The Coronavirus — COVID-19 — pandemic is easily one of the greatest adversaries humanity has ever faced. With over 2 million already infected worldwide, the pathogen isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, forcing the smartest creature on earth to go into hiding.

No vaccine has been developed as of yet, and it would take a few months to reach our homes. Fortunately, however, there is a rather straightforward measure we could take to keep ourselves and our families safe.

As per leading doctors across the globe, the COVID-19 virus cannot hold its own when confronted with regular soap water. Soap water mercilessly attacks and breaks the fatty layer that shields COVID-19’s cell, rendering the virus toothless. So, to fight COVID-19, WHO recommends us to wash our hands as much as possible, thoroughly for 20 to 30 seconds.

People who aren’t very good at sticking to a routine can have a hard time sticking to this new handwashing pattern. Thankfully, Google has taken the time to come up with a feature for Wear OS users, which would prompt them to wash their hands at regular intervals.

What do you need

Google has made this service available only for Wear OS users, so, if you are a Galaxy Smartwatch or Huawei Watch GT user, this article won’t please you much. We’re chalking down the requirements as a bullet list, below.

  • A Wear OS smartwatch — Fossil watches, TicWatch, Skagen, Misfit Vapor
    • PSA: Recent Samsung and Huawei watches may not be running Wear OS
  • The Clock app on your watch, updated to version 5.4.0
  • A stable Bluetooth connection with your Android smartphone

How does it work

After updating your Wear OS smartwatch’s Clock app to version 5.4.0, the application will send you an alert to wash your hands with soap water. Tap on the notification to start the 40-second timer. When the timer runs out, and you’ve successfully washed your hands with soap, the Clock app informs that the next alert would arrive in three hours.

How to turn off Wash Your Hands alerts

While we can’t help but admire Google’s initiative, we also understand how it could frustrate some users; especially the ones adhering to their own handwashing schedule. If you are one of the latter, we’re happy to inform that there’s a pretty simple solution to solve this inconvenience.

To disable the alerts, simply tap and hold the handwash notification and disable. The Clock app would stop showing the alerts.

Is there an app for my phone for this?

Well, how come not. There are a few new apps made solely for this purpose only, like Hand Washing Reminder and Wash Your Hands Reminder Tool, but we would insist you use an old, proven app called Drink Water Reminder for this.

The app’s purpose is to remind you to drink water at regular intervals and keep yourself hydrated but you can customize it and use it for better purpose right now, Washing your hands regularly. You can also give Repeat Alarm app a try.

Images by: Android Police