Google rebrands Android Wear as Wear OS

Android Wear may be changing its image, according to a Reddit post by user H3x0n. Per the post, during the setup of an Android Wear watch (the post didn’t specify which), H3x0n was greeted with both a new icon and an unfamiliar name for the operating system.

The icon, a stylized “W” in Google’s trademark color scheme, looks like a mix between the Google Assistant icon we’re familiar with and the logo of Warner Bros. and HBO holding company, Warner Communications (although it’s safe to assume the latter is coincidental). That “W” stands for “Wear OS”—not to be confused with watchOS, the operating system the Apple Watch uses.

Android Wear was founded on the belief that wearable technology should be for everyone, no matter what style you wear on your wrist or what phone you have in your pocket. Since then, we’ve partnered with top watch and electronics brands to create more than 50 watches to help you manage your fitness, connect with the people who matter most, and show you the information you care about. The best part: We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible with wearables and there’s even more exciting work ahead.

As our technology and partnerships have evolved, so have our users. In 2017, one out of three new Android Wear watch owners also used an iPhone. So as the watch industry gears up for another Baselworld next week, we’re announcing a new name that better reflects our technology, vision, and most important of all—the people who wear our watches. We’re now Wear OS by Google, a wearables operating system for everyone. – Google Blog.