Yesterday Google announced the new operating system for smart watches connected to Android phones. It will be the basis for pedometers and pulse detectors and other wearables. It is roughly based on Google Glasses research but made to be easy to use and supply relevant information from Google Now (weather, time,  flight info, driving times and directions and traffic snarls, game scores that you want to follow, texts received), and the ability to respond to texts by saying “respond” and dictating your response. You can say “ok Google” and request answers to the usual simple questions like the population of Vermont or the color of George Clooney’s eyes. You can ask for a Mexican restaurant or a taxi. And you will be able (soon) to interface with home devices like the garage opener.

The display will be minimalist 180×180 with the shapes demonstrated either square or round, about the size of a silver dollar.

A handful of developers are on-board, like Motorola, ASUS and LG, and a handful of others. Even (fashionable) watch maker Fossil.

Some could come out in a few months but the best and cheapest may take till close to the end of the year.

There are few technical details announced. It will only connect to Android phones for features other than time. You will have to use the Google Now app for most of the features. Later versions of the operating system (Jelly Bean or KitKat) have the ability to pass info through the interface that Google Now uses. This would be for pedometers and home alarm apps.

The latest versions talk using a later version of bluetooth that communicates in bursts and maintains a low-power connection when it’s not doing anything.

I’ve seen no reference to the watch being able to speak, so it probably won’t. No phone calls. You could probably read the caller ID on the watch. Not sure what kind of data connection would be required for caller ID.

Maybe some sort of text-to-voice translator is in the works, but don’t hold your breath just yet. It will let you read (not hear) texts sent to you and if you say “reply” you can dictate a response and it (presumably) is sent as a real-time voice reply to the same circuitry in your phone which probably has to be connected to a data plan via wifi or telco data plan to complete the reply.

To again mention the obvious, the phone has to be Android and in your pocket or purse nearby. So “wearables” have to be associated with a phone or tablet nearby that has a data connection. But unless you’re making a phone call, you can leave the phone in your brief case or messenger case. Presumably you could go a long way with just a tablet connected to a data plan or one of those pay-as-you go devices that deliver wifi converted to the phone data, like the boy that T-Mobile would hook you up with.

There are rumors of a 2 or 3 day battery life. I, personally would like a wireless charging station. No talk of that yet.

Looks and battery life will be the horse race. Don’t buy the first one out of the gate this year. Google will compete later in the year with a Nexus device and they traditionally have a very decent price.

The details of whether you can update the software or add any “apps” are sketchy. Probably “NO” at first. Having a bluetooth connection MAY be enough without a physical connector. (I hate connectors!) At this point I can IMAGINE no connector and a wireless charger…..

I’ll let you know when I find out.

We’re getting stronger rumors about an LG nexus smart watch in June. Keep your fingers crossed.