model, and I'm not willing to pay so much money, I haven't tested them and that's why they are not in the comparison, the others are because I have tested them personally.
From the comparison of this type of apps on Wear OS I think it can be extracted that:
If you just want to see your position on an offline map without depending on the phone, the most appropriate is Wristmap (Free) and GPS Navigation (paid).
If you want to see your position on an offline map without depending on the phone and also follow GPX routes, the most appropriate are Ghostracer (paid) and Standalone Wear Maps (paid).
V. What Ghostracer needs to improve.​Although Ghostracer is the one I like the most among the running and hiking apps for Wear OS, it's not perfect, especially for hiking (I know, the developer didn't create it for that). Although it is not essential (for me) I would ask for future updates that:
Enable a button to add Waypoints when I am recording the route or training.
Upload training logs to Google Fit.
That when I click on my location on the map it shows me the UTM coordinates of where I am.
When starting a route provide navigation instructions, i.e. 'at 10m turn left' and similar.
Fix bug on Ticwatch watches with TFT screen, probably there is some incompatibility with this type of screens. Ghostracer's display settings prevent the secondary display from being activated and it stays black, and you can only reboot to see the screen content again.
How to take photos/videos remotely on your phone with a Wear OS watch.
Among some uses for Wear OS watches is to "take photos" remotely. Wear OS watches do not have cameras, but they can act as a remote shutter to take a picture with your phone's camera and even a real-time viewer that what the phone's camera sees, that is, as long as they are paired via bluetooth phone and watch, that is, as long as the bluetooth signal reaches it.
I. USES:
What is this function for? Imagine you want to take a picture with you in it, you could place your phone on a tripod or other place, aim, then enter the frame with your companions watching it from the watch screen and press the shutter release of photos or videos from the watch. Another function would be that you can watch and monitor your baby or pet while you are in another room of your house; or watch in dark and hard to reach places like a car engine.
II. METHODS:
Currently, there are four ways to use Wear OS to turn your watch into a phone camera viewer.
If you own a Google Pixel or Samsung Galaxy S/Note phone (WearOS 3 only) you can control the camera from the watch without the need for third party apps by using Google's app, Google Camera (v6.1 or higher). The moment you open Google Camera on the phone, the watch will display a new card called "Remote". If you touch it, the screen of your watch will become a viewfinder of what you see through the phone's camera, from the watch you can also set a timer (self-timer) so that for example you have time to position yourself since you press the shutter release on the watch or switch from front to rear camera, or vice versa.
If you don't have a Google Pixel or a Samsung Galaxy S/Note, or want more control over the settings from the watch there are third-party apps that also show a preview of what the phone's camera sees on the watch and in addition, you can adjust from the watch itself the zoom, exposure, flash, switch between the main camera and selfie, take photos with timer (self-timer). You just need to launch the app from the watch and it will be able to take pictures even when your phone screen is off. Currently, there are several Android camera apps that can "talk" to Wear OS watches such as Wear Camera, Camera One, Wrist Camera, PixtoCam and Camera Remote Wear.
Owners of Galaxy Watch 4 watches along with any Samsung phone (does not work with other phones) have another method and that is through a camera app integrated into the watch. Just install (if you don't already have it installed) the Samsung Camera Controller app and that's it. The app like Google Camera or third-party apps has real-time viewer of what is seen by the phone camera, but has the disadvantage that the phone screen must be unlocked and turned on, otherwise it will not work.
All three of the above methods have a built-in viewfinder of what is seen by the phone's camera, and other sophisticated elements like adjusting zoom, flash exposure etc, but if you just want a method to use the watch as a simple remote shutter button for your favorite camera app via bluetooth use a app to automate tasks like Macrodroid. An explanation of this method is given below.
III. COMMON CONSIDERATIONS:
Regardless you use Google camera, or another third party app it is necessary for it to work to install the phone version on the phone, and the watch version on the watch and preferably from the Play Store the 2 versions.
To work properly you must disable the power saving feature for the app on the phone, so that it works in the background. This permission is needed because some phones cono Nokia, Huawei, OnePlus and Xiaomi "kill" this app completely when not in use.
This app needs at least these permissions to work properly: Camera permission, Storage permission (to save photos/videos on your phone) and Microphone permission (when recording a video).
Be it Gooogle Camera, or be it a third-party app, these are capable of taking photos and videos even when your phone's screen is off, this means you can go completely unnoticed while taking photos and videos.
The disadvantage of the third party apps of the second method is that it does not use your camera app to take the picture but only uses the APIs of the phone's camera so the settings you would have adjusted in the camera app (exposure, contrast, filters, flash, etc) are not taken into account. The photo will be taken with the factory default settings.
Live streaming works as long as you are in Bluetooth range.
A small preview of the final image appears on the watch screen, while the actual image will be stored on the phone.
If the preview has some lag in the image transmission, Restart the watch.
For Sony Xperia users, disable the STAMINA mode, if you want to take a picture with the screen off (Settings > Power management > STAMINA mode).
All third-party apps for these purposes that I know of (and that I list below) are either paid or with in-app purchases integrated within the free app (with limited features). All of them are currently working properly (at least in TWP3) and have been updated recently. The paid versions can be tried for free if a refund is requested within 48 hours of installation, and some of the ones with in-app purchases give you a trial period to try and buy later. The prices to receive the full versions are around 1€ to 3€ (in europe), so it is not a big outlay to have all the possible features they offer. Perhaps the most complete if you do not want to pay anything is Wrist Camera.
Paid: PixtoCam and Wear Camera
In-app purchases: Wrist Camera, Camera One and Camera Remote Wear
How to take photos/videos remotely on your phone with a Wear OS watch (only bluetooth shutter button).
In the previous section I explained three methods I know of for taking photos from a distance depending on the watch and phone you have. These three methods add in the watch a real time viewer of what is seen by the phone camera and other sophisticated elements like adjusting from the watch zoom, flash, exposure, etc, but if you just want a method to use the watch as a simple remote shutter button for your favorite camera app via bluetooth use a app to automate tasks like Macrodroid.
Macrodroid allows you to automate a myriad of tasks on any Android phone, it's a great app if you're looking to get the most out of your phone. The free version is limited to only 5 macros but it is a very easy to use application (unlike tasker for an initiated user). I use it among other things to activate the flashlight with a shake when I'm in the dark, when I go to work the phone is put on silent, on holidays from Monday to Friday turn off the alarm clock, when I enter the car plays music and runs the road navigator and radar detector. In addition Macrodroid is compatible with Wear OS and you can press on the watch to take a picture or record a video from the phone remotely. To get the latter follow the steps below:
Make sure the watch is connected to the phone.
On the phone, install Macrodroid. You will need to accept different permissions for it to work properly.
On the watch, install Macrodroid.
Now from the phone app click "Add macro".
At the top enter a name for the macro, for example "Take photo".
Under Triggers, press "+" and select "Android Wear" under Connectivity and then select the appropriate icon.
Under Actions, press "+" and select "UI Interaction" under Device Actions. Then select "click", then "Identify app". Next open the camera, and before pressing the camera shutter, click on the UI interaction notification.
Save the macro and open Macrodroid on the watch. You will see the macro you have created there, now just click on it and if everything went well it will take the picture.
This would be a basic macro setup for taking a photo from your favorite phone camera app. A more advanced macro would be the capture macro.
Your explanation of what the macro does would be this:
Once you press the button from the watch, if the camera app is not open it will open it, once open and if you press the watch button again, it informs you to position yourself for the photo and will start a 3 second timer, finally it will take the photo by tapping on the phone shutter button for you.
CONSIDERATIONS IN MACRODROID METHOD:
Unlike third-party apps this method takes photos from your camera app with the settings you have defined.
All macros containing the "Android Wear" trigger are displayed in the Macrodroid app on the watch.
If you have video mode selected in the camera when you run the macro, it will record video instead of taking photos.
To work properly Macrodroid you must disable the power saving feature for the app on the phone, so that it works in the background. This permission is needed because some phones such as Nokia, Huawei, OnePlus and Xiaomi "kill" this app completely when not in use.
What is known about water protection on Ticwatch Pro 3 and Ticwatch E3.
I. What does Mobvoi say?
That it has IP68 resistance and is suitable for swimming in pools. Having IP68 resistance implies that it is protected against dust (no dust would enter under any circumstances) and against water (it can be fully and continuously submerged to a depth and for the maximum time determined by the manufacturer). When Mobvoi's support team has been asked how long the watch can be in the water, they have replied that it has no time limit for swimming in a freshwater pool. They have also expanded on the information about use in activities where it is in contact with water: It can be used for swimming, handwashing (exposure of the watch to soap should be minimized), sweating or when it rains. Avoid placing it under hot water, soap, detergent and seawater. In addition, they mean that it is not suitable for showering, diving, water-skiing and activities in deep water and/or high speed water movement (waves, waterfalls, high pressure water guns...).​​​
​So, and as far as water protection is concerned, you can submerge it (i.e. you can wear it swimming in a freshwater pool) but it is not protected against short range high pressure, high temperature jets, e.g. when showering, as water could enter the internal components if it is receiving jets of water directly. When swimming in a pool it clearly specifies swimming, that implies that it would not be protected when diving in a freshwater pool beyond the depth that the watch would be when swimming, i.e. less than one meter deep. Among the 100 sports modalities available in TicExercise app, the only aquatic modality available is swimming.​
II. What about Ticwatch Pro 3 Ultra?
This model, in addition to having IP68 resistance and is suitable for swimming in a pool, has MIL-STD-810G military certification. This means that according to performance tests created by the U.S. Department of Defense, the watch can also withstand harsh environmental conditions. Mobvoi has not reported what tests it has passed, therefore, I consider it to be more of a marketing move than actually providing ruggedness to the watch. It should be known that it is sufficient to pass only one of the 29 tests to obtain MIL-STD-810 certification, so it could for example have passed the test on sudden temperature changes, but not have passed the test on resistance to rain, to give an example.​
III. What are the adverse effects if water gets into the watch?
The least protected parts that prevent water from entering the watch are the microphone hole on the right side, the speaker holes on the left side and above all the barometric sensor hole at the bottom of the watch. It seems that the hole is protected by a felt membrane, which can retain water, but not for a long time and not under a lot of pressure. There is practically no possibility of water entering through the joint that joins the body with the back cover where the sensors are, since it has an adhesive sealant around the circumference.​​The case that if water enters very probably the internal components will be affected, probably condensers oxidize and start doing strange things like:​
Flashing battery indicator on the FSTN display even though the watch is fully charged.
Battery discharging very fast
Heart rate and oxygen sensors randomly stop working.
Starts vibrating non-stop.
It constantly decalibrates, and you have to continually unlock it when the screen turns off.
IV. What possible solutions are there?
I think that if the sensors are failing because water has reached the internal components I think there is practically no solution, other than replacement, however, here are some solutions that have been described and have worked for some users:​
Drain the speaker hole on the right side, to do this press and hold the bottom button, then from the menu select "Speaker Drain", Repeat 2-3 times, you might see some water droplets coming out of the speaker holes.
Enter Ship Mode, to do this you must enter bootloader mode by simultaneously holding down the 2 buttons until you feel a vibration, about 8 seconds and it will reboot into that mode. Once inside, select "Enter Ship Mode" with the lower button and accept with the upper button. "Ship mode" is a low power state that prolongs battery life and protects the battery when there are extended periods of non-use. It seems to be used by the manufacturer in the stage prior to sale and shipment to the end user. You exit this state by pressing and holding the top button. Eventually it will restart.
Another possible solution is to drain the battery completely and then recharge it. This may cause the sensors to start working again.
Most of the time, only the back cover of the watch is affected, as this is where the heart rate sensor and barometric sensor are located. A solution would be to replace the back cover, however, no replacement parts are being sold for Ticwatch (at most the replacement battery), you could look in the second hand market for the same broken model that is sold for replacement parts, however, it is always a risk as it could also be damaged the replacement back cover.
If you can still take advantage of the warranty period, and you have purchase invoice, you could request replacement to Mobvoi directly. I have read from users who generated a request, if they accept the return, Mobvoi provides you with an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) label, you send it in, and a few days later they will replace the watch. It is important to say when generating the return request that you only swam in a pool, that you did not shower with it.
I expand information with the following video, it disassembles Ticwatch Pro 4G/LTE model, but it is quite similar to TWP3 and you understand better where are the components of the captures of the previous post, from 2'27".
How to port Unity Game is Wear OS.
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bernarbernuli said:
Hello, I made a little program with tools for Wear OS, well, actually it is a simple batch that I coded and then converted to an executable file, I had not write code for MS-DOS for 25 years, I still remembered something.
As I commented in the previous post, in a few days it will be more difficult for the less experienced to install applications outside the play Store using adb command. I think it can be useful for everyone.
All-in-One tool for Windows, Wear OS Tools
What does it do?
It is an All-in-One tool for Windows and that makes it easy to do certain things with the watch, some of which I have told in the first post, such as:
- Send files as mp3 to the watch, or download files contained in the watch.
- Install applications
- Use the computer keyboard to write on the watch.
- Change the size of the screen
- Take screenshots of the watch screen, and send it directly to the computer.
Requirements
- Windows O.S
- Have ADB drivers installed. Here is link to download.
- Connect the watch and the phone to the same Wi-Fi network.
- Activate in the watch the debugging through Wifi. Follow the steps in the section "Prepare clock for advanced functions" in the first post.
Where to download?
Wear OS Tools v1.0
Evidently it is only for Windows. It is a first version, so I suppose there will be something to polish, let me know.
Another thing, I have passed it through VirusTotal and it has given me false positive in some of the 60 antivirus that happens, fortunately of the unknown ones, I do not know why this happens. I was reading about it, I think it is because of the type of compression that is done when passing from bat to exe and some rare antivirus detects it as a trojan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesnt work for me. Appear this
"This program was made with an Unlicensed compiler.
Please buy the PRO version to distribute your EXE"

