  Adolescent peer relationships, essential for their development, are
increasingly mediated by digital technologies. As this trend continues,
wearable devices, especially smartwatches tailored for adolescents, are
reshaping their socialization. In China, smartwatches like XTC have gained wide
popularity, introducing unique features such as "Bump-to-Connect" and exclusive
social platforms. Nonetheless, how these devices influence adolescents' peer
experience remains unknown. Addressing this, we interviewed 18 Chinese
adolescents (age: 11 -- 16), discovering a smartwatch-mediated social
ecosystem. Our findings highlight the ice-breaking role of smartwatches in
friendship initiation and their use for secret messaging with local peers.
Within the online smartwatch community, peer status is determined by likes and
visibility, leading to diverse pursuit activities (i.e., chu guanxi, jiazu,
kuolie) and negative social dynamics. We discuss the core affordances of
smartwatches and Chinese cultural factors that influence adolescent social
behavior and offer implications for designing future wearables that responsibly
and safely support adolescent socialization.
