Google Pixel Watch reviews

Pixel Watch. © Google.

Google’s first watch has been in circulation a week to mostly favorable reviews from the tech press. The watch’s pleasing roundness and understated esthetic gets high praise. Indeed, some prefer its design over that of the Apple Watch. A dome-shaped Gorilla Glass protects the 3.05-centimeter (1.2-inch) OLED touch-screen and the underside has sensors for 24/7 heart-rate tracking and for ECG readings. The Pixel Watch runs on Wear OS 3.5, which is an updated version of the Wear OS 3 jointly developed by Google and Samsung, and it pairs with an Android 8.0 phone or better.

The disappointment starts when you open the hood and spot an aging Exynos 9110 processor and a short-lived 294 mAh battery, though Google claims it will last 24 hours on just one 80-minute charge. These specs lag behind other Wear OS models such as the less-expensive Galaxy Watch 5. All this brings us to the price point, which chafes at 350 USD (Wi-Fi) or 400 USD (LTE). Will Pixel do for Android what the Apple Watch did for iOS? Not likely in this first iteration, but it could, if Google sticks with it.

⇨ Ars Technica, Ron Amadeo, “Pixel Watch review: Beautiful, fast, and way too expensive.”

⇨ Tom’s Guide, Kate Kozuch, “Google Pixel Watch review: It (mostly) lives up the hype.”

2022-10-12