WhatsApp lets users reply to messages from Android Wear

WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger will receive interactive support for Android Wear, the release of Google’s mobile operating system on smartwatches. With the support, users can answer ‘apps’ from the wrist.

WhatsApp offers the option to reply via voice input, but users can also choose common replies such as ‘no’, ‘yes’ and ‘haha’. Until now WhatsApp notifications on Android Wear were static notifications that the phone automatically passes on as other notifications. The current version of WhatsApp in the Play Store does not yet have the function, but the test version that WhatsApp has on its own site does have support for Android Wear.

Earlier, Facebook already built Android Wear support in its chat application Messenger, while Google, of course, already made Hangouts work on watches with its own mobile operating system at the release. The first Android Wear watches came out a month ago.

Android Wear can pass notifications from the phone to the watch by default, but more advanced functionality such as responding to messages is only possible if developers adapt their app to it. Google has not yet commented on how the sale of Wear smartwatches is going. The watches cost around 200 euros.

Images: AndroidWorld.IT