OnePlus Watch officially confirmed by CEO Pete Lau

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The OnePlus smartwatch is still in development, CEO confirms

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
OnePlus Watch rumored to be round, like the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (above) (Image credit: Future)

After months of rumors that the OnePlus Watch was once again back in development, it has been officially confirmed by OnePlus CEO Pete Lau himself in an interview with Input.

While the company had previously abandoned its plans to release a smartwatch, the rumor mill was reignited around the launch of the OnePlus 8T by the brand itself with a tweeted tease featuring a sketched image of a wearable with the quote ‘What could have been but never will be. Sketches circa 2015,’ referring to its abandoned product. 

Sadly, Lau didn’t reveal why the company was back at work on a smartwatch in the far-ranging interview, nor any particular details on what a OnePlus watch would include to get the edge on today’s smartwatches. But he did tell Input that the company is working with Google to “try to improve the connectivity between the Wear OS ecosystem, Android TV, and Android smartphones to create this ability for better device interoperability across the ecosystems.”

This sounds a lot like chasing Apple’s level of interoperability – the seamless information handoff within its ecosystem that allows Messages, calls/FaceTime and now audio connectivity to flow between platforms. We’ll have to wait and see what this partnership can develop, but such close interworking suggests it will run Google’s Wear OS.

At least we know it’s really in development

That’s all for the new information on the OnePlus Watch, but official confirmation isn’t nothing. The rest is rumors: the smartwatch’s existence had been leaked in August, and further unconfirmed info suggested a rounded body design. Heck, another rumor suggested there was a OnePlus Watch Cyberpunk 2077 edition, presumably to go alongside the OnePlus 8T Cyberpunk 2077 Edition.

But we expect more rumors to flow forth now that we know the OnePlus Watch is officially in development – and hopefully now that the cat’s out of the bag, the brand will be more forthcoming with details.

David Lumb
David Lumb

David is now a mobile reporter at Cnet. Formerly Mobile Editor, US for TechRadar, he covered phones, tablets, and wearables. He still thinks the iPhone 4 is the best-looking smartphone ever made. He's most interested in technology, gaming and culture – and where they overlap and change our lives. His current beat explores how our on-the-go existence is affected by new gadgets, carrier coverage expansions, and corporate strategy shifts.