The Huawei Watch is one of the best Android Wear smartwatches available (not counting the Moto 360, of course), but it doesn’t come with speaker support. The lack of speaker support means that, while you can do a number of things from your Huawei Watch, you can’t take or make calls on your wrist; you have to use your Android smartphone or iPhone currently. A new test build for the upcoming Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update for the Huawei Watch, however, shows that the Chinese manufacturer behind the device is looking to increase the smartwatch’s functionality by bringing speaker support.
“Yesterday night I noticed my Huawei Watch received an OTA update but I didn’t get to install it until this morning since it took so long to download. This is a TEST BUILD so I don’t think others will be getting it until the stable release.
A quick test before work showed that the speaker indeed works. So far I see that you can set a ringtone for phone calls and making phone calls on the watch itself works,” Reddit member ThirdTimeCaller submitted at the social site a few days ago.
Huawei’s decision to bring speaker support via the new Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow test build for Android Wear version 1.4 shows that Google’s decision to bring speaker support to all Android Wear devices is part of the company’s decision to bring cellular support to Android Wear. Only cellular-supported devices bearing 3G and 4G connectivity can make calls on the wrist, so Google must provide an update to enable the hardware before these devices can receive cellular support (if they can; that is a decision that is up to Google). The LG Watch Urbane LTE, Second Edition, had speaker support but was cancelled due to unknown hardware issues.
For those who don’t plan on getting a cellular-connected Android Wear smartwatch, though, you’ll have the added benefit of selecting ringtones and talking on your Android Wear watch while your phone is tethered to it – which will help Bluetooth-connected smartwatch users. I still insist that 3G/4G-connected smartwatches provide the most freedom of any out there, but added capabilities on Bluetooth-connected smartwatches can’t hurt.
Huawei is already planning a second-generation Huawei Watch, with the company adding a feminine watch in the 2016 collection.
