The Apple Watch 6 could arrive as early as next month and will feature new features aimed at reinforcing Apple's dominance in the smartwatch market. And Samsung's Galaxy Watch 3 has just been announced with great fanfare, with long-awaited health features in a stunning design. But would-be rivals are not standing still, either. Google has announced the next release of its Wear OS

, which aims to enhance its own software for watches and wearables.

Specifically, the changes announced via the Android Developers Blog mean that this fall's Wear OS update will offer better control and performance, along with a new weather app. These features will be available to Wear OS devices via over-the-air updates.

When it comes to performance control, Google promises to speed up the user's ability to access information and apps. The update will reduce app launch times by 20% and allow for more intuitive management of watch modes and workouts; those upgrading their Wear OS devices will be pleased to see an improved pairing process.

In addition to performance changes announced earlier this year, including support for Snapdragon Wear 4100 and 4100+ chips, Google will change the weather experience in Wear OS. Larger numbers and icons are intended to make it easier to read weather data from the wrist.

The upcoming Wear OS update is the latest sign of Google's interest in challenging Apple's dominance in health and fitness features. Earlier this year, Google conducted a survey asking users what types of features they wanted in a smartwatch. These updates will benefit the best smartwatches, including the Fossil Gen 5 and TicWatch Pro.

Google has a lot of ground to cover to catch up to Apple, and the gap could widen in the fall. Apple has already previewed watchOS 7, the operating system for the Apple Watch platform. In addition to new watch faces, the fall watchOS update will add sleep tracking capabilities, a new Fitness app to replace Activity, and a new Mobility section in the Health app.

All of this comes ahead of the release of Apple Watch 6. Presumably, the new watch will take advantage of watchOS 7's sleep tracking capabilities, and there are rumors of a possible blood oxygen monitoring system. The new watch could also improve on all current detection methods and provide a system for monitoring a user's mental health.

However, the fact that Google continues to fine-tune its Wear OS raises hopes that there may be more competition in the smartwatch world.