Tech giant Google has been firing on all cylinders recently with its new hardware lineup. From the Pixel buds Pro to brand new phones, the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, but now they have finally released their own brand new smartwatch, The Pixel Watch.
It's not too surprising considering Google's $2.1 billion dollar acquisition of Fitbit back in 2019, in addition to their ongoing support of Wear OS, Google's Android operating system for wearable and smartwatches like the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 and the Fossil Gen 6.
A google smartwatch has been what many Google fans have been waiting for, but does it rise to the challenge of the Apple Watch?
The Google Pixel watch looks fantastic with its compact circular, circular, glossy case that fits Google's minimal aesthetic. Its design while obviously being identifiable as a smartwatch, although it's less stylized than the Apple watch but not as regular looking as some of the Galaxy Watches or the Huawei GT3 Pro.
Due to that very glossy design, the Pixel watch looks premium and hi-tech while still being minimal and low-key, my only criticism here is I wish there was a larger size option as I prefer chunkier watches.
The face is 41mm round and is slightly curved as well as smooth to the touch. It has a height of 12.3mm and is 0.48 inches thick, which is relatively compact, with two physical buttons, the crown dial that feels great to turn, and a hidden button above it.
It comes in 3 colors and 4 combinations including Champagne Gold with the Hazel Active band, Matte Black with the Obsidian Active band, Polished Silver with the chalk active band or you can get Polished Silver with the charcoal Active band.
Weighing only 36g it's lighter than some Apple watches and less than the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5. But don't go thinking it's delicate the case is made of 80% recycled stainless steel and the screen is well protected by Gorilla Glass 5 which should be protected from up to 1.2-meter, waist-high drops onto hard, rough surfaces.
It can also withstand pressure up to 50 meters depth for 10 minutes making it suitable for swimming, but no IP rating is mentioned so I will keep it far away from the beach.
There are several compatible strap options but the default is a fluoroelastomer active strap that is comfortable and functional if a little basic looking.
Google has also released some compatible accessory straps made of various different materials and colors, including leather, woven, and a stretchy option, with metal bands to arrive later down the line.
The 1.2-inch AMOLED display has a resolution of 450 x 450 pixels, 320 PPI that can support up to 1,000 nits of brightness, it looks really glossy and bright and easy to see even in the sun.
Despite the thick black bezel around the watch face, its' not noticeable most of the time due to the black background on the menus and was only really noticeable when the watch displayed a full-screen image.
Set up was simple, after performing some quick configuration steps like what wrist the watch is on, what apps I want to install, and setting up the voice assistant.
Navigation was pretty standard and easy to navigate, swiping up to get to a quick menu, down to see notifications, and swiping right to see my step, heartrate sleep date although this can also be customised.
There are several customisable faces available from digital ones to more analog-looking ones that highlight different stats, however, due to that limited screen size you can only fit a few details.
But I did like that some of the faces could be edited so I could change their colours, layout, and some of the additional info.
You can even use photos as watch faces but it doesn't look great due to the normally unnoticeable bezels, and if they don't appeal more can be downloaded and purchased on the Play Store.
The Google Pixel watch uses Samsungs Exynos 9110 64-bit dual-core CPU running at up to 1.15GHz. It also utilises 2 GB SDRAM and 32GB of storage for apps and music.
The Exynos chip is a compact processor made specifically for wearables and while obviously not as swift as the Pixel mobile phones and it is a chip that's been around for a few years but it's responsive enough for most day-to-day tasks. It also features an onboard modem supporting download speeds of up to 150Mbps.
The Pixel Watch runs on Wear OS 3.5 which was developed in conjunction with Samsung, it offers all kinds of navigation and battery as well as functionality improvements on earlier versions.
Using the watch requires an Android phone running Android 8.0 or newer. But most Apple users would use an Apple Watch anyway especially as the entry-level Apple smartwatch is cheaper at £259.
Having google assistant on my wrist is a game-changer, sure I look like I'm talking to myself when outside it's so handy to have google's robust assistant immediately to hand.
