How to Participate
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- Understand the guidelines +
- Develop a great app for Wear +
- Test for Wear App Quality +
- Opt-in +
- Track your review +
You Should Also Read
+ + ++ If you've got a great app, Android Wear and Google Play can help you bring it to users. While all + apps are able to send basic notifications to Android Wear devices, you can go much further. + Extend your apps to support custom Wear interactions and offer a refined, engaging user + experience across all Wear devices. If your apps meet core app quality guidelines on handsets and + provide a high-quality experience for Android Wear devices, Google Play will showcase your apps + for easy discovery. +
+ ++ To get started, review the sections in this document to learn how to distribute your Wear apps + to users through Google Play. Be sure to read Wear App Quality for information on + the usability and quality standards that your apps should meet. When your app is ready, you can + opt-in for designation as an Android Wear app from the Developer Console. +
+ ++ How to Participate +
+ ++ Google Play lets you make your Wear apps more discoverable for Wear users. You can develop and + publish using your existing Developer Console account and your current distribution and pricing + settings. It's easy to participate — the sections below outline the process. +
+ ++ 1. Understand guidelines and requirements +
+ +
++ To prepare for a successful launch on Android Wear, start by reviewing the guidelines for + creating great app experiences on Wear. See the Android + Wear design guidelines for ideas on extending your app for Wear and details on design and + usability. +
+ ++ As you get started designing your Wear experience, make sure to read and understand the quality + criteria for Wear apps. Only apps that are usable on Wear will be designated as Wear apps on + Google Play — your apps can participate if they meet a set of basic quality criteria. See Wear App Quality for details. +
+ +2. Develop a great app for Wear
+ ++Once you have read the guidelines, the next step is to develop your app. The following sections +describe how to start building a great app experience for Wear. +
+ +Design first
+ ++ Android Wear aims to provide users with just the right information at just the right time. Great + Android Wear experiences are launched automatically, glanceable, and + require zero or low user interaction. Although all apps can send basic notifications to Wear + devices without any modification, great apps built for Wear are refined to offer a polished and + high-quality experience, work on different screen layouts, and deliver a compelling feature set + for users. +
+ ++ As you consider your Wear app, review the developer documentation and usability guidelines and plan on utilizing them to the + greatest extent possible. You can design a great notification experience for users with the APIs + provided in the SDK and support library. You may also choose to build an app that runs directly + on the wearable. +
+ +Package your app
+ ++ We recommend that you deliver your Wear experience as part of your existing app for phones, + tablets, and other devices, using the same package name and store listing. This lets users + upgrade to your Wear experience seamlessly and also lets you take advantage of the reviews and + ratings you’ve earned in your app for phones and tablets. For wearable apps that depend on an + app for functionality, you should always package it within that app. To learn how, read Packaging Wearable Apps. +
+ +Test on a variety of devices
+ ++ Throughout design and development, it's important to have suitable devices on which to prototype + and test your user experience. It's highly recommended that you acquire one or more Android Wear + devices or develop with different emulator configurations and set up your testing environment as + early as possible. It’s important that you optimize your design on both square and round layouts. +
+ +3. Test for Wear App Quality
+ ++ Your Wear apps should be designed to perform well and look great on Android Wear, and they should + offer the best user experience possible. Google Play will showcase selected high-quality Wear + apps for easy discovery. Here’s how you can participate and deliver an Android Wear app that + users will enjoy: +
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- Meet Core App Quality guidelines
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- Follow Android Design + guidelines. Pay special attention to using material + design in your app. + + +
- Test your apps against the Core App Quality + guidelines. + +
+ - Meet Wear App
+ Quality criteria
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- Follow our best practices for + Wear app development +
- Make sure your app meets all of the Wear App Quality criteria +
+
4. Opt-in to Android Wear and publish
+ ++ When you've built your release-ready APK and tested to ensure that it meets all of the Wear App Quality criteria, upload it + to the Developer Console. Update your store listing with Wear screenshots and set distribution + options as needed. If you aren't familiar with how to prepare for launch on Google Play, see the + Launch Checklist. +
+ ++ Before you publish to users, you may opt-in to Android Wear from the Pricing and + Distribution section of the Developer Console. Opt-in means that you want your app to + be made more discoverable to Android Wear users through Google Play, and that your app meets Wear App Quality criteria. +
+ ++ After you've opted-in and saved changes, you can publish your app as usual. In addition, Google + Play submits your app for review against the Wear App Quality criteria and + notifies you of the result. See the next section for details on how to track the approval status + of your app. +
+ ++ If your app meets all Wear App + Quality criteria, Google Play makes it more discoverable to Android Wear users. Your app is + also eligible for higher-visibility featuring in app collections and promotions. +
+ ++ Note that opt-in and review do not affect the availability of your app in the Google Play Store + — your app is available as soon as you publish. +
+ ++ Here are the steps to opt-in to Android Wear in the Developer Console: +
+ +-
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- Make sure your app meets all Wear App Quality criteria + + +
- Add Wear screenshots to the app’s store listing + + +
- In the All Applications page, click the app you want to opt-in. + + +
- Under Pricing and Distribution, scroll down to find Android Wear + and the opt-in checkbox. + + +
- Click the checkbox next to Distribute your app to Android Wear. + + +
- Click Save to save your Pricing and Distribution changes. + +
+ + Opt-in for Wear: Include your app in Android Wear by opting-in from the + Developer Console. +
+5. Track your review and approval
+ ++ If your app meets the technical and quality criteria for Android Wear, as described above, your + app will be made more discoverable for users on Android Wear. If your app doesn’t meet the + criteria, you’ll receive a notification email sent to your developer account + address, with a summary of the areas that you need to address. When you’ve made the + necessary adjustments, you can upload a new version of your app to the Developer Console. +
+ ++ At any time, you can check the review and approval status of your app in the Developer Console, + under Android Wear in the app's Pricing and Distribution + page. +
+ ++ There are three approval states: +
+ +-
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- + Pending — Your app was sent for review and the review is not yet complete. + + +
- + Approved — Your app was reviewed and approved. The app will be made more discoverable + to Android Wear users. + + +
- + Not approved — Your app was reviewed and not approved. Check the notification email + for information about why the app was not approved. You can address any issues and opt-in and + publish again to initiate another review. + +
To understand how your apps are evaluated, please see the Wear App Quality document.
+ + +