Everything You Need to Know About the Google Pixel Watch
Google’s long-awaited Pixel Watch is finally here. After years of speculation, scrapping prototypes , and acquiring Fitbit , the company has its own smartwatch, neatly integrated with its Pixel line of devices. What makes it different from competitors? What does it do? Here’s everything you need to know about the Pixel Watch.
Pixel Watch design
Google’s first attempt at a wearable device on the surface appears to have been successful. The watch itself looks great: it has a round shape, as opposed to the square shape of the Apple Watch. The watch is made of stainless steel and is available in four different color combinations: champagne case and active walnut strap, matte black case and obsidian strap, polished silver case and chalk strap, and polished silver case and charcoal strap. black color.
Google doesn’t offer a round display size or resolution, but it’s a 320ppi AMOLED display with up to 1,000nits of brightness, which should be enough for outdoor viewing. The watch itself measures 41mm by 12.3mm and weighs 36 grams without the strap. Customers can look forward to 32GB eMMC flash with 2GB SDRAM.
As you’d expect, the Pixel Watch works with a range system, allowing you to mix and match Google’s 20+ ranges (although apparently third-party options will hit the market soon). However, unlike other watches, the straps on the Pixel Watch are attached internally with a twist-and-click mechanism. To be honest, it looks cool, even if it’s not necessarily a selling point.
What can you do with Pixel Watch?
As you’d expect from a smartwatch, the Pixel Watch gives you the ability to use a mini smartphone on your wrist. Google showed examples such as setting the thermostat from the Home app, controlling YouTube Music playback, viewing notifications, using Google Wallet, following Google Maps turn-by-turn directions, setting timers, and sending text messages.
Some of the integrated apps highlighted by Google include Strava, adidas Running, Line, Strava, and Spotify. Let’s hope more developers continue to make Wear OS versions of their Android apps if the Pixel Watch is successful enough.
The watch is based on Fitbit, which makes sense since the company is owned by Google. The watch uses machine learning and deep optimization to track your heart rate to the second. They claim to be able to do this all day, regardless of activity, while still maintaining “all day battery life”, which in this case actually amounts to a full 24-hour work day . It is powered by a 294mAh battery that can be charged to 50% in about 30 minutes, to 80% in about 55 minutes, and to 100% in about 80 minutes.
You can use it to track your sleep, including metrics such as light, REM, and deep sleep. It works with Fitbit Premium (and includes six months free) to track workouts and engage in mindful content. The app also keeps you informed about your workout readiness to help you get the right fit for your next exercise and tracks your Active Zone Minutes to keep track of how much time you spend in target heart rate zones.
It looks for atrial fibrillation with an ECG reader and has a built-in SOS emergency call feature, a standard option for both smartwatches and smartphones. Fall detection is coming to the Pixel Watch, but not until 2023.
How much does a Pixel watch cost?
The standard Pixel Watch is $349.99, while the 4G LTE model is $399.99. With it, you get not only six months of Fitbit Premium, but also three months of YouTube Music Premium. To use the Pixel Watch, you’ll need an Android device running Android 8.0 or later.
The Pixel Watch seems great for any Android fan, but especially for those deeply invested in Fitbit. It’s like a Fitbit Pro, equipped with all the best Fitbit features you want, with all the benefits of a Wear OS smartwatch. Of course, even if you’re not a Fitbit user, Google’s six-month free subscription to Fitbit Premium gives you a chance to become one.
Clearly, the Pixel Watch is an important step in the Android smartwatch market. We need to see how well it actually performs in the real world, and whether its sales reflect Google’s hopes for a shiny wearable.
This article was updated on Friday, October 7th to remove the incorrect reference to Galaxy Watch5 compatibility.