Montblanc Summit 3 would be the first Wear OS 3 smartwatch for iOS

The forthcoming Montblanc Summit 3 is not going to solely run Wear OS 3, nevertheless it’ll be the primary smartwatch on the brand new unified platform to assist iOS — form of.

The information — initially reported by Wareable — was confirmed to The Verge by Qualcomm spokesperson Lauren Miller. The Summit 3 isn’t the primary smartwatch to be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear 4100 Plus platform, however it’s the first to launch with Wear OS 3 already put in. The proven fact that it additionally helps iOS is a big departure from different confirmed Wear OS 3 watches. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 lineup and the forthcoming Google Pixel Watch, for instance, are unique to Android customers.

Older Wear OS 2 and Samsung Tizen-powered smartwatches, whereas by no means extremely common with iPhone house owners, do work with iOS. Wear OS 2 watches operating on the 4100 Plus chipset might be upgraded to Wear OS 3 later this yr — although it’s nonetheless unclear whether or not they’ll nonetheless be iOS-compatible as soon as upgraded. The proven fact that the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and the Pixel Watch eschewed iOS hinted that Wear OS 3 could be a closed ecosystem. However, Montblanc’s resolution to assist iPhone customers means that different Wear OS watchmakers like Fossil and Mobvoi might observe swimsuit for future watches and even retain some type of iOS compatibility when upgrading older watches.

According to Miller, the Summit 3 may have a devoted companion app on each iOS and Android that may act as a “bridge between phone and watch.” That additionally hints that Fossil and Mobvoi might also need to develop their very own apps in the event that they wish to hold iOS customers within the combine.

But simply because the Summit 3 will work with iPhones, that doesn’t imply iOS customers will get the identical Wear OS 3 expertise as Android customers.

“Our priority for Wear OS 3 is to focus on quality experiences within the Android ecosystem,” Google spokesperson Ivy Chen Hunt informed The Verge. “The Montblanc Summit 3 will run Wear OS 3 and be compatible with iPhones. However, support for apps and experiences will vary by phone platform.” Hunt went on to elucidate that Google helps iOS with apps and providers like YouTube Music and notifications mirroring and that the corporate plans to develop assist sooner or later.

Given that, it’s most likely protected to imagine that Wear OS 3 received’t be fairly pretty much as good on iPhones — a minimum of, not at first. We received’t know the way precisely the iOS expertise will differ till the Montblanc Summit 3 launches on July fifteenth. That stated, the watch prices an eye-watering €1,250 (roughly $1,300). So whereas the Summit 3 is technically the primary iOS-compatible Wear OS 3 watch, you may be higher off ready for extra reasonably priced choices from Fossil or Mobvoi, which might arrive later this fall.