All-in-One tool for Windows. Wear OS Tools v3.1
It's a tool for use with any Wear OS watch. I am releasing today an improved and optimized version with several new features.
What does it do?
It is an All-in-One tool for Windows that makes it easy to do certain things with the watch, such as:​
Send files to the watch such as MP3s, images, PDFs, or download files contained in the watch.
Install applications (Sideload).
Uninstall apps of watch.
Change ringtone, notification sound and alarm sound of the watch. [new]
Use the computer keyboard to type on the watch.
Change screen density
Change font size. [new]
Force pairing the watch with Bluetooth without resetting to factory defaults.
Take screenshots of the watch screen, and send them directly to the PC (Screenshot).
Record the watch screen, and send it directly to the PC in MP4 format (Screen record).
Extract all the apps you have installed on the watch and mass restore them when necessary (Backup/Restore).
View watch information such as serial number, build version, Android version, resolution, battery status...
Changelog:
v1.0 (Feb 13, 2021) - Initial version
v1.1 (Feb 21, 2021) - Compiled again with Pro version of the EXE converter.
v2.0 (May 19, 2022) - Added new features (backup and restore tool, screen recorder and watch information)
v3.0 (Aug 27, 2022) - Added new functions (Change font size, change watch sounds), debugged code, optimized menus
v3.1 (Aug 30, 2022) - Fixed bug in option to change ringtones and sounds.
Requirements
Windows O.S.
Have the ADB drivers installed. Here is the link to download them. During installation, make sure to enable the "Add to System Path Environment" option.
Connect the watch and the phone to the same Wi-Fi network.
Enable debugging over Wi-Fi on the watch. On the watch, go to Settings > system > About and tap "Build Number" several times until you see a message that says "you are now a developer". Then go to Settings > developer options and enable "ADB debugging" and "Debugging over Wi-Fi".
Considerations
Actually, it is a simple batch script file that I coded and then converted to an executable file,
I have passed it through VirusTotal, and it has given me false positive in some 60 antivirus that there are, fortunately they are unknown antivirus, I do not know why this happens. I was reading about it, I believe that it is for the type of compression that is made when going from bat to EXE and some rare antivirus detects it as Trojan.
The tool is available in English (EN) and Spanish (ES).
To find out the IP address of the watch, just go to "Debugging over Wi-Fi" in Settings > developer options. Under that option, you will see the IP. You can also see it in Settings > Connectivity > Wi-Fi > "Your Wi-Fi network".
You can connect the watch by USB cable or by Wi-Fi network.
Wear OS watches are a bit unstable to stay connected to the Wi-Fi network especially if it is connected by Bluetooth with the phone, to make sure it connects smoothly when using the tool enable the "Enable Wi-Fi automatically when charging" option in Settings > developer options, and plug the watch to the charger.
When you have finished, turn off "ADB debugging" on the watch, otherwise it will drain your watch battery...
Where to download?
Wear OS Tool v3.1​
Method
Download and unzip in a folder the file from the "Where to download" section.
Make sure you meet all the points in the "requirements" section.
Locate the IP address of the watch as explained in the "considerations" section.
Run Wear OS Tools and enter the IP address.
Choose a function to run and follow the instructions on the screen.
Version Information
Status: Stable
Current Version: v3.1
Release Date: 13/02/2021
Last Update Date: 30/08/2022
Easter egg in Wear OS
There is a hidden Google app, an Easter egg, inside Wear OS, it has been named "Wear OS drum machine". To get to the easter egg you have to do the following:
1. Open the flashlight app, and turn flashlight off.
2. Tap twice quickly in the center of the screen, and on the second tap and hold the screen. Instead of lighting up with white, the screen should now show a few seconds of different flashing colors (if you lift your finger it won't work) and a circle grid will appear next, which is a music sequencer.
A grid of dots is displayed allowing marking with bass drum, snare, bell and cymbal hits, just mark the different hits in the sequence to create complete drum rhythms. It should be noted that the beat is fixed at 135 BPM and cannot be changed.
Bass Drum: blue circles
Snare drum: turquoise circles
Bell: purple circles
Cymbals: Red circles
How to pair watch with another smartphone / Tablet without factory reset.
If you've ever wanted to pair your watch with a new smartphone or tablet, or simply upgraded your phone to a new Custom ROM, you've probably noticed that Google doesn't make it easy to pair again. The official Wear OS way requires unpairing the watch from the WearOS App and then resetting it to factory settings (which means deleting all data and apps installed on the watch), and from there you can see the new device to pair (more info on this, here), however, there is a simple way to avoid resetting the watch to zero settings.
1. If you have not already done so, follow the steps in the section "Prepare watch for advanced functions".
2. On the computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type "cmd" in the taskbar.
3. Then enter the following command to connect to the clock. Accept then a message on the clock that allows the computer to connect. The watch IP is obtained in the Wi-Fi settings. Click on your Wi-Fi network.
Code:
adb connect IP_of_watch:5555
4. Now, enter this command to clear data from Google services. On reboot it will automatically re-sync your personal data with the servers, the only thing I have detected that you have to configure manually is Google Pay (I guess for security issues), but come on, it's a 1 minute process.
Code:
adb shell pm clear com.google.android.gms
adb reboot
5. Once rebooted, connect the phone again with the first command and enter the second command where the Bluetooth of the watch is requested to be discoverable, the phone can then find the watch and pair it.
Code:
adb connect IP_of_watch:5555
adb shell am start -a android.bluetooth.adapter.action.REQUEST_DISCOVERABLE
Alternative:
If your watch is rooted, you can avoid yourself the steps described above by installing Reset Wear Client app on the phone (phone does not need to be rooted), i.e. delete the Google services data and start a new pairing.
How to stay informed about Wear OS.
To be informed about Wear OS and the different Wear OS watches there are certain known media where they publish first hand news and leaks, which I spread here:
9to5Google.com - I think it's my favorite, a lot of news and leaks are published here first.​​AndroidAuthority.com​​AndroidPolice.com​​AndroidCentral.com​​DroidLife.com​​SamMobile - Here they first publish everything related to Samsung watches.​​XDA-Developers.com - Very interesting, it also publishes firsts about Wear OS.​​Google Help Community - Wear OS - Google makes official announcements from here.​​The Keyword Blog - Wear OS - Official Google Blog​​
How to solve doubts about Wear OS.
Of course in this forum, and specifically in this thread you can solve any doubt about Wear OS, but there are more places to solve questions.
Forums:
XDA-Developers.com (Wear OS Development and Hacking) - This forum, fantastic but not very active.​​reddit.com - Wear OS - The U.S. forum is undoubtedly the most active one.​​Google Help Community - Wear OS - Wear OS Official Forum​​mobvoi.com - Ticwatch Official Forum​​
Telegram Groups:
TicWatch Pro 3 GPS LTE and TicWatchGTH - Group with more than 150 members, as any group of this type is chaotic, good place to ask questions and receive a quick answer, although not always satisfactory, actually.​
Facebook Groups:
Wear OS - Wear OS public group. More than 1200 members.​​The Official Mobvoi TicWatch and earphones Group - Private group. Mobvoi makes its official announcements and firmware update notifications here first. More than 6000 members.​​Ticwatch Pro Community - Public group on Ticwatch with more than 1500 members.​
Twitter:
Wear OS by Google - Wear OS official twitter account.​
How to Record the watch screen (ScreenCast)
In Wear OS it is possible to record in video everything that happens on the watch screen, without installing third-party applications, you just need to connect the watch via Wifi to a PC and use the command "screenrecord" of adb. It is a very useful tool to show in a clear way, for example an error that is occurring on your watch, instead of a simple screenshot.
If you haven't done it yet, follow the steps in the "Prepare watch for advanced features" section of the first post (Install ADB tools on the PC and enable debugging via WIFI in developer options on the watch).
On the computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type "cmd" in the start bar.
Then enter the following command to connect to the watch. Then accept a message on the watch that allows the computer to connect.
Code:
adb connect Watch_IP:5555
Execute the following command, it will start recording in video everything displayed on the watch screen. To stop recording press Control + C keys from the command line. The resulting video is saved in the watch itself in a raw format file, i.e. unprocessed and therefore with a very large size depending on the seconds you have recorded.
Code:
adb shell screenrecord --size 454x454 --o raw-frames /sdcard/screencast.raw
Once you have captured the video, you must move it to your PC for further processing with the following commands. The first one to copy the raw video to the PC and the second command to remove it from the internal memory of the watch.
Code:
adb pull /sdcard/screencast.raw
adb shell rm -f /sdcard/screencast.raw
Finally, you need to convert the raw video file that is in raw format into a video that most video players can understand, for that type the following command to convert the raw file to mp4 with the help of the ffmpeg tool.
Code:
ffmpeg -f rawvideo -vcodec rawvideo -s 454x454 -nostats -loglevel 0 -pix_fmt rgb24 -r 10 -i screencast.raw -an -c:v libx264 -pix_fmt yuv420p screencast.mp4
Considerations:
I have generated a batch file that facilitates the process of recording the screen, copying the RAW file to the PC and converting it to MP4 format for those who want to get complicated with ADB commands. The batch file is only valid for Windows environment. You can download it from here, unzip the files in a folder, along with the BAT file is included ADB Tools and ffmpeg that are necessary for the tool to work.
If you want to record when and where you are tapping the screen during a screencast you have to enable "Show taps" in Settings > Developer Options. This option will circle the areas you are tapping with your finger on the screen, which is very handy for screencasts.
Video is recorded without sound.
The video is recorded on the watch in raw format, once on the PC the raw file can be converted to mp4. The raw files allow to obtain an image without any compression, as a consequence, the size of the .RAW files is very large, for example, 3 minutes of recording will occupy in raw format almost 1 Gigabyte (when converted to mp4 it will occupy only 2 Megabytes).
When recording, it continues until you press Ctrl + C or in theory until the time limit is reached (3 minutes) and then it would stop automatically, however I have observed that it continues recording beyond 3 minutes (even if you set it in the parameters of the command "adb shell screenrecord"), I guess the limit is in the free space in the storage memory, which taking into account the size of the raw files will occupy very fast.
Another alternative to make recordings of the watch screen, is from the phone with Bugjaeger app (instead of the PC) however it is an option limited to the paid version of the app.
Some time ago, it was leaked that Google is going to include the option to record watch screen in the Wear OS app on the phone, but it is not yet available.
Wear OS watch accessories
There are few types of accessories for watches, these are reduced to protective items (screen protector and case cover), charging items (cables and charging docks) and straps.
Screen protector: Consists of protecting watchface by resisting scratches and accidental bumps. These protectors can also prevent fingerprints or grease or dust stains on the dial. The ones that offer the best protection are those of tempered glass with 9H hardness.
Case cover: This is a flexible TPU protective case to protect the bezel and case of the watch from scratches and possible shocks.
Charger cable: Unlike android smartphones where the cable is the same for all models (microusb or USB type C) the same does not happen in smartwatches where each model has its own connector on the charging cable, even within each brand, for example, the Ticwatch Pro charging cable does not serve to charge the Ticwatch Pro 3.
Dock (charging base): It is basically a charging cable with a support where the watch is supported. They usually have a minimalist design that will look good on any desk or nightstand.
Strap: Replacing the strap is to give a complete facelift to the watch, a good combination can give a touch of extra style to your watch, in the market there is a lot of variety because most of the models allow to replace the strap with another as long as they have the same width. Below I put a table with the width that corresponds to each model of the most notable watches, for example, Ticwatch Pro 3 supports 22mm straps. Within the types of strap, by the material with which they have been manufactured you can find leather straps, imitation leather, stainless steel, titanium, platinum, silicone, resin, rubber, textile, nylon and ceramic.
Where and how to search for a watch accessory?
The Asian market such as AliExpress is the one where you can find the widest variety of accessories with the best price, on Amazon you will also find accessories but as a general rule although you will receive the product before they are more expensive.​​To search for a particular accessory and narrow the search to the maximum, just type in the search box of AliExpress, Amazon or even Google accessory name + watch model. In the case of straps you only have to write the width of the strap, you can even include the type of strap material to narrow down much more what you are looking for.​
Screen Protector : Screen Protector Fossil Gen 5
Case Protector: case Protector Ticwatch Pro
Charging Cable: Charging Cable Xiaomi Mi Watch
Charging Dock: Charging dock Ticwatch Pro 3
Strap: 22 mm strap watch
Accessories for Ticwatch Pro 3
​Screen Protector --> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...exp_id=c43d3fd5-4faf-45f6-ad60-78d5a3543b5c-0​​Case Protector --> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...exp_id=38c5e981-ce88-4786-8a99-5873ff98db3b-1​​Charging Dock --> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...exp_id=07669828-db64-4aa2-96c8-aa80200b4567-2​​Charging Cable --> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...exp_id=53d63e1c-b909-4345-93ea-26e2ccbb0532-1​​Strap 22 mm --> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/400...xp_id=f975d777-8fb1-4067-8ab9-921ef29176bb-19​
Bonus Track. How to make a homemade charging and data cable for Ticwatch Pro 3
