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Google begins supporting Apple Watch with News & Weather app

Google begins supporting Apple Watch with News & Weather app

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Well, at least it's a start

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Google has started to update its apps for the Apple Watch, and the first one to get the treatment is News & Weather. Yes, it seems we'll have to wait a bit longer for favorites like Gmail (or Inbox), Search, Calendar, Hangouts, and Google+. But News & Weather is a decent fit for Apple's smartwatch. The release notes don't promise much, only saying that the app is now "ready for Apple Watch." So what can it do? Well, you can basically forget about the weather side of things. As best we can tell, News & Weather only offers news on the Apple Watch, letting you swipe between the day's top headlines. You can turn the digital crown to see an accompanying photo, but only headlines are here; you won't be reading full news stories on your wrist.

Tapping on a story does absolutely nothing, which feels a bit strange. But you can Force Touch for an option to add that news item to Safari's reading list. Obviously there are plenty of other choices for news headlines on Apple's wearable; you've also got NYT Now, CNN, Circa, and still more to pick from. But if nothing else, this update shows that Google isn't ignoring the Apple Watch entirely. Hopefully the company's next few apps can do a bit more than this one.