A new CPU for Wear OS watches is coming soon

Wear OS watches could finally get the upgraded chip that they so desperately need (via 9to5Google). Qualcomm teased the possibility in a video posted to Twitter, indicating its next Snapdragon smartwatch chip is “coming soon.”

After Samsung and Google announced their collaboration on Wear OS 3 last summer, Qualcomm said it would roll out a new chip in the next year. It looks like Qualcomm’s following through on that promise, although we have no idea when it will launch. (Maybe Google will use it in its upcoming Pixel Watch).

Snapdragon chips power a number of Wear OS watches. But its most recent one, the Wear 4100 series, was only included in a handful of watches, including the TicWatch Pro 3, the lackluster Fossil Gen 6, and the pricey Montblanc Summit 3. It’s been about two years since the 4100’s initial launch, and Wear OS smartwatches are due for an upgrade (save for the Exynos W920-powered Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, the first to run Wear OS 3).

Rumors indicate that Qualcomm’s upcoming 5100 and 5100 Plus processors will be built on the Samsung 4-nanometer (nm) process. The smaller form factor could translate to better battery life and efficiency in comparison to the Exynos W920’s 5nm process and the Apple Watch Series 7 chip’s 7nm process. If true, this would also be a huge shift from the 12nm process used by the Wear 4100 and 4100 Plus.