Not all app updates are created equal and while most usually fix bugs, add features, and make things better, faster, smoother, more stable, and more enjoyable, it is not the case of the latest Android Wear app update. Google giveth and Google taketh away.

Version 1.4, which was released about 10 days ago, did some UI cleaning, but it dumped a couple of features: the battery stats (for everyone) and the disconnect toggle (for some users). Battery stats weren't the most useful feature all the time, but I liked peeking at them every now and then to check the stamina of my watch. They were also handy whenever I noticed my watch was below 50% before noon and I didn't know whether that's because I didn't connect the charger right or whether something abused my battery early in the morning. As for the disconnect toggle, it doesn't seem to be gone for everyone (Artem and Cody still have it), but there are plenty of users like me and Shawn who don't see it anymore. We're not sure what exactly is happening there.

The Play Store reviews are reflecting users' discontent over these changes, but not only that. It seems that connectivity has been a problem since the update. Many users are reporting disconnections, pairing problems, disappearing apps and watch faces, terrible battery life losses, and more. We've taken a few screenshots of the newest reviews left on the Play Store, but that's just a sample from yesterday. There are many more and several days worth of them.

Some users are having luck uninstalling Android Wear, resetting their watch, and starting from scratch, so that could be a solution if you're seeing the same issues. You can also grab the previous 1.3 version from APK Mirror. But hopefully an app update will fix these issues for everyone.

Thanks: +Alvin M. II