The Pixel Watch 3: Where do we stand? What are we going to tell you when Google announces its new look at a smartwatch?
The Pixel Watch and thePixel Watch 2 weren’t released until years after the competition had ended. The first item was a device that did not have good battery life. The second focused on addressing the mistakes of the first. Both were competent smartwatches, but with the Pixel Watch 3, it finally feels like Google’s done playing catch-up.
The one big change? Even if you have dainty wrists, I advise you to stay with the new 45mm size. This larger Pixel Watch 3 has much better battery life than its 41-mm counterpart, and still doesn’t feel all that big.
These running features are a part of the kit, and should be treated that way. Experienced runners should look to Coros or Garmin for more helpful training algorithms.
Lastly, I’d love to weigh in about Loss of Pulse, which calls emergency services on your behalf if the watch can’t detect your pulse. I can’t. Regulatory clearance is required for that feature to be in the US and not in other countries. Even so, this is a feature that nobody else has yet. It builds on a foundation, but also has a new direction being pushed by Google. There is something to that.
To use the Pixel Watch 3, you’ll have to log in to Fitbit with your phone’s account. As part of requirements from global regulators, Google says it must keep your Fitbit health data separate from its Google ads data. Should you choose to integrate any apps with your Fitbit account, like Strava, you will also have to agree to that app’s terms of service and privacy policies. The same goes if you opt into Google’s Health Connect API to better integrate with third-party services.
Additionally, if you want to use Google Assistant, you must agree to let Google collect app info and contact info from your devices. With their own agreements, other features like the Wallet and Home will also come with them. There will also be several optional permissions related to Bluetooth, location services, and financial services, depending on what you choose to enable.
The terms of service and privacy policies of your carrier will also have to be agreed to. You will have to agree to optional agreements if you choose to use Safety Signal as well.
Google Pixel Watch 3: Third Time’s the Charm: A User Review of Smartwatch Wear-Os-Wearable Technicolor
And I appreciate the 45mm watch. The lack of a larger size was a major criticism of the first and second watches. This makes up for that. As a bonus, this isn’t a behemoth 45mm watch. It wears small clothing. I’m a card-carrying member of the Tiny Wrist Club, and even I have a hard time telling the 41mm and 45mm apart on the wrist. After two weeks of testing, I find I actually prefer the 45mm. Not only can I see more on the screen, but its 35 percent larger battery means I can go longer between charging.
That matters because battery life has been a thorn in the Pixel Watch’s side. It is the first year I have felt completely comfortable with the stated battery life. A lot of that is because Google’s tripled down on battery life. Wear OS 5 and the Actua displays are more power-efficient and battery-saving mode kicks in when you hit 15 percent. You don’t have to worry about battery draining while you sleep with the introduction of an automatic bedtime mode. You used to have to do that manually or sync with a Pixel phone’s bedtime mode. It works now.
The changes from the first and second watches are not as bad as you might think, but neither adds up to a long battery life. I use the same charging routine for both watches, using a 20 to 30 minute fast charge. I needed the 41mm to get me through the day but sometimes, I’d be surprised with a low battery warning before bed. With the 45mm, I’ve never had that happen. No matter when I check my wrist, I’m always comfortably around 50–80 percent. I had a maximum of 32 hours in the rundown test.
Source: Google Pixel Watch 3 review: third time’s the charm
Getting Your Steps In: Cardio Load and Custom Workouts From a Holistic Viewpoint on Running Training and Fitness Tracking
Since day one, the main thing has been a streamlined,holistic approach to fitness tracking. It was founded on the idea of getting your steps in. Training is different, and yet nearly all of these features cater to beginners and a more casual athlete.
For example, the new running dashboard is designed to be more digestible than Garmin’s data dump while giving you a bit more context than Samsung or Apple. The running workouts generated by the artificial intelligence are a good example. The other day, I got a suggestion to do a four-mile workout on a day I was supposed to do one anyway. There was a card explaining why it was recommended — I’d been doing a lot of moderate steady-state runs and needed to zhuzh it up. I like to be more active in my training and know that I already know what I am doing. But for someone starting out or who has decision fatigue, that’s a neat option. One move in the right direction is the fact that your Cardio Load and Daily Readiness Score are not paid for.
For me, the two primary fitness updates are Cardio Load and custom workouts. The Cardio Load is a part of the Training Load. It measures your seven-day cardio intensity versus previous weeks. The difference here is after a 14-day calibration period, you’ll get a target number to aim for. I set a goal of improving my cardio fitness. I receive a target that takes into account what I have been doing. Old hats are confident in their programs and this is helpful for people who are starting out.
Custom workouts are another must-have for anyone serious about training. I’m happy to see them here, but there are quirks. Warmups and cooldowns can only be programmed by time, not by distance. It is annoying but you can work around it. It’s also a bit chatty for my tastes. If you stray from your goals, the watch will alert you when it is time for a new interval or if you are moving to a new interval. I programmed a four-mile Tempo run based on pace, and you can bet the Pixel Watch let me know anytime I was a second outside my pace range. (My pro tip is to turn off voice alerts.) Software updates could easily fix these issues, so I hope Google gets on that quickly.
The Pixel watch 3 has an ultra wideband chip that will allow you to automatically unlocks your phone. It’s a little thing that makes life easier. I cannot own a Beamer because I use turn signals, but I am able to unlocked certain BMWs. If you have a TV with a manufacturer’s warranty, you can double as a remote control. Offline Maps are the new thing. As a journalist, I found it handy that I can now record calls or notes on the Pixel Watch and magically find it, plus the transcription, on my Pixel 8 Pro seconds later. Call Assist is an extension of the program that lets you tell people you need a little more time to pick up the phone.
I can’t emphasize enough how huge this is. Apple’s seamless experience is a big reason why people get the phone. This had some of that magic and is important considering how much bigger SmartThings is compared to Google Home. It is not enough to overthrow the choke hold on the phone market by itself, but it will definitely make the fans happy.
Every smart device requires you to agree to a bunch of terms and conditions before it can be used. It is not possible for us to analyse all of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit “agree” to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people don’t read and definitely can’t negotiate.
