🛒 Order your Google Pixel Watch on Amazon: https://geni.us/PixelWatch
So, it’s finally here – the Google Pixel Watch, Google’s first-ever smartwatch designed and built in-house and running their own Wear OS platform. We’ve been waiting – how long is it now? – for this device to come into existence and the rumours had been flying around for years ever since Google launched Android Wear in June 2014, which featured on watches made by third parties like Samsung and LG, and then Apple showed up characteristically late to the party with their Watch which didn’t launch until nearly a full year later in April 2015, although I’m sure all the Apple fanboys will still try to tell you that Apple invented the smart watch and were the first innovating pioneers blah blah blah
Anyway, opening the box we see the watch nicely presented and I went for the all-black version as I think it looks nice and sleek and will match pretty well with whatever I might be wearing. On the side there you can see the microphone and speaker and then flipping it over you can see the heart rate sensors underneath, water resistant to 50m text and then the rotating crown and the side button on the right of the watch face. They give you a second strap in the box in case you need a different size and then inside the rest of the white packaging is the magnetic charging puck which is powered by USB-C and also seems to be one whole block for wireless charging rather than metal pin contacts so that’s a nice design touch; on my previous smartwatch sometimes the contact pins wouldn’t line up properly and you’d wake up in the morning to find it hadn’t charged, but that won’t be an issue with this as it stays charging no matter what position the watch is in relative to the puck. If only my bedside plug sockets had USB-C though…!
Comparing it side-by-side with my 2018 first-gen TicWatch Pro, which I’ve been wearing for nearly 4 years, it looks much more slim and sleek – the all-black design makes the bezels seem invisible and it does feel a lot less chunky on my wrist compared to the TicWatch – even little things like my hoodie’s sleeves just glide over it more comfortably without getting bunched up. It’s not unique to the Pixel Watch but I really like this style of strap design and how it tucks in underneath so there’s no annoying flappy bit at the end of your watch strap.
It was quick and easy to set up, my phone immediately detected it and offered to start the setup process, during which you’re prompted to install the Google Pixel Watch app which is different from the Wear OS app. And then once you’ve gone through setting everything up and syncing your Google account, it gives you a quick rundown of how everything works.
Very quickly, pressing the side button brings up recent apps and holding it opens Google assistant. One press of the crown brings up apps, and you can twirl it to scroll up and down the list as well as use the touchscreen. Or from the main watch screen, twirling the crown brings up your notifications or the quick settings. Double tapping the crown takes you straight to Google Wallet and finally, pressing it 5 times quickly will place an emergency call – better cancel that before it actually rings!
Just like any other Android watch you might have used, the swipey gestures from the clock screen are up for notifications, down for quick settings, and swiping left or right brings you your tiles, which you can customise in the app.
This isn’t a full or in-depth review so I’m not going to be going through everything or comparing to other watches, but it certainly looks and feels very nice, it’s lightweight and comfortable to wear and the user interface feels pretty fast and snappy to the point I’ll probably use it a lot more than I’ve been using my TicWatch for things like checking weather, looking at basic calendar agenda and so on.
Google Wallet seems to work well – I didn’t want to get funny looks filming myself paying with my watch in a supermarket and I don’t live anywhere near London so I can’t test it on the Tube barriers. So I tested it with my own business’ SumUp card reader and it worked straight away, first time – which is always something my TicWatch struggled with so I never ended up actually using it. But now a simple double-tap on the crown brings up Google Wallet and I can quickly select the card to use – fast, and no fuss which is how you want it.
Something else which I’m liking so far, and which I never got to work properly on my previous smartwatch, is usable Google Maps on your watch without having to take your phone out of your pocket, which has obvious safety benefits. As well as directions you can choose to show the route and then pinch to zoom all the way out. You’d think that on such a small screen it would be next to useless but it’s actually a really nice high res screen which is very clear and nice to look at so I’m sure that will come in handy next time I’m walking somewhere I don’t know.
Apple Watches have been famed for their ability to take an ECG, an electrocardiogram and check for signs of AF, atrial fibrillation. Well this can do that too, you can take an ECG by using the FitBit ECG app which has you lightly touch your finger onto the crown for 30 seconds whilst it takes a measurement before giving you a result. If you’re worried, the companion app on your phone can even generate a PDF for you to give to your doctor… presumably for them to then do their own tests with actual medical grade devices!
It can also track your sleep via the Fitbit integration now that Google have acquired them; it looks like I could have done with a bit more sleep last night! Will I always wear it in bed though? I guess that will depend on how much charge it has by the end of the day, if it will then last the night and what charge level it’ll be on in the morning and how quickly it would charge up ready for another full day!
There’s a link in the video description if you’d like to order one for yourself, but those are my very quick first impressions and initial thoughts of the new Pixel Watch. Give this video a Like and let me know in the comments if you’ve got any questions you’d like me to answer, and I’ll stay active in the comments section over the next few weeks – but so far, on day one I’m happy with it.
🛒 Order your Google Pixel Watch on Amazon: https://geni.us/PixelWatch
DISCLOSURE: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
00:00 Intro & Android Wear / Wear OS history
00:33 Unboxing the Google Pixel Watch
01:03 Charging stand, wireless charging via USB-C
01:27 Side-by-Side with TicWatch Pro
01:51 Pixel Watch setup & downloading app
02:08 Buttons and swipe gestures
03:04 Using Google Wallet
03:29 Using Google Maps
03:55 Taking an Electrocardiogram / ECG
04:13 Exporting ECG results as PDF
04:22 Sleep tracking with Fitbit
04:39 Final thoughts & any questions?
#PixelWatch #GooglePixelWatch #TeamPixel
Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/SwitchedOnNetwork/join
FOLLOW US:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SwitchedOnNet // https://twitter.com/paulfp
Instagram: https://instagram.com/SwitchedOnNetwork // https://instagram.com/paulfp
Facebook: https://facebook.com/SwitchedOnNetwork // https://facebook.com/paulfp
Podcast: http://podfollow.com/switchedonnetwork
► JOIN Channel for Perks: https://www.youtube.com/SwitchedOnNetwork/join
► Support on PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/SwitchedOnNetwork
► Browse our MERCH: https://teespring.com/stores/switchedonnetwork
► Explore our GEAR: https://kit.co/paulfp
Check out our Amazon Influencer shops!
► UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/shop/switchedonnetwork
► USA: https://www.amazon.com/shop/switchedonnetwork
► Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/shop/switchedonnetwork
DISCLOSURE: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Copyright © Innobella Media Limited 2022. All Rights Reserved.
https://www.innobellamedia.uk/
For sponsorship, product reviews, collaboration & Business Enquiries you can get in touch here: https://www.switchedonnetwork.com/contact/