The official TW3 charger cable unusually only charges (it has 2 pins that only serve to charge the watch), it does not sync data unlike the Ticwatch Pro, Ticwatch S or Ticwatch E that its official charger cable has 4 pins (2 for charging and 2 for data transfer). For most users this will never become a problem, since sending music and files to the watch can be done without problems via Wi-Fi, however, there is something that can ONLY be done via USB cable, and that is to unlock the bootloader (previous step needed to root). Currently the way to root has not been discovered, although there are already users researching a way to get it and when you get the way a data cable will be required. Curiously there is still no such cable for sale for the TW3 that I know of, not even on AliExpress.​​There are users who have managed to make a homemade cable using the Ticwatch S/E cable as a base. Here is the explanation provided by @Gitanitos for those who want to try:​​
Purchase a Ticwatch S/E charger cable, you can get it on Amazon or Aliexpress without any difficulty, here a link to purchase.
Open the Ticwatch S/E charger cable housing by cutting the plastic around the pogo pins, this way you will lower the profile of the housing so that the pins "reach" the watch.
Remove the magnets that are glued to the case and place them on the reverse side. This is because they do not match the polarity of those of the TW3 clock and if you do not change them you will not be able to place the clock because the reverse attraction will prevent you from placing it on top of the pins.
Bonus Track 2. How to 3D print a charging dock.
There are downloadable templates on the internet to print the docking station for the watch (in my case I found a few for my watch, Ticwatch Pro 3). I found them even nicer than the ones on the market. They are basically the casings with just the right size to place the serial cable of the watch. Basically it would be to download the template file and go to a 3D printing store (if you don't have a printer, of course). It cost me 10 €.
Here are links to some templates for the Ticwatch Pro 3:
Ticwatch Pro 3 stand with wider base by groan
Mobvoi TicWatch 3 Stand by vetruvet October 08, 2020 This is a remix from https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4618850 This is the exact same model but I widened the base. Does not tip as easily now.
www.thingiverse.com
Mobvoi TicWatch 3 Stand by vetruvet
Stand for Mobvoi TicWatch 3. Shape matches back of watch to provide support so it's not just hanging on the magnetic charger. Prints on its side, supports needed for cutout for charger. Charger cutout has hole in the back so it's easier to get it out once it's seated in there. Clips on the back...
www.thingiverse.com
Ticwatch pro 3 charging stand by stefanhar
Charging stand designed for Ticwatch Pro 3 GPS. Carger slides into stand from the bottom up to a stop at the top and is held in place by a friction fit. Watch holder has a cut out for sensors on the back of the watch. The cable of the charging plug is designed to hold the plug in place, this is...
www.thingiverse.com
For other watches (Missfit, xiaomi, Oppo...) you can use the search engine thingiverse.com , cults3d.com y pinshape.com, you will surely find the template for each watch model.
Compilation of all the games adapted to Wear OS
A reddit user compiled all the games for Wear OS that exist to date.​​
https://www.reddit.com/r/WearOS/comments/qkjfqy
​​In several lists on the net they recommend these games among all those for Wear OS. Because of the obvious discomfort of playing on such a small screen, I personally don't play any of them on the watch, but here they are, for the knowledge of those who are interested.​​2048​Infinity Loop​PetQuest Virtual Pet​Combat Wear ​Hex - Anxiety Relief​Wear Maze​Snake for Wear​General Knowledge Quiz​Bubble Shootix​Bugdroid Land​Math it!​Sookie Says ​​
How to scale the interface of your apps in Wear OS (WearModder)
Hello, I find it a very interesting project and would like to give visibility to the tutorial in this post, the script works well with current APKs although of course improvable, I encourage whoever has knowledge to develop a new update of the script.
There are apps installed on Wear OS (especially those that come from Android) that have a giant interface and do not adapt well to the small size of the watch screen, which prevents to reach certain options from the watch. The guide allows you to change the density of a given app without affecting the density of the rest of the apps on the watch, WearModder was developed by user @moneytoo. Unfortunately, the tool has not been updated for at least 2 years, however the WearModder source code is available here (in java) for those who have knowledge and want to improve it, also another developer has ported the tool to Python, also available from this other link.
Both the script and the steps to use it are simple, so anyone can try it with their favorite applications.
What does WearModder do?​The WearModder tool is a small script that modifies the density of an APK to fit the size of the watch. The script automatically does the following:
Replaces all sizes (dip/sp in layouts, dimens, etc.).
Sets centered alignment of the bottom tab layout
Sets custom height for action bar (in ActionBarSize element)
Set horizontal margin for toolbar (home screen only)
Prerequisites:​
Download and install the Java 8 tool (JRE 1.8) from here.
Download APKTool from here (tool for decompiling APK files)
Download WearModder from here in java or from here in Python (tool to modify the density of APK files).
If you use WearModder for Python, download and install Python from here.
The Guide. How to change the density of an app or game on Wear OS​
Rename Apktool file you downloaded to "apktool.jar" (no version) and Wearmodder file you downloaded to "wearmodder.jar" (no version).
Place in the same folder apktool.jar file, Wearmodder.jar file and APK file you want to modify its density.
Now open a command line in that folder and enter the following to decompile APK file.
Code:
Java -jar apktool.jar d apk_name.apk
Once decompiled, enter the following to modify apk resources:
Code:
- With Java version: java -jar WearModder.jar apk_name/res
- With Python version: python ./wearmodder.py ./apk_name/res
According to the author of the guide additional manual adjustments must be made, however he does not give any guidelines nor has he developed this step, I suppose it is not always necessary.
Build APK file again. The modified APK file will be saved in "/apk_name/dist/" folder.
Code:
java -jar apktool.jar b apk_name
Enter the following commands to sign it. It will ask you for a new password and some other information.
Code:
keytool -genkey -v -keystore my-key.keystore -alias alias_name -keyalg RSA -keysize 2048 -validity 10000
jarsigner -verbose -sigalg SHA1withRSA -digestalg SHA1 -keystore my-key.keystore apk_name/dist/apk_name.apk alias_name
Considerations:​
Make sure you have the environment variable set for Java so that Java can be run from any folder, the same for Python if you are going to use the Python version of WearModder. Here is a guide to add the environment variable for python and here for Java.
In step 3, 4, 6 and 7 replace in the command "apk_name" with the name of APK file to be modified.
In step 7 replace "my-key" and "alias_name" with the name of the password and alias storage you want.
If you have problems using WearModder in Java, you can use WearModder ported to Python. When I tested with Seven app (apk of the capture)), java version modified the APK but when I built the APK again something was wrong, with the Python version I modified and built with ApkTool the app perfectly.
Do not run WearModder more than once on the same file that you have already altered.
How to make a homemade charging and data cable for Ticwatch Pro 3 (easiest method)
The official charger cable of TWP3 unusually only charges (it has 2 pins that only serve to charge the watch), it does not synchronize data unlike the Ticwatch Pro, Ticwatch S or Ticwatch E that its official charger cable has 4 pins (2 for charging and 2 for data transfer). For most users this will never be a problem, since sending music and files to the watch can be done without problems via Wi-Fi, however, there is something that can ONLY be done through the USB cable, and that is to unlock the bootloader (previous step needed to root). Currently, it has already been discovered how to root and flash Custom ROMs, and for them a data cable is absolutely necessary. Curiously, there is still no such cable for sale for TWP3, as far as I know, not even on AliExpress.
There are users who have managed to make a homemade cable using the Ticwatch Pro charger cable as a base. Here goes the solution provided by @yesimxev from Xda-Developers forum for those who want to try, this method is much simpler than the previous one since it is not necessary to cut the profile of the case or change the polarity of the magnets.
Prerequisites:
USB charger housing for TIcwatch Pro 3. 3D print the housing model from this link at a local 3D printing store. To have the best finish, pay attention to the suggestions of material and qualities that they tell you in the store, as a reference I ordered the case with the following material and quality, it cost me about €9:
- Material: PLA 3D850​- Quality: High​- Filling: 20%.​
Charger for Ticwatch Pro, buy it at this link on AliExpress (€4 approx.). From this charger you will take advantage of the plate (which comes with the 4 pins) and the screws for fastening the plate.
2 5 mm round magnets, or the 2 rectangular magnets from the Ticwatch Pro charger.
Steps:
On the Ticwatch Pro charger, lift with a cutter or a knife the rubber ring that surrounds the back of the charger, underneath are 4 screws that you will have to unscrew.
Unscrew the 2 screws on the plate and carefully remove the plate from the housing.
Place the board in the case you have printed, and use the 2 screws you used in the previous step to fix the board in the case, to prevent the pins from sliding down when you place the watch on top of it.
Glue the 2 magnets on both sides of the board, if you have round magnets, insert them into the round holes on the sides of the board.
Screw on the back cover (4 screws) and you are done.
Considerations:
The pins should protrude through the holes in the case just enough to touch the charging area of the watch.
TUSITA TWP charger sold on Amazon is not suitable for this DIY, the plate is different and does not fit the case.
.
Step 1 and 2
.
Step 3 and 4​
How to customize ringtones, notifications and Alarms sounds in Wear OS
In Wear OS 2 watches settings options, there is NO OPTION to change the default alarm and notification sounds, there is an option to change ringtone (but only from 11 internal ringtones of the watch).
On Galaxy Watch 4/5 you can change the ringtone and notification sound (but only between 10 internal sounds for ringtones and 10 sounds for notifications), I think you can't change alarm sound.
The thing is that I got bored with notification and alarm sounds, and I did some research, I found out the way to put any sound file in system sounds without root or anything similar, it's through ADB commands:
1. Get a sound you like for ringtone, notification or alarm sound, and save it to a folder on your computer.
2. If you have not done it yet, prepare watch for advanced functions:
​- On the watch, go to Settings > system > About and repeatedly tap "Build number" until You see a message that says 'You are now a developer'. Then go to Settings > developer options and enable 'ADB debugging' and 'Debugging over Wi-Fi '.​- On your computer, download and install the ADB tools, such as Tiny ADB & Fastboot.​
3. On the computer, open a command window, for this in Windows type "cmd" in the start bar, and go to the folder where the sound file is located with the following command.
CD sound_file_path
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4. Next make sure that both your watch and your cell phone are connected to the same Wi-Fi network, momentarily disable Bluetooth on your watch if Wi-Fi is not activated on the watch. Now go to Settings > Connectivity > Wi-Fi, click on the network you are connected to and write the IP you will see.
5. Then enter the following command to connect to the watch. Next, accept a message on the watch that allows the computer to connect to your watch.
adb connect Watch_IP::5555
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
6. Now you are going to send the sound file to the corresponding folder of the watch's SD Card, depending on whether it is for ringtones, notifications or alarms with one of the following commands.
adb push sound_file.ogg /sdcard/Ringtones/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
adb push sound_file.ogg /sdcard/Notifications/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
adb push sound_file.ogg /sdcard/Alarms/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
7. Enter the following command to refresh the watch sound storage with the new sound, alternatively you can also restart the watch (you will have to connect the watch again). Note to which folder you have sent the file (Ringtones, Notifications or Alarms).
adb shell am broadcast -a android.intent.action.MEDIA_SCANNER_SCAN_FILE -d file:///storage/emulated/0/Notifications/sound_file.ogg >nul
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
8. Next, list all the sounds in the SD Card of the watch with the following command, paying special attention to the ID of the sound.
adb shell content query --uri content://media/external/audio/media/ --projection _id:_display_name
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
9. Finally, type the following command to define the sound for ringtone, notification or alarms. Here you must type the corresponding ID.
For ringtones --> adb shell settings put system ringtone content://media/external/audio/media/ID
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For notifications --> adb shell settings put system notification_sound content://media/external/audio/media/ID
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For alarms --> adb shell settings put system alarm_alert content://media/external/audio/media/ID
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Considerations:​
As it is a bit confusing for those who do not have experience in ADB, I will make in the next few days a small tool for Windows to make it automatic.
In Ticwatch Pro 3, Wear OS default sound for alarms is Oxygen.ogg (ID 18) and for notifications is Tethys.ogg (ID 20). If you want to return to the default sounds, just put that ID in the command of point 9.
For all other watches, you can use the following command to display the IDs of all internal watch sounds.
adb shell content query --uri content://media/internal/audio/media/ --projection _id:_display_name
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have not fully confirmed this, but in addition to OGG sound files I believe MP3, WAV or AMR files are also supported.
WhatsApp, everything you can do on Wear OS
WhatsApp does not have an official version for Wear OS at the moment, however, there are still a few ways to use WhatsApp from the watch. Many of them are well known to everyone (especially since the notifications, of course), but I thought it would be interesting to gather all the ways I know.
