![\"Galaxy](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Galaxy-Watch-6-vs-Pixel-Watch-2-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"Galaxy")
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Kaitlyn Cimino \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n
Smartwatches<\/a> didn\u2019t just happen overnight, and we\u2019ve seen a lot of different attempts at making them work in the years leading up to what we have now. Some of those very early efforts were basically just tiny phones that would awkwardly strap to your wrist, but eventually we moved into our modern era of intentional, watch-first designs.<\/p>\n Even there, we\u2019ve seen a lot of variation in the decade-plus since getting Android Wear (and now, Wear OS). Early efforts like the LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live used rectangular screens, before the Moto 360 and its oh-so-nearly circular \u201cflat tire\u201d display started introducing us to the possibilities of smartwatches that were round.<\/p>\n While Apple\u2019s still running strong with its rectangular watches, the Android world feels like it\u2019s largely committed to shifting its focus over to circular screens. From the Galaxy Watch to the Pixel Watch series, we\u2019re looking at round displays everywhere we turn \u2014 even as we recently checked out evidence of Samsung thinking about a \u201csquircle\u201d shape for Galaxy Watch 8 models<\/a>, the company seems content to keep the screen round.<\/p>\n Kaitlyn Cimino \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Is that the way things have to be, though? Are we stuck with a market where if you want a modern, reasonably mainstream Wear OS device, there\u2019s really no rectangular option? Round or nothing?<\/p>\n Let\u2019s pretend for a second that this isn\u2019t the world we live in, and you have your pick of choices when it comes to both styles of smartwatch shape. Which are you going for?<\/p>\n If you had to buy a Wear OS smartwatch, which shape would you prefer?<\/p>\n 714 votes<\/p>\n Round: Classic watch look<\/p>\n 68%<\/p>\n Square: More screen, easier to read<\/p>\n 19%<\/p>\n No preference: I care more about features<\/p>\n 14%<\/p>\n Technically, Wear OS still claims to be happy to support alternate watch shapes<\/a>, but especially now with Material 3 Expressive<\/a> on the horizon, we\u2019re increasingly curious about the long-term prospects of anything other than round screens. After all, when that\u2019s the de facto standard, and everything from Wear OS UI elements to third-party apps are primarily targeting circular displays, anything breaking from that pattern is going to look \u201coff\u201d at best.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re still carrying a torch for Apple Watch-style square designs, give a shout out for your favorite rectangular Wear OS model in the comments. We can\u2019t promise that your options are ever going to get any better, but we can always dream, right?<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Google-Pixel-Watch-vs-Galaxy-Watch-5-Series-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"Google")
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