Google Pixel Watch Review: Tied With Samsungs Galaxy Watch 5 As The Best Android Smartwatch

Google has been trying to make its line of Pixel phones the "iPhone of the Android world" for years, and while Pixel phones are great and getting better every year, Google knows there's an ecosystem of devices around the Pixel that can compete with it. . . Apple.

Enter the long-rumored smartwatch, the Pixel Watch. To be clear, Google has been promoting smartwatches for almost a decade. But in the past, Google's experiments have been done on the software platform, leaving the hardware to OEMs like Samsung or Motorola to handle the physical product. These early Android smartwatches vary in quality, but even the best can't match Apple's industry-leading smartwatch hardware specs.

The Pixel Watch is the first Android smartwatch with hardware and software built by Google, and it's a great first try and a big step forward for Android smartwatches, but it needs a bit more polish when it comes to ease. of use. To compete with the Apple Watch.

Of course, since the Pixel Watch and Apple Watch appeal to two different groups of consumers, adapting to the Apple Watch may not be as important: each watch is tied to its own cellular platform. While the Apple Watch is still a wearable device, it won't be unless consumers' Android phones are ready to make the switch to iPhones.

Recruit

While the Pixel Watch looks fundamentally different from the Apple Watch, it incorporates many of the same design cues, from a curved display built into the watch's aluminum body to a retractable rotating crown. The Pixel Watch certainly feels closer to Apple Watch DNA than previous smartwatches from Samsung, LG, or Huawei.

But that's mostly a good thing: I like the aesthetic of the Pixel Watch, even if the curved domed glass design makes it feel a bit fragile. The reason I use the word "felt" is because Google Marketing says the glass is scratched and scratched, and I've banged my wrist against the wall and edge of the table multiple times and my screen still looks great. But ultimately, unprotected, curved glass should be more prone to breaking than flat glass encased in a tall metal frame (like the Samsung Galaxy Watch or even Apple's new Apple Watch Ultra).

The 1.9-inch OLED screen is wrapped in relatively thick bezels, but you won't see that often since most of the watch's UI is black. The screen looks bright and is bright enough for outdoor use.

The back of the watch has the usual heart rate, ECG (electrocardiogram), and blood oxygen sensors, but the Pixel Watch lacks some of the newer sensors on competing smartwatches, like the temperature sensor on the face of the watch. B skin. The back houses a proprietary magnetic charger like other smartwatches.

The Pixel Watch uses a custom strap and the switch is difficult to turn to remove the strap due to the small switch and rounded nature of the watch. This is probably the biggest shortcoming of the device: I had to keep touching it for over a minute before I could remove or attach the watch strap. For Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch, the same process can take five seconds.

The watch is powered by Samsung's Exynos 9110-designed silicon. Slides are great, but they're the last thing Google should be working on. To make the Pixel Watch Google's own, it'll have to use its own unique silicon, just like the Google phones they already use.

Programming

The Pixel Watch runs the latest version of WearOS, and since it's Google's wearable software, it works better with Google apps than smartwatches running proprietary software from brands like Xiaomi and Huawei. For example, the Pixel Watch can access Google Maps and control navigation on the wrist. You can view Google Keep notes; You also have access to Google Assistant, the most powerful voice assistant platform in consumer technology.

Just having these features makes the Pixel Watch smarter than most Android smartwatches. I've written about this before, but surprisingly, many Android watches can't even perform basic tasks like replying to incoming texts or asking the Google Assistant questions. I can do this and more on my Pixel Watch.

Being able to respond to notifications is very important to me when I receive dozens of chat messages every day. With the Pixel Watch, I can answer voice commands on my wrist or doodle on my face without having to touch my phone.

Pairing the Pixel Watch with an Android device requires installing not only the Android WearOS app, but also the Fitbit app because the Pixel Watch uses Fitbit's fitness tracking software (Google owns Fitbit after acquiring the company in 2019).

Performance

Fitbit integration brings both good and bad. Pros: Fitbit has some of the best algorithms in fitness tracking software. Whether it's your step count, heart rate, or sleep hours, the Pixel Watch can collect accurate and detailed data.

But Fitbit has problems with pairing, including the sync process taking more than 20 minutes (where you want the phone to stay on the Fitbit screen). This problem persists with the Pixel Watch. I often want to see my recent activity data on my wrist, when I'm told to open the Fitbit app on my phone, and as soon as I do, I'm told the app needs to sync, which takes a few minutes. . Jumping between several wheels to check how many hours you spent yesterday on the bike seems very impractical.

Elsewhere, the Pixel Watch performs just fine. The touch is solid and precise, the single speaker is good enough to make calls, and being able to use my voice to call the Google Assistant and ask for something makes my life easier.

Battery life is below average. The Pixel Watch is a smartwatch that needs to be charged every 18 to 20 hours, which means that if you spend the night elsewhere, you could run out of power by noon the next day, if not sooner.

Charging every night isn't a big deal in my opinion, neither is the Apple Watch, but there are other smartwatches that can last three, four, or seven days on a single charge.

conclusion

Ultimately, the Pixel Watch is a quality, stylish smartwatch that does what many Android smartwatches can't. It is one of the default Android smartwatches along with Samsung Galaxy watches.

But the Pixel's pricing is odd, at $299 for the WiFi model and $399 for the cellular model. I thought the above price was reasonable for a smartwatch of this caliber, but the extra $100 just for eSIM connectivity (so you can use the watch with your nearby phone) is too high a price, I don't think it's worth enough. for most people...

Either way, it's great that Google has finally created a wearable that works well with Android and can finally compete with the Apple Watch in the future.