​1. From the watch notifications:​From the notifications, you can interact in various ways with WhatsApp (as long as the watch is paired to an Android phone). Wear OS is pretty good at managing notifications, and in the case of WhatsApp notifications they work especially well. The truth is that all the basics can be done, and there are a few functions that can't, such as video calls or voice notes. It must also be said is that all the functions you can perform from the watch depend on someone having written you before:​
Read WhatsApp messages that the WhatsApp phone has received.
Mark a message as read.
View photos and stickers received by the phone's WhatsApp.
Reply to messages:
With predefined replies.
Manually, with the keyboard, or by dictating the message (voice to text).
With emojis, you will have to draw it to send the emoji you are looking for.
Receive notification of WhatsApp voice calls and accept them (for now, only in Wear OS 3).
2. From Google Assistant:
From the Google Assistant on the watch, you can send messages to a specific person with the following voice command:​
Code:
Send a WhatsApp to Susana, Let's meet at 3 o'clock.
Currently, this does not work properly on Wear OS 2, but it does work on Wear OS 3, i.e. Galaxy Watch 4/5 and future watches with Wear OS 3 will be able to take advantage of this feature.​
3. Using third-party apps (Companion):​These types of Apps are not full versions of WhatsApp, they are add-ons that modify and enhance Wear OS notification panel.​​a. Informer, with this app you can receive messages (and reply to them), receive photos, receive stickers, and more:​
Receive and view videos and GIFs (GW4 only).
Receive WhatsApp voice call notifications.
Receive and listen to voice messages (premium version only).
Accept WhatsApp calls and video calls (premium version only).
Unfortunately, receiving WhatsApp voice messages and calls is only available in the Premium subscription version (€0.99/month or €6.49/year). For it to work you must install the app on the phone and watch.​​b. Messages for Wear OS, is another third-party app, you can also view the photos and videos you receive via WhatsApp, as well as view hyperlinks, open links in a web browser or even open YouTube links. Although the app also has a premium version, all the functions for WhatsApp are available in the Free version. Like the Informer app, the phone version and the watch version must also be installed.​
4. Using third-party apps (WhatsApp Web multi-device):​This type of app takes advantage of the WhatsApp Web service. This feature, launched by WhatsApp in 2015 and updated in 2021, allows you to use your WhatsApp account on PC, Mac, Linux or also on Wear OS watches. The service can work independently of the phone (you can be away from the phone or even have it turned off). It is only necessary to link through a QR code the watch app with WhatsApp on the phone and ready, you can see in real time and synchronized messages, images and more on the watch.​​WhatsWatch, is currently the only functional app that is based on WhatsApp Web Multi-device, however, is paid (€3.59). With the app you can access all your conversations (and see all messages, photos and videos received, or listen to voice messages), also send text messages and voice messages. The interface is a bit ugly, but it is expected to be much more visual in future updates.​​I have not found more projects that are based on WhatsApp Web. There are projects that are based on this service, but not aimed at Wear OS, such as WhatsApp Web To Go. Taking into account that the official WhatsApp client is not Open Source and you can not create forks of WhatsApp for Android on Wear OS, I consider that the development of Apps that use the WhatsApp Web service in an app for Wear OS is the most interesting way to have WhatsApp almost complete on the watch.​
5. With WhatsApp app for Android in Wear OS:​Finally, there is a trick to install and use an official Android version of WhatsApp on the watch. This version is almost fully functional on the watch: you can send and receive messages, view full conversations, watch videos, listen to voice memos and send them, make WhatsApp calls; however, curiously it does not allow you to pick up WhatsApp calls you receive (the solution is to call back the contact who just called).​​Using an Android version on the watch has three (albeit salvageable) drawbacks:​
You cannot use the same phone number as the WhatsApp number on your phone. WhatsApp, for now, is not multi-device (unlike Telegram), this means that you cannot register WhatsApp on your phone and on your watch at the same time. The solution would be to hire a new phone number with a low cost phone operator that has no monthly fees (only calls and data expenses) and register WhatsApp from the watch with that number, in this way, you can use this WhatsApp client, if the watch also has 4G/LTE connectivity you can receive and send messages (and the rest of the features of WhatsApp for Android), for example, when you are away from the phone doing sports you could send urgent WhatsApp to what would be the "WhatsApp from the watch".
The WhatsApp screen is not optimized for Wear OS and there are parts that are not seen, it is logical, this app was not designed for such small screens. You can decrease the screen density with ADB commands: "adb shell wm density 240". To return to default density type "adb shell wm density reset".
You cannot start a conversation directly by opening the app on the watch, you must use a "bridge" app (step 5) or receive a message to be able to open WhatsApp.
The steps to follow to use the full version of WhatsApp are as follows:​
Download latest version of WhatsApp from APKMirror, you must download armeabi-v7a variant.
Install the APK file from the phone using Bugjaeger method, or from the PC via ADB commands.
On the watch, go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > App Permissions > WhatsApp and grant all permissions, also go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > App Notifications > Show All > WhatsApp and enable notifications.
Open the app and register your phone number (must be different from the phone's WhatsApp), once the registration is finished, WhatsApp will close and does not allow you to open it from the WhatsApp icon.
Install Voz a Texto app from Play Store. Open the app, press the microphone icon and dictate a message, accept and then press the share icon, then press the WhatsApp icon and select the contact.
From here you will be able to see the entire conversation, and send messages, voice notes, images, videos, locations, or initiate a WhatsApp call.
Telegram, everything you can do on Wear OS.
Telegram is no longer available (officially) on Play Store, since the update to Telegram v8.0 in September 2021, the application no longer includes version for Wear OS, thus abandoning support for Wear OS, however, users who had the app installed before its disappearance still works almost normally, for example images and stickers are not received correctly.
However, there are still a few ways to use Telegram from the watch.
​1. With Telegram Official​This version was developed by Telegram, it is not as complete as the Android version, since this version (v1.3.2) is somewhat old, from January 2019, however, with this version you can see all conversations (including conversations in groups and channels), you can view photos, videos, listen to voice notes, send messages, send voice notes. It is phone independent, and if your watch has 4G/LTE connectivity, you can use Telegram without depending on the phone or Wi-Fi signal.​​If you want to reinstall Telegram, you must follow these steps:.​
Download and install the latest available version of Telegram for Wear OS from APKMirror, v1.3.2. You can easily install the app from your phone with the help of the Bujaeger app or from your PC via ADB commands.
If you have Telegram on the phone paired to the watch, momentarily turn on airplane mode.
Open the app and log in: enter your phone number and now disable the airplane mode on the phone. You will receive the security code to verify your identity by SMS (or in a Telegram chat, if you have it open at the same time) and enter it on the watch.
2. With Telegram Forks​Telegram, unlike WhatsApp, is Open Source, which means that anyone with knowledge can develop an app based on the official one, currently there is a project to launch a version for Wear OS called WearGram, which will allow: to have almost all the functions available in the Android version. It will soon be available in Play Store, although it will be paid.​​​
​Another projects that exist are TelegramWear, Wearable-Messenger and DainoGram , there is hardly any information about these, we will also have to keep an eye out to see what comes out.​​​
​​How to change the font style or font size of the Wear OS Interface​
1. Font Style​On Wear OS watches that have support for changing font style, like Galaxy Watch 4 and 5, you can change it in Settings > Display > Font Style. There you can choose from a few pre-installed fonts, if you want to add another font you prefer you can install it from the Play Store or Galaxy Store and select the font style installed in Settings, however many of them are paid, if you want to add a font for free follow these steps:
On the phone, download and open zFont 3, choose the font you prefer to apply on the watch and install it on the phone. Once you have installed this new font on the phone, the font APK file will be in the android/data folder as an APK file.
On the phone, download and open APK Analyzer and locate APK's on the phone that contain the word "font" and select the one that has the name of the font you downloaded, for example 'com.monotype.android.font.samsungsans'.
Extract the font APK with the "Export APK" option and save it to your Downloads folder.
You can install it on the watch, from Bugjaeger app on the phone, or from the PC with the following commands ADB:
Code:
adb connect <IP Address>
adb install com.monotype.android.font.samsungsans.apk
Go to Settings > Display > Font Style and choose "SamsungSans" and you're done.
​
On Wear OS watches that do NOT have support for changing font style from Settings it is not possible, if you do not have the watch rooted, as it requires modifying data in the root directory, however, if the watch is rooted you can change the font by replacing the default font "cheating" the system, to do this follow the steps below:
Download the font you want to use on the PC. It must be a TrueType font, these have .ttf extension. There are fonts available in Google Fonts or FontSquirrel.
List the fonts in the watch's font folder. Roboto is the default font in Wear OS. Probably, there are several files starting with Roboto in the list, for this enter the following ADB commands from this step and the following ones.
Code:
adb connect <IP Address>
adb shell ls /system/fonts
From the downloaded font in point 1, clone 4 times the file and rename the font to Roboto-Regular.tft, Roboto-Bold.tft, Roboto-Italic.tft and Roboto-BoldItalic.tft.
Copy the 4 files to the internal memory of the watch.
Code:
adb push Roboto-*.ttf /sdcard
Now you are going to access the watch's fonts folder.
Code:
adb shell
su
mount -o remount,rw /system
cd /system/fonts
Next, backup the original fonts.
Code:
mv Roboto-Regular.ttf Roboto-Regular.ttf.back
mv Roboto-Bold.ttf Roboto-Bold.ttf.back
mv Roboto-Italic.ttf Roboto-Italic.ttf.back
mv Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf.back
Next, copy the custom fonts to fonts folder.
Code:
cp /sdcard/Roboto-Regular.ttf /system/fonts
cp /sdcard/Roboto-Bold.ttf /system/fonts
cp /sdcard/Roboto-Italic.ttf /system/fonts
cp /sdcard/Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf /system/fonts
Finally, configure to write permissions for the custom fonts
Code:
chmod 644 Roboto-Regular.ttf
chmod 644 Roboto-Bold.ttf
chmod 644 Roboto-Italic.ttf
chmod 644 Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf
exit
Restart and you are done
2. Font Size
If you have vision problems or simply don't want to strain your eyes every time you look at the watch screen, you can increase the font size. Increasing (or decreasing) the font size on the screen does not change the size of other interface elements, such as application icons or the different rows of interface options (you can change this by setting the density). You will only see the font size of the interface vary.
If you go to Settings > Display > Font size, you will be able to modify the text size but only up to some limits, choosing between 3 sizes (small, normal and large).
If you would like to make the font bigger or smaller, you have to do it through ADB commands:
Code:
adb shell settings put system font_scale 1.30
For reference, here below I list the values that correspond to the font size:
0.80 (Smallest)
0.90 (Small)
1.0 (Normal)
1.10 (Large)
1.30 (Largest)
2.0 (Extra Large)
​
3. Considerations:
To enter any ADB commands, you must enable developer options, and Enable ADB debugging and debugging over Wi-Fi.
Once finished entering ADB commands, disable ADB debugging to avoid draining the battery.
What is the downside if you use Galaxy Watch 4/5 paired with a phone that is NOT Samsung?
Samsung Galaxy Watch 4/5 does not offer the same experience with non-Samsung phones as it does when connected to a Samsung Galaxy device, and some of the functions are Samsung phone exclusive features that you don't get when connected to a non-Samsung device. They are as follows:
Electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring.
Blood pressure (BP) monitoring
Samsung Messages App
Camera controls
"Do not disturb" mode synchronization
"Bedtime" mode
Make/receive calls when you're not connected to a phone via Bluetooth (using Wi-Fi)
Customizable AR Emoji Watch faces
In addition to restrictions by the phone you have paired, there are also restrictions by the region you are in. In this case, ECG and blood pressure monitoring is only officially available in the following countries: Austria, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
For example, in the case of the USA, it is not available due to FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval problems.
As for the watch's camera control (Viewfinder function), not even all Samsung phones are supported. According to the specifications of Camera Controller app, only the following Samsung phone models are supported:
S Series (S22, S22+, S22 ULTRA, S21, S21+, S21 ULTRA, S21 FE, S20, S20+, S20 ULTRA, S20 FE, S10, S10+, S10e, S10 Lite, S9, S9+)
Note Series (Note20, Note20 Ultra, Note10, Note10+, Note10 Lite, Note9)
Z Series (Z Fold, Z Fold2, Z Fold3, Z Flip, Z Flip3)
Fortunately, you can use a couple of third-party apps and modifications to get some of Samsung's unique features on the Galaxy Watch 4/5
To enable ECG and blood pressure monitoring, and be able to sync with Samsung Health, you can use a modified version of Samsung Health Monitor app. This version also removes country and device restrictions and reduces the age limit to 16. More info here.
To receive SMS messages, you can alternatively use Google Messages app.
To access the phone's camera controls on the watch, you can alternatively use Camera One or Wrist Camera app. More info here. You will be able to preview the viewfinder on your watch screen, take photos away from the phone, capture videos and even record audio.
To synchronize "Do not disturb" mode and "Bedtime" mode, you can alternatively use DNDSync app. You must install the app on the watch and also on the phone.
The other functions, above outlined as make/receive calls when you're not connected to a phone via Bluetooth or customizable AR Emoji Watch faces, unfortunately there are currently no alternatives that I know of.

