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YouTube Music will finally be arriving on Wear OS, coming sometime later this year. That’s based on a recent blog post from Google, detailing the company’s recently announced update to the platform made during Google I/O 2021.
Of course, the company already unveiled its new partnership with Samsung on the OS. But this will mark the first time YouTube Music is available on the wrist-borne wearables operating system. And it isn’t just bringing easy music controls either.
Instead, Google says it’s working to ensure that even robust features such as smart downloads are available at launch. And that, at the very least, means that users should be able to listen to a wealth of media whether they’re presently connected to their smartphone or not.
This isn’t just about YouTube Music in Wear OS
Of course, Google isn’t focusing solely on YouTube Music either for this update. In fact, it plans to overhaul several other of its own apps such as Maps, Assistant, and Pay. Google Pay, in particular, is gaining new regions too, becoming available in an additional 26 countries alongside the redesign.
Conversely, Google’s acquisition of Fitbit has become more clear with the announcement too, well beyond just the addition of YouTube Music to Wear OS. Fitbit’s long-standing, highly-regarded health tracking features will be making their way over too. Including through-day health progress and on-wrist motivational celebrations when goals are passed.
All of which stacks atop new tools from a new Tiles API for easier tile-building for developers. To a new watch face design editor built by Samsung and more. Thanks, at least in part, to yesterday’s announcement that Tizen watches are effectively on the way out.
When exactly is this coming?
For now, Google has only more generally stated that YouTube Music, and the other app redesigns, are headed to Wear OS “later this year.” That doesn’t give end-users much to go on, to start. And there’s also no guarantee that any individual OEM or model will receive the update. But this is certainly just one among many changes that the platform has needed for quite some time.