Most users think ADB doesn’t support Wear OS watches as they don’t have a USB port. Being seeded into Android, Wear OS supports all ADB commands. If you own a Samsung Galaxy Watch or a Pixel Watch, you can control it from the interface of your PC using ADB over Wi-Fi. This tutorial will guide you through the process of setting up and using ADB commands on Wear OS-powered smartwatches via ADB over Wi-Fi.

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Setting up ADB over Wi-Fi on Wear OS

To use ADB wirelessly on a Wear OS watch, you must set up the Android SDK tools on your computer and enable Wi-Fi debugging. Follow the steps below to use ADB over Wi-Fi on your Samsung, Pixel, or other Wear OS watch.

1. Install SDK Platform Tools on Your PC

The first thing you need to do is to set up the ADB on your Windows, macOS, or Linux system. It’s easy as you only need to download the latest SDK Platform-tools.zip and extract the downloaded file to an easily accessible location on your computer.

2. Enable ADB Debugging in Wear OS

The ADB debugging feature is a part of the Developer options. Let’s see how we can turn on the Developer options in Wear OS. The screenshots used in this tutorial have been captured on the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5.

  1. Enable Wi-Fi on your watch and connect it to a network.
  2. Open the Quick Settings screen or the app drawer on your smartwatch and tap the Settings (gear) icon.samsung galaxy watch 4 settings
  3. Navigate to About watch and tap it.galaxy watch 5 about watch
  4. On the next screen, go to Software info > Software version.
  5. Tap on the Software version 7 times in a row. Doing so will turn on the Developer option on your Wear OS Galaxy Watch.
  6. Now, press the back button and return to the main Settings menu. You’ll see the Developer options listed there right above About watch.samsung galaxy watch 5 developer options
  7. Look for the ADB debugging option in the developer menu and tap it. When prompted, tap the OK button to enable ADB debugging.adb debugging on galaxy watch 5
  8. Next, tap the Debug over Wi-Fi option to turn it on.enab;e adb debugging on samsung galaxy watch 5
  9. You’ll see your network’s IP address and port number below the Debug over Wi-Fi option.galaxy watch 5 ip address
  10. Note the IP address as you’ll need it while connecting your watch via ADB over Wi-Fi. The IP address and the port number are separated by a colon. Thus, if you see 192.168.1.7:5555 mentioned on the screen, the value before the colon (:) sign is the IP address, and the value after that is the port number. In my case, the IP address is 192.168.1.7.

Note: Please, don’t forget that keeping ADB enabled on your watch all the time will drain the battery faster. Keep the option disabled when not in use.

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3. Connect Wear OS Watch to ADB over Wi-Fi

Now that you have downloaded the SDK Platform-tools and enabled ADB debugging on your watch, it’s time to connect your computer to the device.

  1. Open the platform-tools folder that you got after extracting the platform-tools_xxx.x.x-windows.zip earlier. Type “cmd” or “powershell” in the folder window address bar and press Enter. open powershell window from folder menu address bar
  2. When the command prompt window is launched type adb connect <ip> and hit Enter. Don’t forget to replace the IP address in the following command with yours. 
    adb connect 192.168.1.11
  3. When you press the enter key after typing the command, you’ll see a prompt on your watch asking you to authorize the ADB device. Tap OK.authorize adb on android wear watch
  4. Your smartwatch will be connected to the ADB wirelessly over Wi-Fi.adb connect ip
  5. To ensure ADB can detect your watch and is properly connected, execute the following command. 
    adb devices
  6. The command prompt will show the list of attached devices with the IP address and port number. It means your watch is properly connected to your computer and is ready to accept ADB commands.

list of ip connected adb devices

4. Fixing ADB Authentication Errors

If you follow the steps to connect your Wear OS watch to ADB carefully, there is hardly a chance that you’ll encounter any connection error. However, if your watch and computer are not connected to the same Wi-Fi network, you might get the failed to authenticate to <ip> error. To fix the issue, ensure your smartwatch and PC are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

If you still get the error, try the following tips:

  • Restart your watch
  • Make sure to enable ADB debugging and Debug over Wi-Fi options on your watch.
  • Verify that you have typed the correct IP address with the adb connect command.

That’s it! Now that you have set up ADB over Wi-Fi, it’s time to try ADB commands on your Wear OS watch to get an idea of things you can do.

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