bernarbernuli said:
Thanks for the warning, I didn't know the tool to convert to exe was limited. I think I have already solved it, I have uploaded it now with version 1.1, please tell me if it works correctly now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!.Works great now.Very helpful tool.

Easter egg in Wear OS
Uploaded info to first post

Interesting apps outside Play Store.
Uploaded info to first post

Pairing watch with another smartphone / Tablet without factory reset.
Uploaded info to first post

Watch Faces from the Play Store that I like
Uploaded info to first post

the download link "Draining speaker" is not active.
Can you please enter it?
Thank's

Magics said:
the download link "Draining speaker" is not active.
Can you please enter it?
Thank's
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"Speaker Drain is not an app to install. It is already built into the watch. Just press and hold the right button (bottom button) for a few seconds, and you will see the "Speaking Draining" option.

bernarbernuli said:
"Speaker Drain is not an app to install. It is already built into the watch. Just press and hold the right button (bottom button) for a few seconds, and you will see the "Speaking Draining" option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forgive my little wisdom on the matter
Thanks Bernarbernuli

Interesting apps in the Play Store
Uploaded info to second post

How you could troubleshoot boot problems. Bootloader Mode and Recovery Mode.
Uploaded info to first post

How dead is this, isn't it? Is this thread of interest to anyone?

bernarbernuli said:
Quanto è morto questo, non è vero? Questo thread interessa a qualcuno?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
La conoscenza è sempre buona ...
Hai pubblicato materiale informativo molto importante.
Bene, complimenti

bernarbernuli said:
How dead is this, isn't it? Is this thread of interest to anyone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes of course. I am interested very much! Thank you for this collection here. I Just bought a TWP 3 and I am very happy that you made this topic.

Is there a Google Fit way (or any other method) to measure the blood oxygen level?
after disabling the tic health app, the tic blood oxygen app wont work anymore as well

Fr1day_13 said:
Is there a Google Fit way (or any other method) to measure the blood oxygen level?
after disabling the tic health app, the tic blood oxygen app wont work anymore as well
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it's a negative point. Google Fit for now does not monitor the blood oxygen level, although it has been thinking about including it for a long time:
Wear OS Might Finally Address It's Biggest Weakness
Wear OS has forever been on the struggle bus. It has failed for years to improve upon a smartwatch experience that has fallen behind almost every single smartwatch player it needs to compete with, namely Samsung and Apple. While there are still Wear OS partners who make watches, the feature set...
www.droid-life.com
I don't know of any third-party application that monitors blood oxygen.

Question Understanding Notifications and Outer Display Orange Dot

On my Flip 3 the outer display orange dot does not show when I have a new phone call or text message notifications (when I open the phone badges show missed calls or messages). I do get the orange dot for missed Gmail mail and some other things.
Do I need to set some setting in order to enable the orange dot for missed calls or messages?
Thanks,
Barry.

Hi,
I did a test and everything working fine for me. Try checking the notification settings for you message and phone app. I guess the orange dot is only showing if notifications are turned on

david.siebauer said:
Hi,
I did a test and everything working fine for me. Try checking the notification settings for you message and phone app. I guess the orange dot is only showing if notifications are turned on
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. That's good to know.
On my phone notifications are turned on for both the default phone app and default messaging app.
For the default phone app, notifications appear to be turned on, but the slide switches are grayed out. I am not able to control those notifications by turning them off or on – the switch is to the right so they appear to be on, but the switch is gray not green.
For the default messaging app, the switch is to the right, it's green, and I can switch notifications off and on – they are currently on.
I have a feeling I might know why I'm not receiving that notification dot. I have that phone number forwarded to Google Voice. If I don't answer, Google Voice picks up and takes a message. Google Voice says something about also handling messages, although I don't know how that works. I receive messages on my phone. Once Google Voice told me I had a new message, but other times no. I don't remember seeing that orange dot when I receive a new message. I will have to test it some more.
Barry.

Phone app showing the same for me. I think these are the default settings.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
I tried to reproduce the behavior for the messages. Only way it does not show the orange dot is by turning off notifications at all or activating DND (without setting exception to show notification while DND mode).
Unfortunately Google voice is not available here, so I can't test it.
David

david.siebauer said:
Phone app showing the same for me. I think these are the default settings.
View attachment 5450869
I tried to reproduce the behavior for the messages. Only way it does not show the orange dot is by turning off notifications at all or activating DND (without setting exception to show notification while DND mode).
Unfortunately Google voice is not available here, so I can't test it.
David
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. That's how my phone app notifications look – buttons grayed out.
I will have to play with this some more.
Barry.

Notifications on this phone are garbage. At least from the standpoint of knowing when you have one without manually turning the exterior screen on.
When you get a notification the exterior screen turns on for like a second and that's it.
They need options..like edge lighting or a simple blinking dot because unless you saw it turn on for that spit second then tough luck. If Someone sent you an important text or email and you didn't see the screen flash on then off you're out of luck.
It's ridiculous. It's lazy and I expect better from a company like Samsung...
I deeply regret buying this phone for just that reason alone..

d0x360 said:
Notifications on this phone are garbage. At least from the standpoint of knowing when you have one without manually turning the exterior screen on.
When you get a notification the exterior screen turns on for like a second and that's it.
They need options..like edge lighting or a simple blinking dot because unless you saw it turn on for that spit second then tough luck. If Someone sent you an important text or email and you didn't see the screen flash on then off you're out of luck.
It's ridiculous. It's lazy and I expect better from a company like Samsung...
I deeply regret buying this phone for just that reason alone..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I partially solved with vibration when i take the phone, if there is a notification not read the phone does a little vibration

mirkol78 said:
I partially solved with vibration when i take the phone, if there is a notification not read the phone does a little vibration
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True but that's fundamentally the same as tapping the exterior screen twice to see if there's a notification dot.
Im hoping the developer of aodnotify @Jawomo can use the code in another thread (located here https://bit.ly/3n0VG5d) that allows you to do things with the exterior display like edge lighting or a blinking dot and plenty more but the first 2 would be helpful for notifications received when you weren't looking at the phone.
I just don't understand why Samsung limited the exterior screen options so much. It seems like such an obvious idea to be able to tweak notification settings for the exterior screen...but Samsung seems to always go half way on their software... Except for their extreme and broken battery saving methods. Like say you don't open your clock app for 3 days... Even if you have an alarm set for day 4 their over aggressive battery software will put the app to sleep and not allot it to run in the background..and your alarm won't go off on day 4. Even if you allow an app to run in the background and disable battery optimization for that app this still happens.
You can sort of disable it so it's less aggressive but looking at the settings you might not know 100% what it's actually doing and your average user probably won't change any of those settings.

