Even though the Pixel Watch has been around for the last two years, its third iteration finally feels like it has truly arrived. Google has addressed the critiques of its last two smartwatches and made some key improvements on the third-generation wearable. To begin with, the Pixel Watch 3 is available in two sizes – 41mm and 45mm. The display is brighter, which suits outdoor use, and the bezels around it are remarkably slimmer. On the OS front, Google has released some of the premium Fitbit features from the shackles of a paywall and made them available to general users. Prices for the Google Pixel Watch 3 start at Rs 38,999 for the 41mm and go up to Rs 42,999 for the 45mm variant. We used its 41mm variant for a week to see if it matches up to its Android rivals – Samsung Galaxy Watch7 and OnePlus Watch 2. Here is our review of the Google Pixel Watch 3.
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In This Article
Google Pixel Watch 3 Review: Design and Display
Here’s what you get inside Google Pixel Watch 3’s retail box:
- Smartwatch
- Charging puck
- Extra wrist band
- Quick start guide
- Safety, warranty, and regulatory guide
As we mentioned earlier, the Google Pixel Watch 3 is available in two dial sizes – 41mm and 45mm. We used the 41mm variant for this review. This size has been carried forward from the Pixel Watch 2. The round dial has curved edges and feels very compact on the wrist. Despite its small size, it manages to look proportional on larger wrists. We prefer a smaller form factor for smartwatch displays so this was right up our alley.
The polished, minimal design of the Pixel Watch 3 is still a very strong asset. We like how the curved edges are finished in black to give the watch a cleaner look. The smooth aluminium shell houses the rotating crown, microphone, and action button on the right edge and a solitary speaker slit on the left side. The underside of the shell contains the sensor array and magnetic attachments for the charger.
The 1.4-inch AMOLED display can now reach a peak brightness of 2,000 nits. It has a refresh rate of 60Hz. The response rate offered by this display is smooth and allows for easy navigation. The bezels are now slimmer, resulting in more screen real estate. The refresh rate and brightness drop down when Always On Display is enabled.
The rubber strap offers a comfortable fit. We wore the smartwatch for a couple of days at a stretch and did not feel any skin irritation or itchiness. There’s an additional larger strap inside the box for users with larger wrists. The smartwatch is IP68 certified and is water resistant up to 50 metres. It can handle 5ATM of water pressure.
Google Pixel Watch 3 Review: Performance
The Google Pixel Watch 3 carries forward the Snapdragon W5 Gen 1 chipset from last year but is now co-powered by a new Cortex-M33 processor. The sensor array on the watch comprises a compass, altimeter, SPO2 monitor, heart rate sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, ambient light sensor, skin conductance sensor, skin temperature sensor, barometer, and magnetometer.
OS duties on the smartwatch are handled by the Android Wear OS 5. Google is offering up to 3 major OS updates for this smartwatch. The general software experience is top-notch, which is something you expect from Google. It makes good use of the limited screen real estate on offer. We like the rectangular grid layout of the app drawer and prefer it over the cloud layout offered by other OEMs.
One of our favourite things about the Pixel Watch 3 is how meticulously the rotating crown is integrated into the software. You can use it to scroll up and down in the general interface and control specific functions within apps. For example, in the Google Maps app, you can rotate the crown to zoom in and out instead of relying on pinching the screen.
Another advantage of using an Android smartwatch over generic smart wearables is exhaustive app support. You can install WhatsApp on the Pixel Watch 3 and keep up with active chats even when you don’t have your phone on you. The watch’s onscreen keyboard is optimised nicely in accordance with the screen size. If you like to golf, you’ll enjoy the wide range of golfing apps that can track your shots and keep the scoreboard updated. The native camera app on the watch can trigger your phone’s camera at any given time and take a picture. If you have a Nest doorbell, you can view the camera feed on the Pixel Watch.
The Pixel Watch 3 keeps track of essential health metrics like heart rate, SPO2, ECG, and breathing rate. It sends regular alerts for high resting heart rate, irregular heart rhythm, and other metrics. We also like the PDF report it compiles for the ECG readings. If you wear the watch to bed, it monitors your sleep cycle and efficiently breaks it down into different stages. Every sleep cycle is assigned a score based on the quality of your sleep.
Our only gripe with the health tracking functions of the Pixel Watch 3 is that there is no way to actively measure your SPO2 level at any given moment. The smartwatch measures your blood oxygen level in the background while you’re asleep. We hope Google adds a dedicated tile for SPO2 measurement in a future update.
Apart from tracking health metrics, the Pixel Watch 3 can log your mindfulness sessions as well. This requires using the content provided in the Fitbit app. As of now, there is no way to manually log your meditation sessions, which is a bit of a letdown. The ‘Body Responses’ feature tracks your stress levels throughout the day and lets you log your mood in periods of heightened activity. The Fitbit app also calculates a personalised ‘Stress Management Score’ based on your heart rate, physical activity, and sleep cycle.
Moving on, the smartwatch offers a wide range of fitness-tracking functions. It tracks your steps in the background throughout the day but you can also choose customised tracking options for hikes and runs. Whether you’re golfing, dancing, or kayaking, the Pixel Watch 3 has a custom routine for you. The Fitbit app on your phone allows you to build a custom running routine based on your personal goals and trail preferences. Once you’re done with your workout, you can view essential metrics like calories burnt, average heart rate, distance covered, and even very specific factors like stride length and step cadence.
After you’ve used the watch to track your health and fitness for a few days, it calculates your Readiness Score. This was previously a Fitbit Premium feature which is now available for free. We like this feature quite a bit as it takes your daily activity and sleep quality into account to determine how well your body has recuperated from the workout you put it through.
The Pixel Watch 3’s battery capacity remains 307mAh for the 41mm variant. The 45mm variant packs a 420mAh battery. Despite the difference in capacity, both variants offer a similar battery performance. With Always On Display turned on the smartwatch lasted us 24 hours. This battery life was doubled when we turned off the AOD. During the week-long review period, we used the Google Pixel Watch 3 primarily to track 40-minute workouts and gather health data in the background. Our secondary tasks included taking the odd voice call and answering text messages every now and then. We were very satisfied with how its battery life turned out. Using the charger provided in the box, we were able to fully charge the watch in an hour.
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Verdict
The Google Pixel Watch 3 is one of the more refined premium smartwatches around. It doesn’t rely on flashiness and gimmicky features to attract attention. Instead, its refined design and consistent performance prove to be its best attributes. You’ll be hard-pressed to find any smartwatch that replicates the clean, minimal design of the Pixel Watch 3. Its software experience and general performance back up its aesthetics. The smartwatch is easy to navigate and very accessible to the general user. This also applies to its companion Fitbit app, which makes it very easy to understand your health and fitness reports. The Rs 38,999 price tag is a bit expensive, but the Pixel Watch 3 does everything it can to justify it.
Google Pixel Watch 3: Pros
- Smooth display
- Excellent software experience
- Accurate tracking
- Fast charging
Google Pixel Watch 3: Cons
- No option to measure SPO2 in real-time
