If you bought a Pixel 10 series smartphone last year, you've probably been looking for a good smartwatch to go with it. As it is, the Pixel Watch 4 also came out with the Pixel 10 series. Is it the best smartwatch for your Pixel device? Read our review of the Google Pixel Watch 4 and find out.
In terms of design, the Pixel Watch 4 retains the same rather unique dome-shaped curved glass Actua 360 display, protected by Custom Corning 3D Gorilla Glass 5. While it sets itself apart from other standard smartwatches, since it isn't sapphire glass, our reviewer did mention being rather anxious swinging his arm about with it.
The curved glass covering the display is a dome protected by Custom Corning 3D Gorilla Glass 5
Nonetheless, the Actua 360 display beneath this glass is easily visible under direct sunlight with its up to 3000 nits brightness. Our review unit was the 45mm variant, which is great for men and those with larger wrists.
On the side of the chassis is the haptic crown that clicks satisfyingly as you turn it to scroll through the app drawer. Our review unit came with a flouroelastomer band that can be removed without any special tools, but pressing the teeny tiny button to release the band can get painful for those with big fingers.
The haptic crown is nice and clicky, while the bands can be replaced without needing any special tool
Powered by a quad-core processor and an M55 co-processor for background efficiency, the Pixel Watch 4 comes with either a 306mAh or 420mAh battery, depending on the chosen size.
For connectivity and tracking, it includes Bluetooth 6.0, 5GHz Wi-Fi, NFC, and Ultra Wideband, alongside dual-frequency GPS. The device is rated for 5ATM and IP68 water resistance, all while running on Wear OS 5.0.
The 45mm version is great for men and those with larger wrists
A side view of the curved glass dome for the Google Pixel Watch 4
Pairing was fast and simple with a Pixel 9 Pro XL via the Watch app. But fitness tracking was done using the bundled Fitbit app, so if you uninstalled it before, you'll have to reinstall it.
The new Dual-frequency GPS is quite accurate, and Wear OS 5 works very well with the Pixel Watch 4. Apps like Google Maps and Spotify switched with zero lag, and Fitbit was enough to track health and exercise with no issues.
While you pair with the Google Watch app, most health tracking is monitored by Fitbit
However, all this Wear OS functionality does come with a price: battery life. With the Always-On Display activated, the Pixel Watch 4 can only last about a day and a half on normal usage, so you'll probably need to charge every night to avoid suddenly hitting 0% in the middle of the day.
While you can stretch it to 36 hours using Battery Saver mode on a single charge, you may lose some functionality. Thankfully, the fast charging is pretty good, getting you to 50% in about 30 minutes.
The Google Pixel Watch 4 doesn't look like most other smartwatches, with a premium yet unique look
Overall, if you're the type who likes to stand out from the crowd amongst a sea of look-alike devices, the Google Pixel Watch 4 is an easy choice as a smartwatch, more so if you're a Pixel device user and a Wear OS enthusiast.
However, at RM1749 (41mm) and RM1999 (45mm), it is priced right in the premium bracket. You might not want to pay that for just a day of battery life. Alternatives include the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra series, but you only get an extra day or so with these as well.
What do you think? Are you into unique-looking devices, like the Google Pixel Watch 4? Is it worth having to charge every night? Then again, you're going to do the same with your phone anyway. Share your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave.com for more tech reviews.
Tech Specs and Features
Here are the Google Pixel Watch 4 tech specs and features:
- Qualcomm Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 + Cortex M55 co-processor
- 32GB storage + 2GB RAM
- 41mm (320 ppi) / 45mm (320 ppi) Actua Display (LTPO AMOLED) with up to 3000 nits peak brightness
- 325mAh (41mm) / 455mAh (45mm) with USB-C Fast Charging
- Features: 3D Corning Gorilla Glass 5, 5ATM water resistance, and IP68 dust/water resistance, Multi-path optical heart rate sensor, Multipurpose electrical sensors (ECG), SpO2 red/infrared sensors, Skin temperature sensor, and cEDA (Body Response) sensor
- Supports: Dual-frequency GPS (L1 plus L5), GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS, Bluetooth 6.0, Wi-Fi 802.11az (2.4GHz and 5GHz), NFC, and Ultra Wideband (UWB)
- Measurements 41mm x 12.3mm (31g) / 45mm x 12.3mm (37g)
- Wear OS 6.0
- Available in Obsidian, Porcelain, and Moonstone (45mm only)
Pros and Cons
Pros: Unique dome design with a now-available 45mm size and ultra-bright up to 3000 nits display.
Cons: A bit pricey, and it only has about 1 day and a half days of battery life.
Summary: Best standout smartwatch for Pixels and Wear OS.
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