Before there was even a watchface API for Android Wear, Facer was the go-to app to create and customize your watch's design. The app was later updated to conform with Google's watchface API and has since enjoyed a nice spot as one of the best watchmakers for Android Wear. Competition has gone up however, with apps like Pujie Black and WatchMaker getting a share of the watch customization pie.

So Facer is now trying to grab more users and entice everyone to join its platform by lowering the entry barrier — and also seemingly planning an iOS launch for the Apple Watch. The app will no longer cost $0.99, it'll be free to grab from the Play Store. To keep on monetizing its software and service, Facer is instead partnering with designers and brands to offer exclusive and premium watchfaces like Garfield, American Dad, Ghostbusters, and Sugapop. Star Trek should be coming next, and other brands are bound to follow.

The new faces are live in the Facer Store, which is divided into a few curated sections like Analog, Abstract & Minimal, Time at a Glance, and Fun & Unique. There's also an Explore section where you can browse all designs and a search function if you want to find a particular one. A new Watchbox houses all of your favorite designs from the Store (Facer account needed) and a My Designs section is dedicated to your own creations.

That's where the new Facer Creator located at www.facer.io comes in with its brand new interface for editing and making the most complex or simple designs. The Facer team shows how everything works in the video below:

Here's the full changelog for the Android app's update and you can see some screenshots of the new watchfaces below it:

WHAT'S NEW

* Facer 2.0 is finally here!

* New storefront with premium designs from exclusive artists and brands, updated weekly!

* Support for all new Android Wear watches

* New search feature to look for any watchface published on our platform!

* Save your favorite watchfaces in your new Watchbox

* Tons of optimizations, including improved battery life

* Try the new Facer Creator, the most advanced watchface editor in the world at www.facer.io and try your latest creations in the new My Design section

I've been trying the new app for a few days and things work well, but I would have wanted an easier way to spot watchface prices while browsing the list, instead of having to open each design to see its price. The Facer team tells me this will be addressed in a future update to the Store, and there will even be filtering options to browse specific designs according to your preferences.

To incentivize existing and new users to like the new Store approach, Facer will be offering a couple of premium watchfaces for free for the first week. For now, I can see that Planetary has been marked as free for a limited time, so you might want to grab the new app and install this face while you can.

Facer Watch Faces Developer: Facer Studios
Price: Free
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