Google announced the Android Wear 2.0 last May at the Google I/O 2016 conference and the Developer Preview soon rolled out. We knew it’s only a matter of time before the latest version of the wearable platform is released for most smartwatch users. We already noted that some devices may not be eligible for the update for some reasons like the LG G Watch and the first-gen Moto 360. It sucks if you own any of those two models but that also means you can buy any of the latest smartwatches so you can enjoy the on-screen keyboard and standalone apps among others.
Google is still working on the new Android Wear and the developer community has been a big help in building the product and identifying several issues. The goal is to squash annoying bugs to be ready for commercial release.
The next developer preview of the Android Wear 2.0 is now available with new features and fixes. If you’re interested to help the Android Wear team, feel free to send your feedback. Who knows, the devs may listen to you and the next functionality to be introduced is your genius idea.
The latest Android Wear 2.0 Developer Preview includes the ‘Platform API 24’. This one already matches the new Android Nougat (Android 7.0). Google recommends that you update ‘targetSdkVersion’ and ‘compileSdkVersion’ to API 24. You can also now use the drawer_content and peek_view attributes to WearableDrawerView. Update the navigation drawer with ‘notifyDataSetChanged’ so you can begin creating custom wearable drawers. All these Wearable Drawers enhancements can be integrated with the navigation drawer and action drawer.
In Preview 2, the wearable drawer peeking gets additional support, navigation drawer closure, and automatic peek view. Wrist Gestures have also been updated as a result of opening the platform to more developers, allowing them to use the feature within their own apps. This change enables single hand usage.
The newest Android Wear 2.0 Developer Preview is ready for the Huawei Watch, LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition LTE, and the official Android emulator. More information are available on the Android Wear 2.0 Developer Preview site.
SOURCE: Android Developers Blog
