Phandroid
Omate TrueSmart’s promise of Google Play Store support looks ominous
The smartwatch is nothing new, but the concept of a wrist smart device has been the cause of much talk lately. Among the most popular is the Omate TrueSmart, which is a big deal for a small company competing against Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony and the likes. Many say this is the smartwatch to have (which one are you getting?), but there may be a small issue that could bring the launch (and maybe even the company) down.
Omate recently went to Kickstarter for support (like many small companies have). This site is great for companies to make their ideas possible by allowing customers to back the product before it goes into production. Some great devices have become possible due to Kickstarter, and Omate is all set to be the next. It seems there will be some forks in the road, though.
The Omate TrueSmart and what makes it special
Despite multiple attempts, no manufacturer has managed to solve the equation for the perfect smartwatch. There is always something missing. The Omate TrueSmart promises a whole new concept. The device can stay alive for up to 100 hours (on standby) on a single charge, it has powerful specs, it is water resistant, features 3G connectivity and more.
Omate TrueSmart specifications
- 1.3 GHz dual-core Cortex A7 processor
- Android 4.2.2
- 1.54-inch TFT display (240 x 240)
- Multi-touch Capacitive Touch Screen
- 2G/3G/WiFi/bluetooth 4.0/GPS
- 5 MP camera
- Speaker & microphone
- 512MB + 4GB of internal storage (expandable by microSD 8/16/32GB)
- Micro SIM card slot
- 600 mAh battery (up to 100 hours standby)
- Messaging Hub: SMS/MMS/Email/SNS
- G-sensor (Accelerometer), E-Compass, Gyroscope, IP67
Indeed, the Omate TrueSmart is one smartwatch to love. This is a full-featured device, and that is what makes it special. The TrueSmart can be used as a completely standalone unit, as well as a companion device to your smartphone.
The Omate TrueSmart can be completely operated without ever being connected to a smartphone. In fact, Omate promises it won’t even need a secondary device for downloading and installing apps! It is advertised to comes with the Google Play Store out of the box. And that’s where the discrepancy lies.
What is the problem with the Omate TrueSmart?
Though Omate promises full compatibility with the Google Play Store, such feat could be impossible. Kevin Barry from TeslaCoil brought to our attention that the Omate TrueSmart has a 240x240p screen (ldpi: 320x320dp). This would be below Google’s requirements for passing the Play Store’s CTS (Compatibility Test Suite).
An Android device screen must be at least 426x320dp in order to officially get support from the Google Play Store (as per Android development documents). This argument was then verified by Google Android’s very own Dianne Hackborn. Does this mean it’s impossible for the device to run the Google Play Store? Not really.
Developers can find ways and workarounds to get the Play Store to run on any device. We have seen it happen countless times – but this is done by third-party developers, unofficially and without Google’s support.
Omate could get in HUGE legal trouble for officially releasing a non-qualified device with the Google Play Store. So what’s happening here?!
Umm… what’s going on, then?
All legalities aside, Omate seems to be really sure about their promise to bring the TrueSmart with Google Play Store support. What could be happening? Here are the only possible occurrences we can think of:
- Omate knows something we don’t, and Google might be changing its rules soon.
- Omate got some kind of green light from Google?
- Omate didn’t realize this requirement exists and will not be able to move forward (compatibility, lawsuits, etc.).
We would really hate to see the third option being correct. If they go ahead and just ship the TrueSmart with the Google Play Store, they will have problems with Google. And you don’t want an Android device that Google is not happy with.
On the other hand, if Omate strips the Play Store from the TrueSmart backers and customers will not be happy. After all, it is about the biggest factor that makes the TrueSmart truly special.
What do you think?
We are not sure exactly what is going to happen. Phandroid’s very own developer Steve Albright is now in talks with the Omate team trying to figure out what is going on. You can be sure we will let you know what is going on as soon as we find out, but please let us know what you think!
Maybe Google changing its rules to support smaller screens may make sense. After all, smartwatches are becoming very popular and it would be nice to see more options like the TrueSmart coming.
Meanwhile, you can go ahead and check out everything about the Omate Truesmart in the official site, as well as the Kickstarter page. We would hold off on backing the product until more is known, though. The smartwatch is great, but having Google’s support is a big deal. Some of you might not be worried about this, though.
If the resolution continues to be a problem, the best solution I could see is to change the display to a higher-resolution one. Of course, that is easier said than done. What do you say – do you think Google will work with Omate to make this possible? Is this whole situation just a ticking bomb?
Google Glass XE9 software update brings Vignettes, YouTube videos, sound search, and more
While Google Glass isn’t available for the public just yet, it’s up to the chosen few “Glass Explorers” to beta test the hardware during its formative years. During this beta period, Google Glass has been receiving monthly updates to the software. Right on schedule, we now have software version XE9 that is being pushed out to the headset. Like previous updates, XE9 introduces a handful of fun new features and tweaks. Let’s take a look at a few of those.
Vignettes
New for XE9 are Vignettes. Think of them as screenshots, vignettes are simply a fun way to share with others what the Glass wearing experience is like. This is done by superimposing a screenshot from Glass on top of a picture taken with the camera. The result is exactly how Glass wearers view the world #throughglass. Simply scroll to wherever you like in the Google Glass timeline — whether it be a news clip, Tweet, or weather — and press the camera button. The resulting picture displays like normal (allowing you to share it via social networks or add a caption), but with a new option to “Make vignette” is now available. Small, but neat feature for sharing on social networks.
YouTube videos
We had a hint that YouTube videos would be making their way to Google Glass a few weeks ago, we just didn’t know how they’d be implemented. In XE9, performing a quick Google search will now pull up the occasional YouTube video for your viewing pleasure. While not a standalone YouTube app, this latest feature is best suited for looking up how-to videos on a specific topic like tying a bow-tie or fixing a flat — you know, videos that can be watched while keeping your hands free to perform watch you’re watching.
You can further improve YouTube video results by adding “video on YouTube” at the end of a search query. Although not ideal for swimming through the endless ocean of user created content on YouTube (it’s only the first 10 search results), it’s still a welcomed addition. Thanks to XE8′s new video player controls, watching videos performs just as it should on Glass, with videos that can be fast forwarded or rewound using the touchpad.
We still find it odd that YouTube links sent from Twitter or via email, SMS, etc. aren’t viewable in Glass, putting a damper on the usefulness of the new YouTube feature.
Sound Search
Google’s Shazam-like Sound Search has also (finally) been added to Google Glass. To look up a song simply long press the touchpad on the side of the Glass hardware and swipe forwards. From there, Glass will listen for anything playing in your immediate vicinity, and pull up the result. Unfortunately, tagged songs are confined to your Glass timeline and do not appear to be synced in your Sound Search history. A big oversight, let’s hope that can be addressed in the near future.
Others
As with every update, a plethora of new Google Now cards have been added in XE9 — but still not all of them — and are pushed to the Glass headset automatically. Glass users can now find cards with transit schedules and directions, reminders performed through Glass (in addition to Keep reminders), as well as nearby attractions and photo spots. Google Apps support was also added in XE9, as well as improved search that can pull up snippets of trending news stories instead of a tiny search result. Lastly, a recent update to the MyGlass companion app that allows users to control Glass using while screencasting from their Android device is finally working thanks to XE9. Pretty nifty.
All in all, it looks like XE9 was a worthwhile update and although nothing truly ground breaking was introduced, the update is simply one of many that is slowly forming Glass into the mature wearable computing device we know it can be. Great work, Glass team.
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