I miss the good old time swhen you just had a simple LED Notification light Maybe to simple

david.siebauer said:
I miss the good old time swhen you just had a simple LED Notification light Maybe to simple
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too...me too.
It can't be that hard to implement lol. Even if you use the screen as a fake LED I'd be happy.

Agree notification light is something extremely useful. Last time i 've had it on Mi 9 or Note 9 phone. Rest in piece! Only Xperia offers it nowadays.
Also think Z Flip notifications are great and bad at the same time. You have widgets, you can swipe notifications away, you can read long messages and people can see themselves on that screen. Now with AOD off, you have permanent charging notification which is wonderful. That exactly emulates a white (pulsing) notification light. But with AOD on, situation changes. Charging status is suddenly impossible to read. Oh, the microscopic battery icon, not again. Notifications pop up for a quick period of time. Orange dot sometimes disappears. There should be app icons instead like on normal AOD!

doggydog2 said:
Agree notification light is something extremely useful. Last time i 've had it on Mi 9 or Note 9 phone. Rest in piece! Only Xperia offers it nowadays.
Also think Z Flip notifications are great and bad at the same time. You have widgets, you can swipe notifications away, you can read long messages and people can see themselves on that screen. Now with AOD off, you have permanent charging notification which is wonderful. That exactly emulates a white (pulsing) notification light. But with AOD on, situation changes. Charging status is suddenly impossible to read. Oh, the microscopic battery icon, not again. Notifications pop up for a quick period of time. Orange dot sometimes disappears. There should be app icons instead like on normal AOD!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only widget I find useful is the timer. Swiping notifications away is fine but doesn't really help let me know I have some unless I actively go looking.
Having the charge screen on all the time doesn't appeal to me either, if I want to see it I'll just tap the screen. Ive never liked things staying on all the time, not even the clock but I know plenty of people do so I understand why it's an option.
The orange dot is pretty useless. It disappears if you turn the exterior screen on even if it's just to see the time and you don't touch anything else.
That's why I wish someone would make edge lighting for the exterior screen. The code needed to make it work has been posted but who knows if someone will do it.
Like I said I use aodnotify to basically keep the exterior screen turned on for 2 min when I get any kind of notification. That way I can look over and know. I always have my phone on vibrate and vibration on Samsung phones is so weak. On ever phone I've owned that wasn't Samsung I could hear the vibration from across the room but with the note 9, 10+ and this I can't hear it vibrate when it's a couple feet away.
Samsung... Always going half way when it comes to their software. No idea how they became number 1.

d0x360 said:
Samsung... Always going half way when it comes to their software. No idea how they became number 1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
to be fair, no other brand is close to Samsung software like I moaned here. Several times i returned the phone like Sony, Alcatel because of dead blank OS. Quit OnePlus because of that too. Xiaomi has just a overmodified bloatware and spyware. There's no brand that can compete with Samsung regarding software.
Also it's Samsung that can notify you in a brutal way -- do the edge effect, blink with flash, repeat notifications until you notice.. This creates an explosive cocktail of effects you can't miss. I'd just prolong the notification time, it's really short. But it's the same with other brands!
Avoided 3rd party notif light apps, as they burn battery quick. But i tried aodnotify as it promises something different. It's highly configurable but can't modify the small screen. I have the phone closed 99% of time so it's useless for me But thanks for the tip, i will use in next time, if i ever will have a classic phone.

doggydog2 said:
to be fair, no other brand is close to Samsung software like I moaned here. Several times i returned the phone like Sony, Alcatel because of dead blank OS. Quit OnePlus because of that too. Xiaomi has just a overmodified bloatware and spyware. There's no brand that can compete with Samsung regarding software.
Also it's Samsung that can notify you in a brutal way -- do the edge effect, blink with flash, repeat notifications until you notice.. This creates an explosive cocktail of effects you can't miss. I'd just prolong the notification time, it's really short. But it's the same with other brands!
Avoided 3rd party notif light apps, as they burn battery quick. But i tried aodnotify as it promises something different. It's highly configurable but can't modify the small screen. I have the phone closed 99% of time so it's useless for me But thanks for the tip, i will use in next time, if i ever will have a classic phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait... First off there is no edge lighting on this phone. It's irrelevant if there is on other Samsung phones especially since you can get better edge lighting via aodnotify and it doesn't use much battery at all. Ive used it for years and it's very efficient. In fact I've used plenty of notification apps like one on the original Pixel to give me a blinking LED style notification light that changed color based on app and it barely used any battery either. Plus you can get edge lighting on any phone by using an app. Samsung's own edge lighting is horrible. It lacks granularity in it's settings and features. aodnotify fixes all of that as do tons of other notification apps but aod is the best for edge lighting and the z Flip3.
aodnotify does work with the z Flip3. First if the phone is open (screen on or off) it will provide edge lighting or other effects like fake LED, camera hole light etc. If the phone is closed aodnotify will let you make it so the exterior screen can be set to stay on as long as you want when you get a notification. So it is useful for the z Flip3. I don't know how you missed the settings for always on display but mines set to always off unless a notification is received. Then it's enabled, screen set to stay on for 2 min unless the notification is cleared. Very helpful, especially since Samsung basically has no notification options.
As for Samsung software being good... I completely disagree. Also other companies default software is irrelevant, Samsung makes massive profits every year on phones. They should be able to make decent apps. The majority of them are rated 3 stars or less on the Galaxy store.
It's buggy, it lacks options and features and not only is there a massive amount of bloat, some of it is basically spyware sending everything you do to Samsung. Thankfully I can block that with Adguard.
Googles apps are superior in every way despite the fact that GAPPS is just supposed to be the basic frame work for what these kinda of apps should be. Samsung SHOULD have far superior apps with way more options and better UI's than GAPPS but they don't. Their dialer is super basic, so is contacts. Their messaging app doesn't support RCS and it's ugly. The calendar, calculator...all of it worse then GAPPS.
Then there's their ridiculous changes to battery management. Instead of using what's built into Android they made a custom solution that's beyond overly aggressive.
Let's say you work mon-fri every week but you take Friday off so on Wednesday or Thursday you open the clock app and shut off the alarm for Friday. When Monday comes your alarm won't go off because their battery software has put it to deep sleep even though you set it up so it can run in the background AND you disabled battery optimization for the app. It's ridiculous and actually breaks some apps. It can also cause delays in getting text messages and emails. It can even cause wifi calling to break mid call.
I could go on with tons of in depth issues but I think that's enough for now. I expect better from the #1 mobile phone company. Much better. I've given them 5 chances if you count the galaxy nexus which felt cheaply made but thankfully didn't run Samsung software...
So once a year goes by and the next pixel comes out there's a 99% chance I'll buy it and sell this z Flip3. The only way I wouldn't get a pixel is if Microsoft makes a duo 3 and actually tries or another company makes a really good phone that can also be rooted. Regardless of what I buy there's one thing I know for sure...it won't be made by Samsung

d0x360 said:
Regardless of what I buy there's one thing I know for sure...it won't be made by Samsung
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm back in the Samsung camp because of the software. Been there since SPlus phone (as the era of HTC was ending) with some interruption. I've listed dozens of reasons in the linked post. You want more from this company while you're getting nothing from the others. Samsung is not in the business of Gapps, so it's not fair to mention it, and you shouldn't use such spyware anyway (then why you care about adguard?). I've used Google "phone apps" (caller, calendar, photos) and it was too simple. Who still gives you rich LOCAL music player, who still gives you LOCAL video player (other brands cancelled both). Gallery with post edit, map, s-pen zoom and gestures (Note) is good, no need google Photos. Who gives you best calendar app with nice UI, weather, home timezone, spen preview? I've seen anything comparable to that other than ver geeky apps on the market. Caller which plays recorded calls directly from UI? Lovely. Love the call popup settings that others don't gives you. Who gives you OneUI, 10x richer than other layouts while fast. Onehand mode, or even scroll the screen down basic function of OneUI. The one and only legendary Edge panel that can't be replicated (tried ALL clones). The best AOD, best edge lightning + flash + screen effects (for large screen). Best accessibility options in market period. Best functional camera. You can still say cheeeese to shoot and no other brands can do. You can recognize objects, scan documents or get assistance in shooting situations. And so much more. I'd rate Samsung software ******** while OnePlus ** Sony ** Xiaomi ** LG ** etc. Don't know about Google but i assume it's the same mediocrity (again i don't count their non-phone apps). And i'm heavily debloated, work without Samsung account and still profit from this ecosystem heavily.
Yes they kill apps https://dontkillmyapp.com/ but is perfectly manageable. All you do is choose few core apps and prioritize them, while the most garbage gets killed. This approach is very helpful for battery and OnePlus invented it (that's why they always had nice scores on gsmarena). I moaned first, but now i agree.
Pixel 6 is a horrid phone based on people, and now heavy (that's why i chose ZFlip), let's see next year.
Samsung just pushed AOD app update for ZFlips. I tested the orange dot and it works for all messages and calls. It even blinks. Again, no other firmwares i know incl AOSP offers longer notifications than this. It's always displayed shortly or not at all. Samsung of course has the most configurable AOD and notifications with color highlighting, color match app, bubbles, smart popups. Split app from task manager or Edge panel. It's insane. You can even prolong the AOD notification timeout in the settings or even the toast messages! Here we found the glitch. This setting simply needs to apply on cover screen too and problem solved. Let's wait for another update, i'm sure it will come. It's not like in other brands where phone software stays the same for years.
There's no edge effect on the cover screen (yet!), but that flash makes me jump out of bed. Expecting a major company to produce geeky nice apps like aodnotify is very unrealistic. It won't happen. BTW I still can't make aodnotify work with cover screen. I went through all the settings and it has zero impact there.
I just played with Bixby settings.. you can set action when folded, half folded, unfolded. Stay unlocked when driving. Hundreds of settings. Talking about Samsung not having enough functionality or settings.. oh no, that's so wrong. ZFlip 4 is in my preorder basket.

