One of the best smartwatches last year was the Pixel Watch 3, as Google’s new era of close collaboration with Fitbit yielded major changes that put the Pixel Watch on the map.
The Pixel Watch 3 is still competitive against the competition, such as the Apple Watch Series 10 and Galaxy Watch 8, but Google is back with its next edition. The new Pixel Watch 4 introduces several compelling changes to address issues from last year’s edition, including the display, battery, and charging.
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There’s also new integrations with Gemini, a new world-first communications feature on a smartwatch, and a few other tweaks as Google aims to challenge the upcoming Apple Watch Series 11. All of these changes come at the expense of notable fitness upgrades, as Google focuses on addressing the hardware concerns with the Pixel Watch 3. However, that’s not a bad thing considering how compelling the Pixel Watch 3 fitness features are.
I spent half an hour with Google’s new wearables at its event in New York City yesterday, and here’s why this could be the best smartwatch this year.
The Pixel Watch 4 is bigger, brighter, and better
The Pixel Watch 3 has a fairly compelling display, but Google took a significant step closer to its key competition by making the Pixel Watch 4 display 10% larger and much brighter as well.
Like Apple’s changes with the Apple Watch Series 10, Google achieved this by making the bezels smaller. As a result, the Pixel Watch 4 is a similar size to the Pixel Watch 3 despite the larger display. These changes make for an even more impressive experience, enhanced by the way light reflects off the curved edges of the display.
The Pixel Watch 4 also features a brighter display, which has been boosted to a max brightness of 3,000 nits. This puts it on par with the Galaxy Watch 8, and marks a significant improvement over the 2,000 nits display on the Pixel Watch 3.
There’s one more hardware change that’s noticeable. On the right, you’ll find the same crown and button for navigating the watch, as well as two metal contacts.
The Pixel Watch 4 has much better charging
These two contacts represent something key: Google finally fixed the charging with the Pixel Watch 4. Instead of the pogo-pin connector used previously, the Pixel Watch 4 now comes with wireless charging that is faster and more convenient to charge.
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The new charger positions the watch upright with the display rotated 90 degrees, allowing for easy viewing of the Always-on Display. However, this setup also makes charging on the go less convenient. It’s unclear how easily available a second charging puck will be, but you’ll want to ensure you use an official charger to take advantage of the faster charging speeds.
Google claims the Pixel Watch 4 can charge to 50 percent in 15 minutes, an 80% charge in 25 minutes, and to 100% in just 45 minutes. I’ve previously tested the Pixel Watch 3 charging speeds, and this is a welcome improvement; we’ll have to wait for the full review to test the speeds, but these claims would make it the fastest charging smartwatch amongst its competitors.
A bigger battery makes a difference
Google didn’t just improve the Pixel Watch 4 charging; it included a much bigger battery as well. The Pixel Watch 3 battery is already impressive, but the Pixel Watch 4 battery could prove to extend Google’s lead.
The 45mm model of the Pixel Watch features a 455 mAh battery, which Google says offers up to 40 hours of battery life, or up to 72 hours if you enable Battery Saver mode. The smaller 41mm model has a 325mAh battery, which drops this to 30 hours and 48 hours, respectively.
These are strong claims, but in my testing, both sizes of the Pixel Watch 3 exceeded Google’s stated claims, and the 45mm offered the best battery life on a smartwatch. Assuming the Pixel Watch 4 follows suit, Google could have a winner on its hands.
New Gemini and Health features
Google’s broad ecosystem focus on Gemini has also extended to the Pixel Watch 4.
Google first launched Gemini for Wear OS as an update to the Pixel Watch 3 last month, but the Pixel Watch 4 makes it even easier to launch Gemini, as it will automatically launch when you raise your wrist toward your face. Yes, you can still say “Hey Google” if you prefer, or press and hold the crown, but this new Raise to Talk method is the easiest.
Gemini on Wear OS is exactly the type of helpful AI that we all deserve
Gemini on Wear OS now supports LLM-backed responses and can connect with other Google apps like Calendar, Maps, Tasks, and Home. If someone texts you asking where you are, Gemini can look at your calendar, see your location in Maps, and suggest a smart response saying “I’m 5 minutes away.” Gemini on Wear OS is exactly the type of helpful AI that we all deserve.
The Pixel Watch 4 can now also automatically detect and classify your activity, and “send you a recap so you never miss out on your stats”. This isn’t groundbreaking, as every wearable maker claims to do this, but we’ll see whether the Pixel Watch 4 delivers.
Meet your new personal AI health coach
There’s one major AI-powered addition to the Pixel Watch 4: a new personal AI health coach backed by Gemini. This feature brings “proactive fitness and sleep coaching” and “on-demand guidance tailored to your goals and real-life circumstances.”
During Google’s event, I had a chance to learn more about this feature, and I’m incredibly excited about it. The health coach works by collecting and analyzing information from your Pixel Watch 4, as well as data from other devices that connect to Health Connect, such as your blood pressure monitor, scales, or other health devices.
Pixel Watch 4 has the AI health coach I wanted the Apple Watch to have
Then it can help you understand specific metrics, the factors that influence them, and how to improve that metric. It can also provide guidance on workouts to help achieve your specific goals. By far the most impressive feature is Gemini’s new AI chat, which allows you to ask questions like “How do I improve my VO2max?” and receive the necessary information to answer your question, along with guidance on steps to take.
Before WWDC earlier this year, I wrote that I hoped Apple would launch its rumored AI doctor. It turns out that Google was waiting in the wings; the Pixel Watch 4 has the AI health coach I wanted the Apple Watch to have.
The companion you want in an emergency
There’s one last feature that is notable, and could save your life in an emergency: Satellite SOS. If you’re out in the middle of nowhere and get into trouble, the Pixel Watch 4 can now connect to satellites in an emergency, even without a connection.
If you try to dial 911 but have no signal, the Pixel Watch 4 will automatically try to connect to satellites and send your GPS coordinates to emergency responders via a text message. This makes the Pixel Watch 4 the first smartwatch to offer this feature, although Apple is also expected to offer this feature on the upcoming Apple Watch Ultra 3.
This feature is only available on the LTE models of the Pixel Watch 4, but you don’t need an active LTE plan to use this. It’s only available in the contiguous US — so it won’t work in Hawaii or Alaska — and it’s unclear when this feature will roll out to other countries.
I’m very impressed by the Pixel Watch 4
The Pixel Watch 4 could be the most impressive smartwatch this year. Google has made large-scale changes to address some concerns about the Pixel Watch 3, and from my brief hands-on, the result is a smartwatch that has the potential to set a new benchmark.
We’ll have to wait for the full review before its launch on October 9 to see if it delivers on this potential. Starting at $349 for the 41mm model and $399 for the 45mm model, there’s every chance it could deliver. You’ll need to pay a $100 premium for the LTE model if the always-connected experience and satellite SOS are features that appeal to you.