You can reply to WhatsApp and text messages and email, which admittedly isn't the best way but It's very much appreciated as an option.
You can even type a reply on the watch but due to the small screen, the onscreen Keyboard is really hard to use, however, you can also use speech-to-text to compose your reply which is handy if you don’t have hands-free.
The Watch also supports NFC and Google Wallet allows you to pay for things at the flick of your wrist and is actually more convenient than paying with my smartphone or getting my actual wallet out.
Having maps on my wrist was cool although I found that I personally preferred my phone for this one a used the watch version for quick direction changes to confirm I was going the right way.
Direct access to the Google Play Store means you can download additional third-party apps with no issues.
It is worth noting there are two versions with basically the same specs and design but with One Bluetooth/Wifi version that will need to be connected to your phone and a 4G LTE version for £40 more that will allow you to make calls, send messages and download apps independently of a phone connection.
Strangely, the Pixel Watch does come with a blood oxygen sensor but it's currently not enabled so you won't yet be able to collect SpO2 data.
Due to the Fitbit integration into the device, the Pixel Watch benefits from an incredible set of fitness measuring and health tracking tools, which while standard on most smartwatches, the Fitbit version has always retained a high quality.
While it's not solely a fitness-focused smartwatch the Google pixel watch still records workout heart rate and sleeping patterns exactly like past Fitbits.
It does feel weird that the Pixel watch doesn't use the Google Fit app, their previous wear OS fitness tracking tool and I found it annoying to have to use yet another app to manage the watch and get a more detailed breakdown of my data.
You'll also need to create a separate Fitbit account if you don't have one, luckily I had an old one.
Don't get me wrong the Fitbit app has always been a fantastic tool for monitoring health metrics, however, to receive some of the more in-depth data as well as the sleep and relaxation tools and personalised health guidance, you'd need to sign up for Fitbit Premium for £7.99 a month or £79.99 a year, the idea of having some of this functionality locked away from me as well as my own data left a sour taste in my mouth.
Although the Pixel Watch does come with six months of Fitbit Premium allows you to try out the service.
I also had some pairing issues with my fitness data taking ages to come across to the Fitbit app making me think it wasn't logged which can be very demotivating when trying to work on your health and the app seems like it didn't log your last soul-crushingly exhausting jog.
I was also surprised that a modern fitness focuses smartwatch didn't feature auto workout detection, while this is no deal breaker its omission seems odd and I hope it is added in a future update.
Oddly there's also no skin temperature tracking, which isn't a necessity but strange as it's featured on some Fitbit watches.
The Pixel isn't exactly a marathon runner with its 294 mAh lithium-ion battery, which Google claims will get you Up to 24 hours of use.
Realistically it got me around 12 hours which is disappointing compared to the Apple watches roughly two-day life and Huawei's GT 3 Pros' remarkable week-long battery life.
The saving grace is that it charges very fast with its supplied USB-C proprietary charging cable, with 30 mins getting you up to 50% charge and 80 mins for a 100%.
But if you're caught short you can always enable Battery saving mode Battery Saver mode which disables the always-on display and tilt-to-wake.
Google Pixel Watch Verdict: 3/5
Google ambitious leap into wearable tech isn't quite what fans may have hoped for, but there's still lots here to be excited about and it's remarkable for Google's first attempt.
While it's certainly not the Apple Watch killer some were expecting it's a serious upgrade for any previous Fitbit users, its battery life, syncing issues, and Fitbit app reliance are a little disappointing.
But for those used to the Fitbit experience, the Pixel offers Google Assistant, Wallet, Maps, and more for those embedded in the Google ecosystem that make it a worthwhile upgrade.
Despite being a Google watch their Fitbit DNA is very noticeable not that that's a bad thing however some users will be disappointed in the Google Pixel watch not having some of the advanced functionality of smartwatches like the Apple Watch and Samsung watch but for most users it's a perfect companion to the Pixel phones and a great addition to the Google fleet.
The Google Pixel Watch is available now for £339 for the Wi-Fi version and £379 for the LTE version from the Google Store both come with Three months of YouTube Music Premium.