doggydog2 said:
I'm back in the Samsung camp because of the software. Been there since SPlus phone (as the era of HTC was ending) with some interruption. I've listed dozens of reasons in the linked post. You want more from this company while you're getting nothing from the others. Samsung is not in the business of Gapps, so it's not fair to mention it, and you shouldn't use such spyware anyway (then why you care about adguard?). I've used Google "phone apps" (caller, calendar, photos) and it was too simple. Who still gives you rich LOCAL music player, who still gives you LOCAL video player (other brands cancelled both). Gallery with post edit, map, s-pen zoom and gestures (Note) is good, no need google Photos. Who gives you best calendar app with nice UI, weather, home timezone, spen preview? I've seen anything comparable to that other than ver geeky apps on the market. Caller which plays recorded calls directly from UI? Lovely. Love the call popup settings that others don't gives you. Who gives you OneUI, 10x richer than other layouts while fast. Onehand mode, or even scroll the screen down basic function of OneUI. The one and only legendary Edge panel that can't be replicated (tried ALL clones). The best AOD, best edge lightning + flash + screen effects (for large screen). Best accessibility options in market period. Best functional camera. You can still say cheeeese to shoot and no other brands can do. You can recognize objects, scan documents or get assistance in shooting situations. And so much more. I'd rate Samsung software ******** while OnePlus ** Sony ** Xiaomi ** LG ** etc. Don't know about Google but i assume it's the same mediocrity (again i don't count their non-phone apps). And i'm heavily debloated, work without Samsung account and still profit from this ecosystem heavily.
Yes they kill apps https://dontkillmyapp.com/ but is perfectly manageable. All you do is choose few core apps and prioritize them, while the most garbage gets killed. This approach is very helpful for battery and OnePlus invented it (that's why they always had nice scores on gsmarena). I moaned first, but now i agree.
Pixel 6 is a horrid phone based on people, and now heavy (that's why i chose ZFlip), let's see next year.
Samsung just pushed AOD app update for ZFlips. I tested the orange dot and it works for all messages and calls. It even blinks. Again, no other firmwares i know incl AOSP offers longer notifications than this. It's always displayed shortly or not at all. Samsung of course has the most configurable AOD and notifications with color highlighting, color match app, bubbles, smart popups. Split app from task manager or Edge panel. It's insane. You can even prolong the AOD notification timeout in the settings or even the toast messages! Here we found the glitch. This setting simply needs to apply on cover screen too and problem solved. Let's wait for another update, i'm sure it will come. It's not like in other brands where phone software stays the same for years.
There's no edge effect on the cover screen (yet!), but that flash makes me jump out of bed. Expecting a major company to produce geeky nice apps like aodnotify is very unrealistic. It won't happen. BTW I still can't make aodnotify work with cover screen. I went through all the settings and it has zero impact there.
I just played with Bixby settings.. you can set action when folded, half folded, unfolded. Stay unlocked when driving. Hundreds of settings. Talking about Samsung not having enough functionality or settings.. oh no, that's so wrong. ZFlip 4 is in my preorder basket.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's perfectly fair to compare Samsung's version of GAPPS to Google's.. messaging app vs messaging app. Calendar vs Calendar.
The spyware is a HIDDEN service always running in the background and I care about Adguard because it blocks ads, trackers and analytics in ALL apps and it works as a firewall. Go to adguard.com and look. The play store version is NOT Adguard, it's an extension for 2 browsers.
I got the latest update and no...the exterior screen does not have a blinking dot. When you get a notification the exterior screen turns on for a couple seconds and then shuts off. You can see the dot if you double tap the screen but that's not helpful. I want something to blink when I get a notification without me needing to touch the phone.
I'm glad you like Samsung's apps but I can get better versions of everything they offer. I can use Google apps for my dialer, contacts, messages, calendar, calculator and clock. I use Nova as my launcher because OneUI is too basic. I use Google now via Nova and Google assistant instead of Bixby. Bixby is god awful and once again google does it better.
Yeah you can change some settings for battery management but then you have NO battery management. Also the average person isn't going to know any of this so they will fall victim to apps not working and alarms not going off. That's poor design.
So I can say I think Samsung's software is terrible and you can like it.
I'm too tired to read the rest so I'll do it tomorrow.

d0x360 said:
It's perfectly fair to compare Samsung's version of GAPPS to Google's.. messaging app vs messaging app. Calendar vs Calendar.
The spyware is a HIDDEN service always running in the background and I care about Adguard because it blocks ads, trackers and analytics in ALL apps and it works as a firewall. Go to adguard.com and look. The play store version is NOT Adguard, it's an extension for 2 browsers.
I got the latest update and no...the exterior screen does not have a blinking dot. When you get a notification the exterior screen turns on for a couple seconds and then shuts off. You can see the dot if you double tap the screen but that's not helpful. I want something to blink when I get a notification without me needing to touch the phone.
I'm glad you like Samsung's apps but I can get better versions of everything they offer. I can use Google apps for my dialer, contacts, messages, calendar, calculator and clock. I use Nova as my launcher because OneUI is too basic. I use Google now via Nova and Google assistant instead of Bixby. Bixby is god awful and once again google does it better.
Yeah you can change some settings for battery management but then you have NO battery management. Also the average person isn't going to know any of this so they will fall victim to apps not working and alarms not going off. That's poor design.
So I can say I think Samsung's software is terrible and you can like it.
I'm too tired to read the rest so I'll do it tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
perhaps i imagine Gapps as Maps etc or the office apps. But let's say it's all Google apps. I've had Pixel ROMs which were based on Google apps you mentioned and didn't notice anything special. Just pure basic. Or forcing to online services. Samsung wins for privacy, i don't like to be tracked so i run those local media players w/o access to internet. I like DLNA, screen mirror stuff. There are no players on other mobiles nowadays and often with DLNA turned off (to force you social networks). Clock - better too, with repetitions until you wake the f*** up. With weather time zones. Calculator - better because it's in Edge panel, super productive. Who else has it? Debloated Bixby - BixbyVision suits me better and I removed Google spyware app completely. Most of it can work offline. Bixby Voice - i don't use such technology until it will be OFFLINE. Bixby routines - fantastic. SmartThings + Audio + Devices on notifpanel - didn't see anything like that before. I can control home devices or cameras from lockscreen! File manager - better, and it connects to web folders and samba (oh my god, thanks). I'm sure Google will give you a chance to connect... to GDrive $$ LOL. Camera better than Gcam as noted. GCam ports = placebo. Camera "AR" very rich and more private than a typical ad-infested apps on market. Samsung Kids - what? Absolutely incredible. And with home screen lock for parents. There's even a general "Pin lock" i again didn't see on the other brands. Samsung Keyboard - very strong even vs GBoard and other brands which provide... nothing. Screen recorder, audio recorder, animation, capture scrolling screen, capture rectangle then extract text - wow. Where are these functions on other brands? I have 5 flagships yearly and I don't recall none of it, maybe i have a short memory And Note series add even more. Smart Stay - great (other brands? hello? Sony has one - kudos!). Edge compass, ruler, torch - so useful. Quick measure - thanks, another adware from appstore spared. Dual messenger - multiple accounts of one chat app? OK! Finder app? don't get my started. There's no competition, forget Sezame. I've spend years searching for an alternative. Is it available from task manager? Yes. Can you drag a window from task manager to a popup or split screen? Yes, and you don't need a stupid tap like on Sony. From Edge panel too. Emergency app on 4 power clicks - thanks (3 clicks = always a mistake). Samsung flow - display Android screen on PC + notifications? Great, no need to pay. Samsung Notes - lengedary. Samsung Pass. Secure folder. Samsung Swich. Samsung Health. Smart View. Tons of notification panel's actionable icons. It just keeps giving. It's insane how much MORE you get with Samsung.
And launcher? Of course I use Nova or similar. But does it mean anyone else got a better one than OneUI? Who? I know: absolutely noone, so why mention it? I don't get the hate. That's the industry standard for vendor launchers - be basic, not to scare the public with overwhelming functionality.
-> Overall, I rate Samsung firmware as 5-10x better than closest competitor. It's a knock out win. This is why I left Xiaomi, OnePlus, Sony, LG and Google, and returned back to the best brand. I was tired of vanilla OS and hated the low investments they make to it. It actually make Samsung cheap.
Re dot - it's there nonstop until you review notifications and it's blinking after an event like missed call. Perhaps you don't have AOD on. Phones w/o notif.light won't provide permanent notification with AOD off it seems. So far the only perma message text displayed on screen i saw was on Garmin watches. 10 letters of most recent notification. Yeah i keep them because of this. I wish it came to mobile phones too. For aesthetic reasons, i don't think it will. Imagine stuffing clock, date, battery, app icon, sender name, text into one small screen. At this point, i just want to prolong the timeout. It's too short.
Re alarms - they're triggered every day. Maybe you're using Naptime to kill it. Kudos to OnePlus to be a rare brand which can turn on the phone to raise alarm. I thought this died with HTC or simple phone era.

Samsung is worse than Google for privacy. They send more data to themselves than Google does.
Thankfully Adguard blocks all that crap.
As for GAPPS v Samsung... They are just as simple ok the Samsung side by with worse UI's. Plus I prefer simple.
If I want something good I'll just get it from the store.
This is definitely my last Samsung phone. I'll probably go with a pixel next but as long as it's hardware is good and it can be rooted then brand isnt as important.
Then I can use whatever rom I want. Back to battery...if you disable Samsung battery functions then you basically cut battery life in half. They seem to have disabled the built in battery saving functions from AOSP so when you shut that insanely aggressive management off...you get nothing.

I would prefer if it worked like my older note used to work. I had ability to just have orange dot notification. Also I was able to set a different color for notifications that came from the "secure folder" apps.

