# Watch Face Format Enhances Battery Life for Galaxy Watch 7 and Pixel Watch 3, Rendering Facer Redundant
Wear OS has undergone a notable enhancement with the arrival of the **Watch Face Format (WFF)**, an innovative XML-based structure aimed at improving battery longevity on devices such as the **Galaxy Watch 7** and **Pixel Watch 3**. While this development greatly benefits battery performance, it has significantly affected the customization capabilities available to users, especially concerning third-party applications like **Facer**, a longstanding favorite for creating and acquiring custom watch faces.
In this piece, we will examine how the new Watch Face Format boosts battery life, yet also why it has rendered applications like Facer obsolete, resulting in a more stripped-down and less customizable experience for Wear OS users.
## The Watch Face Format: A Revolutionary Approach to Battery Efficiency
The **Watch Face Format** is a new XML-based system launched by Google for Wear OS devices. This format supersedes the previous **AndroidX** and **Wearable Support** watch face styles, which were more demanding on resources and led to quicker battery drain. The new format aims to be efficient, utilizing minimal memory to ensure that the smartwatch endures longer on a single battery charge.
### How It Functions
WFF watch faces are constructed using XML, which eliminates the dependence on any executable code or sophisticated logic. This straightforwardness enables the watch faces to operate on the watch’s **coprocessor**, a secondary processing unit designated for low-energy tasks. In **ambient mode**, these watch faces are limited to using only **10MB of memory**, and in **interactive mode**, they can utilize up to **100MB**. This reduced memory consumption considerably alleviates the burden on the watch’s battery, allowing devices such as the **Pixel Watch 3** to achieve up to two days of use, compared to slightly more than one day with previous formats.
For users who value extended battery life, this development is certainly advantageous. The **Galaxy Watch 7** and **Pixel Watch 3** can now endure longer periods without needing to recharge, making them more practical for everyday activities without the continual requirement to plug them in.
## The Drawback: Diminished Creativity and Customization
While the Watch Face Format greatly helps conserve battery life, it comes with a notable drawback: it has rendered watch faces **alarmingly simplistic**. The XML-based format disallows the use of intricate animations, interactive elements, and other creative features that made third-party watch faces particularly attractive.
### Facer: A Victim of the New Format
One of the most significant victims of this transformation is **Facer**, a widely used application that has served as a premier platform for custom watch faces on Wear OS for nearly ten years. Facer boasts an extensive collection of watch faces, many featuring elaborate designs, animations, and recognizable brands. Users could design their own watch faces or subscribe for access to the complete library, keeping their devices novel and personalized.
However, with the launch of the Watch Face Format, Facer’s future looks dim. The watch faces provided by Facer utilize more complex coding, which is not compatible with the new XML format. Consequently, Facer’s entire repository of watch faces is now rendered obsolete on Wear OS 5 devices like the Galaxy Watch 7 and Pixel Watch 3.
### A Constrained Future for Watch Face Personalization
For new Wear OS 5 users, customizing their watch faces has become drastically restricted. They can either select from the default watch faces that accompany the device, which provide only minimal customization options (such as altering colors or complications), or they can search the **Google Play Store** for WFF-compatible faces. Sadly, the Play Store is poorly organized, complicating the process of discovering high-quality or innovative watch faces.
Additionally, due to the restrictive nature of the XML format, developers have little motivation to produce new watch faces. The lack of visibility and the inability to charge subscription fees or create more elaborate designs suggest that the watch face market may soon stagnate.
## Google Must Address This and Collaborate with Facer
Facer has recognized the difficulties introduced by the new Watch Face Format. In a **help page** on its website, the company states that it is “working diligently with Google to bring the Facer service” to Wear OS 5 devices. However, the transition is far from simple. Facer would need to convert each of its **500,000 watch faces** to the new XML format, discarding any features that are unsupported. Moreover, users who previously acquired watch faces would find that they cannot transfer them to the new format, necessitating an **additional payment** for faces they already possess.
Google is justified in mandating the XML format to enhance battery performance, yet the present execution leaves a great deal to be desired. The Play Store’s disorganization and lack of discoverability hinder developers from
