Google reportedly prepping Wear OS Beta Program

Google may soon expand its Android Beta Program beyond Pixel phones to watches and tablets.

As spotted by 9to5Google, the page source for Google’s Android Beta Program website includes references to a “Wear OS Beta Program.” Further, the references mention two devices, the Wi-Fi and the cellular variants of the Pixel Watch.

This strongly suggests Google is cooking up a version of its beta program to test new software on its smartwatches. It’d make sense, given Google’s renewed commitment to Wear OS and smartwatches (and is perhaps a good sign the company plans to stick with it long term).

However, some of the details remain murky at best. Presumably, the Wear OS Beta Program will work similarly to the Android Beta Program, allowing users to enroll eligible smartwatches tied to their Google account and receive beta updates over-the-air (OTA) directly on the watch.

But it’s not clear when the feature will become available or even the timeline for beta updates. On the Android side, Google starts with Developer Previews early in the year before shifting to beta releases around May, usually before its annual I/O developer conference. 9to5 notes that since Wear OS 4 is based on Android 13, it might make sense for it to launch later in the fall after the Android 14 release.

Beyond the Wear OS Beta Program references, the Beta Program website’s ‘Your eligible devices’ section tweaked the text to say “Android Devices” instead of phones. This paves the way for more devices to get Beta Programs, like the Pixel Watch or even the Pixel Tablet.

Source: 9to5Google