Thoughts about the TicWatch Pro 5

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A little history​I was very excited to get the newest TicWatch Pro 5 watch from Mobvoi because I had only had good experiences with TicWatches. Over the years, I had the opportunity to try and use many Android Wear / Wear OS watches:
Moto 360​Starting with the Moto 360 in 2014, I immediately embraced the idea of having a streamlined, yet powerful version of Android on our wrists. The original Moto 360 is still considered one of the best-looking smartwatches, despite its "flat tire" design, which was necessary to achieve thin bezels at the time. What I couldn’t live with was the atrocious, 12-14 hours “full work-day” battery life due to the undersized battery and backlit LCD screen technology that lacked battery optimization. The battery life became even shorter when all features, such as raise to wake and always-on display, were enabled. Nevertheless, it was a remarkable start, with features like the Google Now feed, the peek card system, and the Google Now assistant making it very appealing.
Huawei​My next two watches were from Huawei, which were still running Google's operating system at the time. The Huawei Watch 1 was the first watch to receive the second iteration of the Android Wear operating system. Unfortunately, this update took a step in the wrong direction: Google abandoned the Google Now feed (interestingly, Apple is adding something similar to their watch in 2023, which makes me wonder if Google will revisit the idea of assistant feeds now that Apple validates it). Even worse, with Android Wear 2, Google gave up on peek cards and replaced Google Now with the less capable Google Assistant. Google Now could converse in over 60 languages, while the new Assistant was much more limited. On the positive side, Huawei succeeded in providing beautiful hardware with OLED screens and better-sized batteries, resulting in 40-48 hours of battery life even with all features enabled. The Huawei Watch 2 improved on this, but it came with a smaller screen and a more controversial aesthetic. Nevertheless, Huawei watches running Wear OS have always been feature complete, offering microphones, speakers, reliable heart rate sensors, light sensors, Wi-Fi antennas, and even standalone phone options that were lacking in many other brands.
Mobvoi​When Mobvoi announced the TicWatch Pro 3, it immediately caught my attention. I ordered it on day one. I found this watch to be a worthy successor to the long-lasting battery and feature-complete Huawei Watch 2, but it surpassed it in many ways. I was amazed by the true 3-day battery life with all features enabled, achieved through their double display technology. The FSTN screen had additional advantages such as higher visibility in direct sunlight and an incredibly long 45-day "Essential mode" on a single charge. The TicWatch Pro 3 had a larger screen, more powerful processing, and more sensors than any of my previous watches.
Samsung​When Samsung re-joined Google's watch OS, I had to try their offering, the Galaxy Watch 4. Even though I opted for the larger variant with a slightly bigger battery, it still fell short of the true 72 hours of battery life that my TicWatch Pro 3 was capable of. So, despite the Galaxy Watch 4 having more accurate sensors, the convenience of wireless charging, and exclusive software like Samsung Health and the newest version of Wear OS (3), I often found myself wearing the TicWatch Pro 3 simply because I trusted it to last through a busy weekend more than the Samsung watch.
LTE​I may have considered whether the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra had enough improvements over the previous year's non-Ultra model that I owned, but when its LTE variant was released, I couldn't resist. Gaining independence from my phone made all the difference. You will find my post on how I set up LTE on the Ultra (mirror) even in a country that is "officially" not supported. Being able to leave my phone at home and still make calls, payments, access notifications, use the assistant, and look up information is tremendously liberating. In my opinion, the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra is the only Wear OS watch (or any smartwatch, for that matter!) capable of doing all this with a practical battery life. To achieve LTE capabilities and still maintain a full 24-hour day of independence with room to spare, you need a 600mAh battery and extremely power-efficient screen technology in a watch.
TicWatch Pro 5​With this we arrive to the TicWatch Pro 5. Why did I upgrade, and will I keep it?
I decided to upgrade to this watch because it brings significant improvements over the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra:
Hardware​Battery​The battery life is even longer than before, which is hard to believe! Mobvoi not only improved battery efficiency with Qualcomm's new 4nm SoC, but they also increased the battery capacity, solidifying their position as the Wear OS battery champion. Having a large enough battery provides a tremendous advantage for worry-free use and maintaining good battery health. These devices can be expected to last for many years because we no longer need to completely drain and charge the battery. Battery science tells us that fully draining and fully charging a Li-ion battery wears it out the most. With my TicWatch Pro 3 watches I got into the habit of only charging the watch to 80% (this app feature helps me with that). Even starting from 80%, the watch wouldn't drain much below 40% by the next day. This gives me peace of mind without wearing out the battery.
If charged in this manner, even my TicWatch Pro 3 only took 20-30 minutes to reach 80% charge. However, the TicWatch Pro 5 surpasses even this. With its larger battery, I often start charging from 45-50%, and it charges much quicker. I found that a 10-15 minute daily top-up is enough. I had to speed up my shower routine! I also appreciate the new charging screen that displays fractional percentage values while charging. I was a little disappointed that they kept the magnetic charging puck, which requires a 3D-printed accessory to make it usable (you don't need the whole stand, just TicCharger.stl). Mobvoi's only attempt to improve the charging connection was by adding charging sounds, although I already had those thanks to a third-party app (see charger sounds option in Bubble Cloud). At least they didn't change the shape of the connector, so the same 3D print can be used as the TicWatch Pro 3 and Ultra required.
Body​I already liked the direction Mobvoi was taking with the style and design of the watch with the Ultra variant. Switching to a metal case and removing the dial marks from the bezel makes the TicWatch Pro 5 even more attractive. It's a little unfortunate that they also changed the band size, but to be honest, the wider 24mm bands look more proportional on this watch than the narrower bands of the previous models. Being a sporty person, I've always used silicone bands, and I'm quite happy with the band that comes with the watch.
Crown​Speaking of hardware, I was particularly excited about the addition of the rotating crown. This was long overdue. Although I must say, it's not as good as it could be. Mobvoi did their part perfectly, but as always, the problem lies with Google's implementation. While scrolling is possible in the OS via the crown, Google hasn't provided any way to make a selection other than tapping the touch screen. Pressing the crown will either exit back to the watch face or go from the watch face to the list of apps. Again, Mobvoi's hardware is perfect, but Google's software is a bit underwhelming.
Screen​However, Mobvoi takes advantage of the rotating crown in their own special ways. It is also enabled in the FSTN screen mode! I love how I can have tilt-to-wake enabled and still stay on the LCD screen. By spinning the crown, I can activate the backlight and choose what information is displayed in place of the time, such as heart rate, calories, SPO2, or skin temperature measurements. Whatever I choose will remain visible on the always-on screen during exercise, while the time shrinks to smaller digits in the date area. If tilt-to-wake is disabled, tilting the watch activates the backlight behind the FSTN screen, with its color indicating the heart zone I am in. What a cool idea!
The updated FSTN/LCD display showing health data is great, but are the sensors any good? They have improved. The sensor array on the bottom of the watch looks different from previous TicWatch models. To be honest, I was quite disappointed with the original TicWatch Pro 3. At the time, my Galaxy Watch was the only one I used for exercise and sleep tracking. With the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra, things improved, although the Galaxy Watch still had some accuracy advantages. I haven't had the chance to make a detailed comparison between my Galaxy Watch and the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra and TicWatch Pro 5, but I feel the TicWatch Pro 5 is now on par with the Galaxy Watch in terms of accuracy. It's a shame that Mobvoi now tries to charge us for advanced sleep tracking. I wonder how many subscribers they have and if it's worth maintaining the paywall at all. If I want advanced sleep tracking, I can still wear my Galaxy Watch.
Performance​I never experienced performance issues with either variant of the TicWatch Pro 3. They have always been snappy, with no waiting time for apps to load or install. However, the improvement in the TicWatch Pro 5 is noticeable. There is literally no lag or delay in anything. Even side-loaded Android apps like Assistant Go load instantly. The increased RAM allows for quick switching between open apps, and scrolling lists and animations are buttery smooth. Tilt-to-wake is instantaneous.
Booting up takes half as long as with the earlier models. This is important because I like the new automatic "Smart Essential Mode." Yes, we already had Scheduled Essential Mode in the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra, but the TicWatch Pro 5 improves on this in multiple ways. If you enable this "smart mode," the watch will not enter Essential Mode until you take it off your wrist or fall asleep while wearing it. Returning to Wear OS mode in the morning is quicker thanks to the faster processor, and another necessary step has become much smoother and quicker: pattern unlock. If we keep the watch on our wrist constantly, we only need to use pattern unlock once when the watch comes out of Essential Mode. On all my previous watches, entering the pattern has always been a struggle for me. It has always been a laggy experience on Wear OS, requiring a few seconds after waking up the screen for it to detect my swipes. I had to draw the lines deliberately and somewhat slowly for all corners to register. Is this a Wear OS 2 vs. 3 thing? I don't think so, since my Wear OS 3.5 Galaxy Watch still has the annoying lag on the pattern screen. I love how I can now immediately and quickly draw my pattern on the TicWatch Pro 5. It saves me a few seconds every day, which not only adds up but also removes a recurring annoyance.
FSTN​I already mentioned the FSTN screen improvements, but there's more. I appreciate the updated layout and additional fields, such as the day of the week, NFC, Bluetooth status, and a more detailed battery level. It took me a few years to embrace the FSTN screen because I wasn't a fan of the dated look of the LCD digits. I still like to enable the Always On Mode of my Wear OS watch face, but for battery efficiency and visibility, I find myself using the FSTN screen more and more, especially as its appearance improves with each model.
Wear OS 3.5, yeah! No?​Is it a significant positive for this watch? I have mixed feelings about it.
We have been eagerly awaiting the OS update for the TicWatch Pro 3 and Ultra for years. It was promised and anticipated since the release of the Ultra. So, even though the previous models have to wait longer, at least the new watch comes with it. But is it worth the excitement? Is not having it on the earlier models a deal breaker?
Apps​On the one hand, we do get some of Google's new and updated apps that they refuse to release for Wear OS 2, such as the Google Home app and improved versions of Google Maps and Google Keep. The new version of Google Maps is particularly good news since unlike previous versions this one actually works and even utilizes the TicWatch Pro 5's compass! These are welcome benefits of the Wear OS 3 upgrade, although it's not clear why Google wouldn't update the same apps for Wear OS 2.
However, even with Wear OS 3, “Google giveth and Google taketh away”. We have to bid farewell to Google Translate and, most notably, Google Assistant. The TicWatch Pro 5 doesn't come with a voice assistant out of the box. You can install Amazon Alexa (which I haven't tried) or sideload Google Assistant Go, intended for low-end phones but can be squeezed onto the watch's tiny screen. These are potential workarounds, but it goes without saying that neither provides the native Google Assistant experience..
Quick settings​Some of the core functionality of Wear OS has changed for the better, like the improved quick setting panel, which now features 14 icons (including 7 new ones: Wi-Fi, water draining, touch lock, Google Pay, screen brightness, night mode, and battery/essential mode). Additionally, there's now an "Edit" button for customization!
On the Phone​For users who have a single Wear OS watch, having the brand-specific control app on the phone simplifies things. They only need to install the new Mobvoi Health app and don't require Google's Wear OS app. However, for those of us with multiple Wear OS watches, this adds to the confusion. Now, I have to keep the old "Mobvoi" app and Google's Wear OS app installed for my TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra, and also have an almost identical (but different enough) "Mobvoi Health" app for the TicWatch Pro 5. Not to mention the additional apps like "Galaxy Wearable," "Galaxy Watch," "Samsung Health," and "Samsung Health monitor" needed for my other Wear OS watch. This can quickly become a nightmare. Thank you, Google and friends!
More settings
On the bright side, we finally get the long-awaited screen timeout settings with options for 5, 10, 15, and 30 seconds. However, we are losing wrist-gesture scrolling and the Notification Preview long-text complication for watch faces. To regain some level of wrist gesture control, I am happy to use the Bubble Cloud watch face. I also have the Notification Icons Plugin installed, which can display the contents of notifications on the watch face. It was much nicer when these features were available at the OS level without the need for third-party workarounds!
Speaking of third-party workarounds, we are no longer able to customize any of the button presses without apps like Bubble Cloud. The top button is hardcoded to "recents," which is pretty useless for those of us accustomed to the Bubble Cloud launcher's "Sticky open" option (which still works well, by the way). Long-pressing the crown does nothing out of the box, and there is no way to assign it to any app. Once again, a thoughtful move by Google and Mobvoi... Double-pressing the top button opens Google Pay (or Wallet now? More on it later), and single-pressing the crown switches between the watch face and Wear OS's limited usability built-in "launcher," which is essentially just an extremely long list of apps in alphabetical order.
The TicWatch Pro 5 is effectively unusable without Bubble Cloud. You need to install this launcher if you want to introduce any level of organization to your apps and watch face complications. It's unfortunate that Google doesn't provide an official way to replace the stock launcher, which barely offers the minimum functionality. With Bubble Cloud, I was also able to customize the secondary button and assign the long press of the main button to Google Assistant Go.
Google Pay​Setting up Google Pay (or Wallet) went smoothly on the TicWatch Pro 5. Unlike my experience with other Wear OS watches, it wasn't a confusing procedure that required downgrading the app on my phone or navigating through my mobile banking software. The TicWatch Pro 5 was the first watch where setup went without a hitch—just select the card and you're done. However, when it came to actually making payments, I encountered some issues.
I never encountered any issues with NFC/Google Pay on any of my previous watches. If a terminal couldn't read my watch on the first attempt, it always worked on the second try. However, I'm facing trouble with payments using my TicWatch Pro 5. While it functions with some terminals, I've noticed that I need to hold it much closer. Unfortunately, it fails to work with other terminals even after multiple attempts. Luckily, I had my older TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra on my other wrist (yes, like Inspector Gadget, they already know me at the local store...) and managed to complete the payment after the TicWatch Pro 5 failed three times. This issue could be related to either the NFC antenna strength, something specific to Wear OS 3, or the watch being new. It's a bit disappointing after the initially smooth setup experience.
Of course I hope the NFC issue can be sorted out with software updates, because the refreshed look of Wear OS is otherwise very appealing. New animations
Is it a keeper?​It should be. There is enough good to balance out the bad. Google’s omissions can be worked around, and the improved Mobvoi features are really attractive. For me, personally LTE on my TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra has spoiled me. I will surely switch to the TicWatch Pro 5 LTE, if and when it comes out. Until then, LTE autonomy of my TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra might outweigh the benefits this slightly faster watch on newer but more limited version of Wear OS can offer.
If someone is transitioning from a non-LTE TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra or any other less capable Wear OS watch, and LTE is not an essential requirement, the TicWatch Pro 5 is certainly worth the upgrade.