Last month, Samsung launched the Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra with One UI 6 Watch. The company is preparing to roll out the new One UI version to its older watches, all the way back to the Galaxy Watch 4 series. It may soon follow up with another One UI update for the wearables, including the latest models. Google already has Wear OS 5.1 in development.
Your Galaxy Watch could get a new One UI update with Wear OS 5.1
One UI 6 Watch is the latest version of Samsung’s custom watch platform based on Wear OS. The latest build builds upon Wear OS 5, which itself runs Android 14 at its core. Since Google’s Wear OS release schedule isn’t consistent, Android 14 powering Wear OS 5 isn’t an issue. Wear OS 3 debuted in August 2021 with Android 11 at its core. Google followed with Wear OS 3.5 in early 2022 without upgrading the Android version.
With Wear OS 4 last year, Google jumped big to Android 13. There was no Wear OS 4.5, and the Android 14-based Wear OS 5 debuted last month. It appears Google wants to keep a consistent release cycle for its watch platform in the future, matching it with Android OS. And the journey might begin with Wear OS 5.1, which is in development with Android 15 underneath. Android Authority was recently tipped about it.
Google is currently testing Wear OS 5.1 on the Pixel Watch 2. Some technical tidbits about the new version reveal it has similar build IDs to “regular Android builds” for phones. The plan might be to upgrade the watch platform to Android 15 and then follow a yearly cycle — Wear OS 6 with Android 16, and so on. Unfortunately, details are scarce to confirm it all. Google could still scrap Wear OS 5.1 and move to Wear OS 6 next year.
But if it is serious about rolling out Wear OS 5.1 with Android 15 in tow, expect Samsung to come up with a new One UI update for its watches. It could be One UI 6.1 Watch or One UI 6.5 Watch. Things should get clearer in the coming months. The Wear OS 5-based One UI 6 Watch update for Galaxy Watch 6, Watch 5, and Watch 4, meanwhile, should arrive later this month. We will let you know when the rollout begins.
