Android Wear updates take on Apple Watch

Apple, like it or not, is the tour de force of product segment direction. While other companies often beat Apple to release, the market never seems to take form until consumers react with their wallets and social conversation to Apple's products in the wild.

With Apple Watch's launch Friday, the battle for smartwatch supremacy is unofficially underway.

Online pre-orders for Apple Watch seem strong, with the initial shipments of most Apple Watch models selling through Day One availability quickly. Apple's website now offers availability dates in June for online orders of most models, with talk being that Apple Watch might not be purchasable in brick-and-mortar Apple stores until June, either.

Availability constraints and heavy demand might be good news for Apple Watch competitors with products out now, as any delay gives them more time to put their product in front of a hungry tech audience.

Here's what Android Wear, one of Apple's wearable competitors, has coming:

Android Wear

Android Wear isn't a specific device, but rather a version of the Android operating system for wearables. Popular watches running Android Wear include the Asus ZenWatch, LG G Watch R and Motorola Moto 360, among others.

Early Android Wear devices have been capable, but Google is hoping to expand the platform's feature set and breathe new life into existing devices with a major software update.

The Android Wear update activates Wi-Fi connectivity for wearables with Wi-Fi built-in, meaning that messages and notifications can be delivered to the wearable even when not in range of the "host" smartphone.

Connectivity with Google's cloud services means that the wearable will also be able to communicate with the "host" phone when the two devices are far away and on different Wi-Fi networks. I can't imagine it would be often that a consumer into technology enough to have a smartwatch would find themselves that far from their phone, but it's a nice feature to have nonetheless.

With the update, developers also can choose to make apps stay "always on" on the smartwatch face, which can be helpful for navigation or note apps that you might want to stay open for a while. To save battery, these apps go black and white when the device doesn't think it's being looked at.

The new Android Wear also has a few gesture and communication upgrades. Users can navigate cards and parts of the interface with wrist-flicking gestures, as well as send emojis by sketching them on the watch face.

Apple Watch is going to be the wearables juggernaut, so it's important that Android Wear be quick and responsive with software and feature updates. These updates are a good start; hopefully they take note of what is and isn't working with wearables and continue to keep the platform moving.

Look for this Android Wear update to be available in a few weeks.

Evolving market

Apple and Google have done a good job trying to preload their watch platforms with apps and features they think consumers will find important, but we're not really going to find out the best use for these devices until a wide variety of the public gets a chance to integrate them into daily use.

I expect the market for wearables to evolve rapidly, especially since third-party apps are involved right off the bat. Apple and its partners provided great built-in apps, but it wasn't until the iPhone supported third-party apps that the smartphone became a disruptive force that transcended simply supporting phone calls and Web browsing.

The creativity and experiences of the collective will always be greater than any single content provider. As much as the major companies will market and push how they think the devices should be used, consumers and developers are going to ultimately dictate the direction of wearables.

This is the opinion of Times Online Project Specialist Andrew Fraser. He's on Twitter at @andrewfraser.