The Apple Store is finally available on your smartwatch
The Apple Store app for iOS has recently been updated, and now has support for Cupertino’s smartwatch. From the app, you can access real-time updates on your order status, make, search, and check in for Genius Bar appointments, learn about events and workshops happening in nearby Apple Stores, and initiate the process of picking up an order. Since Apple Watch lacks a keyboard, more complicated things like actually placing an order will need to be completed from your accompanying iPhone.
Apple Watch began arriving on buyers’ doorsteps on April 24, and it is puzzling that the shopping app has taken so long to receive an update with support for the smartwatch. Apple has been pushing for more use of the app, and even offers downloadable content for free exclusively through the redesigned user interface. Still, it took almost a full week from the launch day of Apple Watch until the store app gained its own companion.
Other major retailers, like Amazon and Target, received Apple Watch support ahead of the Apple Store app. Amazon’s app allows you to purchase items straight from your wrist, and Target makes it easier to manage your shopping list and find items in-store using the companion app on your Apple Watch.
It is unlikely, but I suppose technically possible, that Apple’s own apps can fall prone to the same update review bottlenecks that other developers must contend with. It is more likely, though, that Apple either somehow forgot that they hadn’t rolled support for the smartwatch into their shopping app or wanted to wait until more of the wearable devices were delivered before updating the software. To see the new Apple Store smartwatch companion in action, take a look at the demo below from our sister site, WatchAware. If the demo doesn’t load, just click this link.
