Google now sends earthquake alerts directly to Wear OS devices even when they’re not connected to a smartphone, according to the latest release notes for Google Play Services.
Google had made the earthquake notification system available in Android for Wear OS watches last year, but the notifications at that time were completely dependent on the phone, as the watch merely reflected the alert received from it.
Now, Google enables the watch to receive alerts independently, even if the phone moves away and the connection between the two devices is lost. However, it will likely require a direct internet connection, meaning the feature will mostly be limited to watches with cellular data support.
The earthquake alerts system relies on collecting sensor data from millions of phones around the world. When the phone’s accelerometer detects vibration possibly resulting from an earthquake, the data along with the approximate location is sent to Google’s servers.
When a large number of geographically close signals are received, the system generates an alert and sends it to users in the relevant area.
At the present time, it is not yet clear whether Google intends to benefit from the sensor data of the Wear OS watches themselves to support the system and enhance its accuracy in the future.
