Android Wear smartwatches to work with iPhones

Google has made its Android Wear operating system compatible with Apple's iOS mobile platform, the BBC reports.

It means users will be able to pair Android-powered smartwatches with iPhones for the first time.

The move greatly increases the potential market for the devices, and could pose a challenge to the Apple Watch itself.

But one expert suggested demand would be limited because Google was only able to offer a restricted set of features.

"What this does is give people who don't want to fork out the premium price for an Apple Watch an alternative," said Ben Wood, chief of research at the consultancy CCS Insight.

"It could also appeal to people who want a smartwatch that looks more like a circular-faced classical watch.

"But Apple will always reserve the best features for its own platform, just as we previously saw with Pebble's watches, which can also connect to iOS but have similar limitations."

Google announced the news in a blog on the eve of the Ifa tech show in Berlin, where several new smartwatches are set to be unveiled.

"Today, Android Wear for iOS works with the LG Watch Urbane," wrote David Singleton, Android Wear's director of engineering.

"All future Android Wear watches, including those from Huawei, Asus, and Motorola will also support iOS, so stay tuned for more."