Review: Google Pixel Watch

I'm late. I'm late. For a very important date. That's effectively the Google Pixel Watch's mantra. Apple has been honing its smartwatches to be well-oiled machines over the past seven years, and Google is late to the party. Fashionably late.

For a first-gen watch to be a little rough around its proverbial edges is normal. It's more disappointing that after years of development the Pixel Watch doesn't make a splash on the smartwatch scene, rather more of a skip, like a pebble on water. The user experience manages to just meet expectations, though it has sharp enough aesthetics to leave an impression.

The Pixel Watch is one of the most comfortable smartwatches I've worn. Currently, with the Apple Watch on my other wrist, I can feel the Series 8 pressing on my skin. The Pixel Watch, however, blends more seamlessly around my large wrist, making it easy to forget it's there. There's only one size—41 mm—and my 5'1" partner also found it comfortable on her smaller wrists (Google includes a larger strap size in the box if you need it). 

You can choose between a Wi-Fi-only model ($349) and one with added cellular connectivity ($399). I should point out that the Pixel Watch, unlike other Wear OS smartwatches, does not work with iPhones. It's exclusive to Android phones only.

Google's watch is, in my eyes, the prettiest full-featured smartwatch I've tried. I'm of the opinion that a circle is superior to a square. From the way my finger slides on the domed glass to the way the materials catch the light—the Pixel Watch is lovely to look at, no less aided by the several attractive (and customizable) watch faces Google has whipped up. 

The design isn't without faults, though. The top button that sits above the rotating crown can be a little tough to press because it rests on the bottom half of the case. You'll need to dig your finger in a little bit. The AMOLED screen, which is colorful and gets bright enough, is also cramped when you're scrolling through an email or long message. It might have helped if Google slimmed down the bezels around the watch, but it'd also be nice to have a larger size for folks who want it.

There's no IP rating for water and dust resistance, but the Pixel Watch is rated at 5 ATM, meaning it can survive depths of up to 50 meters, just like the Apple Watch. I still would avoid getting it wet if possible. The case is stainless steel, which is more durable than the aluminum found on most watches, but it's the glass protecting the screen that's more concerning. The domed glass doesn't exactly present itself as durable. I keep worrying a ding against a wall will scuff it up. Google crafted this glass protector out of Gorilla Glass 5, which is more impact-resistant than sapphire crystal but not as scratch-resistant. I've yet to see any scrapes, but it might just be a matter of time before they start showing up.  

I'm more annoyed with the proprietary strap system. The included Active band is inoffensive, and I've gotten better at donning it one-handed. But it's silly that I can't swap my bands out for any other 22-millimeter watch strap whenever I want. I have to choose from the limited options Google offers—some of which aren't even launching until 2023. Really? The mechanism to remove the strap also isn't as intuitive as Google suggests. At least initially. Once you do it two to three times, it clicks. (Google could do a better job with the instructions.)

Speaking of proprietary designs, the charging system is custom too. The back of the case is slightly domed for comfort, and that means the Pixel Watch won't work with traditional Qi wireless chargers, which can only charge devices with flat surfaces. You're stuck with Google's magnetic charging puck. Here's hoping there will be a wealth of third-party accessories that'll let me charge the watch and my phone in one docking system, like the dozens available for the iPhone and Apple Watch. 

It's worth noting that there's no Nightstand mode for the Pixel Watch like there is for the Apple Watch—if you lay the watch on its side while it's charging with the screen facing you, the interface won't rotate. More annoying is the somewhat slow charging speed. It takes around an hour to get to 80 percent and a full 80 minutes to hit 100 percent. That's not dramatically slower than what Apple offers for the Series 8, but it's enough of a time difference to be noticeable. I feel like I rarely got the Pixel Watch back to 100 percent because I kept taking it off the charger to put it on my wrist before I left my desk. Charge faster, damn it!

This smartwatch runs Google's Wear OS 3, which can feel simplistic at times, but that's a part of the charm. Swipe down from the watch face for quick settings tiles, swipe up for notifications, and swipe left or right to cycle through various tile widgets (which you can customize). That's pretty much it. It's easy to grasp, and the interface looks and feels slick—most of the time. There are occasions when animations can look a little choppy. 

