Google Maps, Amazon, and eBay Drop Apple Watch Support [Updated x3]

Over the course of the last few months, several major companies have quietly removed support for the Apple Watch from their apps. As first noted by AppleInsider, Google Maps, Amazon, and eBay have pulled their Apple Watch apps from the App Store.

Google Maps, Amazon, and eBay were all early supporters of the Apple Watch, releasing apps within a few months of the device's April 2015 debut.

applewatchgooglemaps
Checking today, none of the three companies offer Apple Watch apps, having quietly removed Apple Watch functionality through App Store updates. It's not entirely clear when each app was updated to remove Apple Watch support, with the feature elimination appearing to have largely gone under the radar.

That three major apps were able to remove Apple Watch support without much fanfare seems to explain the reasoning behind the decision to cease offering an Apple Watch app, as it suggests there weren't many people using the apps in question. Whether the removal of the apps is permanent is unknown.

Google Maps was perhaps the only app that was useful on the wrist, with quick directions to places like home and work. Amazon's Apple Watch app simply allowed for voice-based searches and one-tap purchases, something that's easier to do on a phone or computer, while eBay's offered notifications for auctions being tracked on the site, which also required the concurrent use of an iPhone or Mac to track content in the first place.

Target has also recently removed Apple Watch support from its Target app, but Apple Watch functionality remains available via the separate Cartwheel by Target app.

With the Apple Watch having celebrated its second birthday on April 24, the kinds of apps that work on the wrist-worn device are becoming more clear, allowing companies to stop using resources on content that's not suitable for a wearable device.

Update: In a statement, a Google spokesperson said the Apple Watch app has been temporarily removed but will be re-launched later. "We removed Apple Watch support from our latest iOS release but expect to support it again in the future."

Update 2: Amazon has issued a statement to CNET's Shara Tibken on its removal of Apple Watch support: "We are constantly innovating on behalf of our customers. There are a number of reasons we don’t think this is the right solution for our customers at this time. We are always trying new things and look forward to experimenting with wearable solutions in the future."

Update 3: In a Twitter response to a customer question, eBay says it is "revamping" its Apple Watch app: "We are in the works of revamping it. We don't currently have a release timeframe from our mobile team."

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
Apple Lumon Terminal Pro

Apple's Mac Site Features Fictional 'Lumon Terminal Pro'

Wednesday March 26, 2025 12:19 pm PDT by
Apple is going all out with promotions for the popular Severance Apple TV+ show today, and as of right now, you'll find a new "Lumon Terminal Pro" listed on Apple's Mac site. The Lumon Terminal Pro is designed to look similar to the machines that Severance employees like Mark S. and Helly R. use for macrodata refinement. The Terminal features a blue keyboard, a small display with wide...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Soon With These New Features for Your iPhone

Tuesday March 25, 2025 6:45 am PDT by
Apple is expected to release iOS 18.4 to the general public as soon as next week, following more than a month of beta testing. Apple's website says some iOS 18.4 features will be released in "early April," so the update should be out as early as Tuesday, April 1. Apple this week seeded the iOS 18.4 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, barring the discovery of any...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Supports 8K Video Recording, Suggests Leaker [Updated]

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:06 am PDT by
Update 7:25 pm: Based on comments from our forums, it appears the original Weibo post may have been mistranslated and "8K" actually refers to the high price of the device rather than 8K video recording capabilities. The iPhone 16 Pro currently starts at 7,999 yuan in China. Our original article follows below. Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 Pro models are capable of shooting 8K video, up...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

'iPhone Fold' to Feature Metallic Glass Hinge That Resists Deformation

Thursday March 27, 2025 4:21 am PDT by
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device. According...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

Gurman: Jon Prosser's iOS 19 Mockups 'Aren't Representative' of Redesign

Tuesday March 25, 2025 4:47 pm PDT by
The iOS 19 mockup images that leaker Jon Prosser shared today are not representative of the actual iOS 19 design, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on social media. According to Gurman, the images that are "floating around" are based on "very old builds" or "vague descriptions," and are lacking key features. Gurman says that we can "expect more from Apple in June." Gurman made the same comment ...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...

Top Rated Comments

Nick A Avatar
103 months ago
Smart watches are and only have been useful for receiving notifications. As someone who wears an Apple Watch every day, I've only ever used it to peak at notifications and occasionally Apple Pay.

Developers are realizing it's not worth the time to update their apps for the functionality if no one uses it.
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ztw2002 Avatar
103 months ago
The only app I used on my watch is the default workout app.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Leonard1818 Avatar
103 months ago
I really don't see the point of a redundant watch app for something like Amazon.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
andy.ringwood Avatar
103 months ago
They don't do enough. Simple. Hopefully something changes in watchOS 4.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kbsj007 Avatar
103 months ago
As a Series 2 owner I think the reason is because AW2 with watchOS 3.2 is still a gimmick than a useful companion hardware.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
coolfactor Avatar
103 months ago
I used an Apple Watch for the first time this past weekend. I can understand why this device is having a difficult time grabbing hold of the market.

Design-wise, I find the rounded sides of the screen give (me) a lack of confidence with regards to interacting with the screen. How do I explain it? It's like one of those cheaper mattresses where the edges collapse easily. You find yourself wanting to hang out away from the edges. The down-sloping sides of the watch face give me that same sense of wanting to stay in the middle, and the edges feel "uncertain". It makes the workable space feel much smaller than it is.

In the watch faces above, you can see rather large margins around the edges of the usable screen. If Apple would take advantage of that, and use a flatter overall design, it would make the watch feel bigger without making it bigger physically.

I think voice will become a much bigger method of interacting with the watch than touch, and I think Apple has that goal, too. The watch has a bright future.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)