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Pixel phones can use Wear OS smartwatches as a camera viewfinder

Pixel phones can use Wear OS smartwatches as a camera viewfinder

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The new Google Camera app for Pixel 3 phones touts a lot of widely publicized features like the wide-angle selfie camera and updated AR stickers, but another lesser-known feature is that it can add a remote viewfinder to any smartwatch running Wear OS. The Google Camera Wear OS app also adds a timer and flip camera button. The new feature was first spotted by Redditor AimarChirico, via Android Police.

The feature is a big improvement over the last Wear OS Camera app, which only allowed for remote photo taking. It seems particularly useful for framing photos taken by a phone set up on a tripod. The viewfinder feature also reportedly works with your phone screen turned off.

The latest Google Camera 6.1 update is now rolling out to Pixel 1, 2, and Nexus phones as well. If the app isn’t showing up on your watch, Redditor Neuromatico suggests opening the Play Store from your watch, scrolling to “Apps on your phone,” and installing the Camera.