The 12 Best Things You Can Do with Android Wear Smartwatch

Android Wear OS is nothing very simple. This OS for wearable devices comes with a lot of stuff you can do around with it, and the LG G Watch we are using right now, has got some excellent options, which one can take advantage of. And do things without using your hand because most of the functions are done with Google Voice.

Do note that you will have to keep your Android Wear smartwatch connected to a smartphone with the data network / Wi-Fi turned on, if these things are to work properly.

Navigate to Any Place

Earlier, it was the standard opening of Google Maps in the smartphone, trying to place it somewhere in the car where you can view it and search for the directions. But now, with Android Wear, it is all easy. Say “Ok Google” and then “Navigate to (any place name),” it would automatically open the Maps app and search for the place and directions, and the little screen on the smartwatch would show you the directions to the place. How easy and cool? A live navigator on your wrist.

Get notified if you forget your phone

There are already a lot of apps available for the Android Wear OS, and one of the most useful and neat apps is the Wear Aware application, which would vibrate and notify you if at all the connection between your smartwatch and smartphone is lost. And this happens only if you are doing it manually, or if you moved to a distance where the Bluetooth connection between the two devices can not happen. That is when it would make you aware of the same, and you can go back, find and take the phone.

Set reminders quickly and get notified on your wrist

Setting up reminders is something that can be done very easily. You just have to say “Ok Google, remind me to (whatever you want to be reminded of, at what time). For example, “Ok Google, remind me to go for lunch at 1:00 p.m.) and that gets saved. The watch would vibrate and remind you at that exact time.

Take notes and save to Keep app in the phone

Taking down notes by just speaking it out is very much possible on the Android Wear smartwatch. What you need is the Google Keep app that saves the notes, and if you don’t have it installed, it doesn’t get lost anywhere because you will receive a mail of the same. Just saying “Ok Google, take a note, (whatever you wanted to save)” and it would save it instantly.

Count your steps (shows step count done by the watch)

Your daily activity, i.e. the number of steps you walked can be checked anytime. Once the steps counter is activated, you will just have to say “Ok Google, show me my steps” and the steps count with the history and stats of the same.

Play Games

That isn’t possible in the way you could do it on a smartphone because there is a difference obviously. But still, playing games on your Android Wear powered smartwatch is very much possible. There is a game called Paddle Pro that we played, and it worked perfectly on the watch. You could start it on your wear device directly by saying “Ok Google, start Paddle Pro” and it would. The other way to do it is by triggering it to start from your smartphone, by going into the app.

Get Alerts for Fire, and a lot more – thanks to IFTTT

Picture credit: Pocketnow.com

IFTTT (If this, then that) is one of such apps that does automation a lot easier. It connects several apps and get things done. Using the Android Wear watch, you can trigger it to work with the home automation products such as Philips Hue lights, Nest Thermostat and such. For example, if there is a fire alarm triggered with Nest Protect, it would send a notification right away to your Android Wear smartwatch. Not that this is the best solution, but at least helpful when you are not around and not checking the phone for the alerts.

Similarly, you can trigger the smartwatch to switch off the Philips Hue lights if at all you are using them.

As a Remote for your Android Smartphone Camera

It is one of the best ways you can use your Android Wear smartwatches. Even when your Android smartphone screen is turned off, you can control it and capture clicks by viewing the preview on your smartwatch screen. Beautiful, simply perfect and easy for some spying, probably?

Find your Phone

It is quite different from the “forgot your phone, get notified” thing that we shared above. There’s an app called “Find my Phone” which does a lot more than Wear Aware, because once you are not very near to the place, you are anyways notified by the app. But you can try to make the phone play some alarm and turn the flashlight on, if it went down hidden in some couch and you weren’t able to find it that easily.

Use as a Calculator

There are loads of apps already, and you can use them on your Android Wear smartwatch, by just installing the app on your smartphone connected to it. Calculator is quite necessary many times for simple calculations, and would you like it to pull out the smartphone from the pocket and use it for that reason? Smart watch is cool and easy option.

A tiny but useful Calendar

Similar to the above one, you can use your Android smart watch as a Calendar, with the simple and good monthly view which is good and quick enough to check dates and days.

As a compass

A company is needed many a times. Thanks to the built-in compass in the Android Wear watches (all of them which are available already), you can activate and start using the compass that works pretty well.

There’s a lot more you can do with your Android Wear smartwatch. This list is endless. You can even control your smartphone functions, a few using IFTTT, and there are endless possibilities, thanks to the Android OS and Android Wear OS syncing!