This feature is rolling out in this month’s Play services update ahead of the Pixel Watch launch
Google first announced Fast Pair for Android 6.0+ devices in 2017. The proprietary standard makes pairing Bluetooth devices to your phone a one-step process. After slow industry adoption, the feature has made a comeback of sorts over the last couple of years with rapid improvements and broader device compatibility. In 2020, Fast Pair was upgraded to find lost wireless earbuds and check on the battery level of connected devices. Then, at CES 2022, Google announced Fast Pair is coming to Chromebooks, Android TVs, and smart home gadgets for easy pairing. Adding to that list, the big G is now bringing Fast Pair to Wear OS devices.
The updated June 2022 Google System Updates changelog from Google mentions that Fast Pair is now available on Wear OS devices.
[Wear OS] Fast Pair on Wear OS to allows previously paired headphones to be discovered and connected to wearables.[5]
Since Fast Pair syncs all paired Bluetooth earbuds to your Google account, they should also automatically show up on your Wear OS watch now. It is unclear if Google is bringing the proprietary standard to all Wear OS devices or only to newer Wear OS 3 smartwatches.
Nonetheless, once Fast Pair lands on your wearable, you can easily pair it with your wireless earbuds and listen to music during your workout session. And if your headphones support multipoint — like the upcoming Pixel Buds Pro — you should be able to switch between your phone and smartwatch seamlessly. Multipoint is a common feature among the best wireless earbuds on the market.
Additionally, as spotted by 9to5Google, Google’s online store mentions Fast Pair compatibility on the Pixel Watch’s product page as a “quick and easy [way] to connect your earbuds, watch, and phone with each other.” This should theoretically make setting up Google’s upcoming wearable a breeze, presumably using the Pixel Watch app.
Fast Pair is coming to Wear OS devices through the Google Play services v22.24 update, which started rolling out on June 24.
