Nest kills its Wear OS app in latest update

Developers have shown general disinterest in creating apps for Wear OS, but you’d expect Google to at least make an effort. Well, the Nest division is dropping all pretense of caring about wearables. The Wear OS (and Apple Watch) components are dead in the latest version of the Nest app.

The Wear OS module of Nest previously let you change thermostat settings, switch between home and away, and more. However, it lacked integration with many of Nest’s newer products. The changelog doesn’t say anything about removing the wearable features, but the watch app doesn’t even load if you try to open it. Instead, you get a notification that the smartwatch functionality is gone, and you should uninstall the app.

This development doesn’t bode well for Wear OS, but it could be worse. Nest killed the Apple Watch app at the same time, and that device is undeniably much more successful than Google’s wearable platform. So, Nest isn’t targeting Wear in particular. You can still control Nest devices from the watch using Assistant, and voice commands offer more functionality than the Wear OS app ever did.