Apple blames technical limitations on Apple Watch not supporting Android - internal emails do not match

 

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Apple Watch is known to not support Android smartphones at all. (Image source: Apple)

The Apple Watch has avoided compatibility with Android for nearly a decade. Apple claims this is due to technical limitations, but internal emails from 2019 suggest it was to protect Apple's iPhone sales and ecosystem.

Apple recently got into trouble with the US Department of Justice over alleged monopolistic practices. We have discussed this in detail here. One of the issues raised in the federal lawsuit concerns Apple's lack of support for third-party smartwatches. This lack of support forces customers to turn to the Apple Watch, which is not compatible with Android at all.

In its response to the lawsuit [PDF] (via 9to5Mac), Apple said it worked for three years to bring Android support to the Apple Watch, but failed due to technical limitations. It's difficult to know exactly what technical limitations Apple faces, although more information is likely to emerge as the lawsuit progresses. Other evidence presented in the lawsuit and previous reports suggests a deliberate desire to abandon Android support for the Apple Watch in order to protect Apple's legendary walled garden.

Towards the end of last year, rumors circulated that Apple was working on Android compatibility for the Apple Watch, but ultimately dropped compatibility to protect its own ecosystem and its iPhone sales. 

In fact, the Justice Department's lawsuit cites a 2019 email in which Apple's vice president of product marketing said his Apple Watch "could help deter iPhone customers from switching." It is also stated that: Compatibility with Android would "remove the differentiating factor of the iPhone."

It seems like companies like Google and Samsung have even stopped supporting his Apple iOS devices these days because Apple doesn't support third-party smartwatches. 

Source(s)

Bloomberg, 9to5Mac, US District Court of New Jersey [PDF], The Verge