In addition to basic functions, most Wear OS smartwatches now feature extensive customization options including watch faces and complication choices. Complications are a handy feature that allows you to set up alerts, notifications, and more on your watch face—ensuring improved functionality while adding a touch of style and personality.
In this guide, we’ll show you what the feature is, and how you can customize your WearOS watch with complications.
What Are “Complications”?
In horology, a complication is any feature that enhances the aesthetic and/or functional value of a watch, typically adding more time, date, chronograph, and astronomical functions, including moon phase and power reserve indicators.
While complications were long a staple feature on mechanical watches, it’s not exactly surprising that they’ve been making waves across the wearable tech realm as well. After all, customizing your watch face with digital complications is one of the best ways to improve your experience.
For smartwatches, complications are UI elements in the form of small secondary icons and widgets (sub-dials) that appear on your device’s watch face to show you relevant information. They offer a range of functionality, from notifying you about weather forecasts to reminders, as well as shortcuts to basic device actions
There are tons of ways to create the perfect look for your style, personality, and even moods—and we’ve got all the tips you need to get started. Let’s take a closer look at some commonly supported complications.
Health Metrics
Smartwatches are designed to help you stay on top of your health goals. With a few simple customization options using complications, you can access your fitness information at a glance.
For instance, if you’re using Samsung Health, you can enable notifications for heart rate, blood pressure, sleep tracking, steps taken, and other measurements, as well as a daily activity or step counter. Similarly, you can view data about activities you’ve started, such as running or swimming.
It doesn’t stop here. If you’re relying on compatible fitness apps such as MyFitnessPal to understand and manage your fitness routine, your smartwatch can display stats and macros such as calories burned, fat, protein intake, and more.
However, not all watch faces offer an equal number of complication choices, so you’ll need to choose one carefully, like the Premium Analogue, which has three spots.
Device Actions
As we noted earlier, complications are digital sub-dial-like icons that can bring up data from other applications on your phone.
You can set up complications that allow you to interact with your smartwatch with basic device actions, such as accessing your frequently-used apps, setting up reminders, receiving missed call notifications, and using voice-based commands, once you’ve set up the Google Assistant or Bixby feature.
You can choose from different types of “action-based” complications such as the ones listed below:
Reminders: Set a reminder or alarm for a specific time/date/location. Media controls: Listen to and control music playback on your connected devices. Phone functions: Access basic phone functions like battery levels, voice assistant features, messages, recent apps, and call notifications. Weather information: If you want to know what the weather is like when you leave work or when planning a trip, you can set up a complication(s) to bring up information on current temperatures and rain conditions, UV index indicators, and weather forecasts. Chronograph functionality: Consider adding a timer or stopwatch functionality to your watch face. Connect Bluetooth devices: You can connect to your favorite Bluetooth-enabled devices such as the Galaxy Buds, and listen to your favorite music or audiobooks, or podcasts on the go.
Smartwatch Display Styles
The display styles on your smartwatch are one of its most attractive features, and you can customize them to suit your preferences.
Choose from a plethora of dial styles—classic, informative, and graphical designs, health dashboards, and analog and digital ones that display time in different ways. You can pick watch faces with single or multiple sub-dials or spots, with each displaying different types of data/information as you like.
Background Colors and Borders
You can change the background color on your watch face, if available. Choose from a spectrum of shades that suit your style and preferences. In addition, you can also choose from a selection of hour or minute-hand styles and more.
Yet another type of customization option is Borders, which let you adjust the border thickness around the perimeter of your watch face. When it comes to complications, you’ll be spoilt for choice!
How to Set Up and Customize Complications On Your Wear OS Smartwatch
As we noted earlier, this is a simple and easy-to-use feature that allows you to add multiple widgets on your watch face to show you personalized information. There are two ways to add complications that work best for you—use the companion Wear OS app, or the Galaxy Wearable app for Samsung devices, or directly add them from your smartwatch.
For our example, we’re using a Galaxy Watch 4.
Download: Galaxy Wearable for Android | iOS (Free)
Download: Wear OS for Android | iOS (Free)
Add Complications Via the Companion App on Your Phone
For a hassle-free experience, we recommend using the Wear OS companion app (or the Galaxy Wearable app, in this case) to set up the feature:
On your smartphone, install and launch the Galaxy Wearable app. Head over to the Watch faces panel. Choose a watch face design of your choice. To see if a watch face has customization options, tap to install it on your smartwatch. You should be able to view a Customize button, if available. To see the types of feature complications available, tap on the watch face. You’ll be able to see a variety of customization options titled Background, Complication 1, and more. Tap on the labels titled Complication 1, Complication 2, and similar. Note that complication spots may vary across watch faces—for instance, Complication 1 may be placed on the top of the watch face, and Complication 3 on the right of the dial. Choose the supported complications you wish to add or replace for the particular spot. Once done, the changes should reflect on your smartwatch.
Add Complications Directly From Your Smartwatch
You can add or replace complications directly from your smartwatch by following the steps outlined below:
On your smartwatch, hold and long-press on the watch face till it goes into the Edit mode. Tap Customize. To view the customization options, swipe left. Tap on the supported complications such as background colors, indexes, health metrics, or device actions. Choose the ones you wish to add or replace. Once done, tap Ok to confirm and save your changes.
In addition to the suggested methods, you can also use third-party watch face apps like Facer to access a range of features and display styles.
Complications: Add a Touch of Personality to Your Smartwatch
We hope this guide helps you realize just how much your smartwatch can do. A smartwatch can help you express your personality.
Complications can greatly enhance your user experience, and have significant benefits in design, functionality, and style. You can, with some effort, create a wide array of looks for different occasions. All said, it’s up to you to decide which complications are most helpful, and which ones you want to use.