When notifications buzz on the watch, I like to respond via voice, and the microphones seem to pick up my words well. I've been able to reply to a text message with a paragraph-long response just by using my voice in a busy gym. When I'd rather send a short note with my fingers, the swipe-to-text action on the keyboard is handy. I also like using the revamped Google Assistant, which is much snappier than previous iterations. Mid-conversation with my partner before heading out to dinner, I quickly asked Assistant how long the ride was because my phone was in another room. I got a response on my wrist and never had to go hunt for my phone to find the answer.

The Pixel Watch does nearly all the basic smartwatch tasks you could want, from contactless payments with Google Wallet to being on the receiving end of movement reminders at every hour. I used the timer to keep track of my laundry; I chose a specific playlist from YouTube Music on the watch before I started a workout; I used turn-by-turn navigation while on my scooter to get to a lunch spot. Plus, I've kept up with notifications without needing to pull my phone out unless it's urgent. 

The one thing I miss? The ability to start messages straight from the watch itself. You can do this with Android Messages for texts, but I'd love to be able to start a Facebook Messenger, Telegram, or WhatsApp message directly on the Pixel Watch without having to grab my phone. (I'm lazy, OK?) That's the kind of broader third-party app support I'd like to see. 

Battery life is also lackluster. Forget about using the always-on display—you'll most likely end up charging the device every night before bed. Without the always-on display feature activated, I've come close to Google's 24-hour battery life claim, but I always put the watch back on the charger lest I end up with a dead device when I'm out and about. This is very much a smartwatch you need to recharge every day. 

Fitbit is the underlying heart (pun intended) of the Pixel Watch. It's the preloaded health and fitness platform that manages everything from electrocardiogram readings to sleep tracking. (The latter was extremely accurate in showing me how little sleep I've gotten these past few days.) That means after setting up the device with the Pixel Watch app, you'll need to download the Fitbit app and connect the Pixel Watch. I had no trouble here; it was a painless process.

But there are a few key health features that are missing that should really be here. Yes, you can measure your ECG, but unlike on the Apple Watch, you can't set up irregular heart rate notifications. There's a blood oxygen sensor, but this feature hasn't been activated yet. (Google says it hopes to utilize it, but there's no timeline.) Fall detection won't arrive until 2023.

The Pixel Watch does record your activity accurately in the Fitbit app after it's completed. I went on a bike ride, and when I was done, I saw that it was logged perfectly in the Fitbit mobile app. Still, it'd be nice to at least get a notification to see that data instead of having to find it manually. There's GPS too, so it logged my route automatically. A Google representative tells me, “Over time, we will work to bring more on-device workout recognition to our watch portfolio.” 

It's here where I'd like to say that the Fitbit app looks like something straight out of 2014. It's messy and overloaded with information, and it feels completely antithetical to the sleek and elegant design of the Pixel Watch and the Pixel Watch app. It's jarring. 

As soon as I started using the Pixel Watch, I was invited to a Fitbit Challenge by some fellow reviewers and friends, and the mere fact that I couldn't view or keep track of the challenge on the watch was frustrating. It made me appreciate the Apple Watch's Fitness Challenge all the more, though I have issues with Apple's system as well (a story for a different day).

I wish there was an easier way to just see how I was doing on all my goals on the watch. You have to go into the Fitbit Today app and then scroll through every metric to see your status, which isn't as incentivizing or satisfying as, say, Apple's fitness rings.

The saving grace for all of this? The data. It's so good. Google and Fitbit designed the heart-rate monitor to run on the chipset's coprocessor, meaning it sips far less power than is typical for such a sensor, and can therefore run 24/7. There's something magical about being able to see your precise heart rate at any given moment. The same goes for step count as you walk. My workout data often matched up closer than any other device to the Apple Watch Series 8, and that's a great foundation to start on. 

There's more you can unlock if you pay $10 a month for a Fitbit Premium subscription, like more advanced sleep insights and a Daily Readiness score that tells you how much physical stress your body can take that day (you need to wear the watch for a period of time so I wasn't able to test this). But I'd wait for Google to bring more of those missing features to this watch before subscribing. It feels very much like a first-gen experience—because it is—but that's strange considering Google's been managing Wear OS for years and Fitbit has been a leader in fitness trackers for even longer. 

Despite what it lacks, I've thoroughly enjoyed wearing the Pixel Watch on my wrist. It's a great showcase of what good design can do for hardware. Should you just buy a Samsung Galaxy Watch5? Probably, especially since it's cheaper. Unless you like the Pixel Watch's aesthetic more. That's really what it boils down to. One thing's for sure: It's better late than never.