Google Made The Best Smartwatch For Android, And It Did It Without Gimmicks

At a glance, there's nothing particularly exciting about the Pixel watch 4 — at least nothing that wasn't already there. The Pixel Watch 4 is still arguably the most beautiful smartwatch ever made — though personally, I think the black colorway of the Apple Watch is a very close second. The Pixel Watch 4 continues that tradition — it's gorgeous, and while the design isn't for everyone, I'm definitely a fan.

So, what is it about this latest release that is so compelling? A lot of that has nothing to do with looks and everything to do with the functionality buried beneath. In addition to sporting a great-looking design, this is a watch that actually feels like it's there to help you, beyond just serving up notifications and counting your steps. Yes, AI is involved because it's 2025 and that's just how things are, but more than AI, this is a watch that feels a little bit different than its competitors and the watches that have come before it. I've been wearing a Pixel Watch 4 review sample from Google for about a week, and this is my full review.

I don't normally start a review by talking about the battery, but I feel in this case it's warranted, because the first way this watch actively helps you out is by being on a lot of the time. Smartwatches up until recently (and let's face it, some still work this way) are one-day, or perhaps 36-hour affairs tops. The Pixel Watch 4 is a solid two-day or more proposition. That's means a lot more than it might seem because you don't have to worry about whether your watch will make it through a work trip if you forget the charger.

Speaking of the charger, Google transitioned away from the charger it has had for years with a new design — that of a charging stand. I don't love it, but I don't hate it either. It's definitely a different look. I'm also not enamored with the pogo pins on the side of the watch that are necessary to accommodate the new charger. But they do allow for faster charging which is a nice add-on.

When I first wore this watch starting from a Thursday and then over the weekend, I only put the watch on its charger twice. Once to take the photo above, and then on Monday night to charge it for a trip I was taking on Tuesday. So, when I say it's a solid two-day watch, I mean that. Even when the watch was away from Wi-Fi all day (which is admittedly not as big a deal as it is for a phone) I still only used about 40% of its charge on that trip.

My typically smartwatch setup includes turning on the always-on display (AOD) and usually between 4-6 complications. Complications add to battery strain because of the polling that's necessary to get things like weather. Plus complications each require a bit of computational power, so if you want to stretch out your battery life, that's a good place to start.

What really helps the battery life though it the dual-chip architecture that originally popped up on the OnePlus Watch 2 (that OnePlus co-developed with Google) that offloads a lot of the simpler tasks to a lower-powered processor and OS, leaving the more power hungry components to a faster processor. That combination is still great here and it's a wonder more WearOS watch makers haven't adopted it.

While the Pixel Watch is no stranger to Google Assistant integration, the addition of Gemini is a welcome one. Sure, you can do all the Gemini things you can do on your phone — ask questions, get summaries, etc. One neat trick I found was a sort of Gemini shortcut that you can add to the Gemini Tile. In my case, I added shortcut to turn my bedroom ceiling fan light on and off, but you can do other frequent queries like, "Where is my phone?" or "What time is the Cubs game today?"

One thing that isn't on the watch though is Magic Cue which is Google's Gemini integration that scrapes your personal data and serves it up in situations when you might need it. Texting is a premier example. When I sent a test text asking for my flight next week, my phone offered magic cue suggestions that actually referenced my calendar. The Pixel Watch 4 did not. It would seem to be fairly trivial to simply have the phone dig up the magic cue suggestions and push them to the watch, but I'm not a developer, so what do I know?

Google also redesigned the interface for the watch in a few subtle ways. Material 3 Expressive is a neat interface, and to this day it comes the closest to making me want to actually leave the app list on grid view over list view. Google stacks the apps in a three-column list that are still icons only, which can be infuriating at times, but something about the design makes me allow it to endure.

On other tiles, Material 3 Expressive allows you to have multiple buttons in fun layouts so you can access multiple controls at one time. In particular is the Maps tile which serves up buttons for map searches, quickly access directions to your work or home address, and search for various types of businesses. These all have rounded corners and adapt well to the rounded screen of the watch face. It's fun and playful and I'm here for it.

As for sleep and exercise tracking, that's still pretty great. One new addition is the ability to use your phone as a cycling dashboard through your watch. Finally, cyclists are recognized! In order to do this, you just start a cycling exercise activity on your watch. You'll receive a notification on your phone asking to use it as a dashboard. Accept the notification and just like that, all your stats are laid out. This isn't anything particularly new — some apps already do this — but the integration between the watch and phone is a nice feature.

Speaking of tracking activities, I had some trouble with that. Automatically detecting exercise is something most smartwatches can do, but they usually ask you if you're doing the thing and if you want to track it. I was out and about New York City one day, a city where seemingly all anyone ever does is walk, and I never got a notification. I later checked the FitBit app to see if it had tracked anything. It hadn't, but the Google Fit app had. It was the same situation for a bike ride I went on a few days earlier. I found this behavior a bit odd, and I reached out to Google about it. I will continue testing this and I will be sure to update this review if I hear back from Google.

But we haven't actually talked about the display yet. It's true that the Pixel Watch 4 has a similar design to previous generations, but there's one minor but notable difference. This year, the face of the watch is domed, but so is the screen underneath. Plus, the glass and screen are both domed as well. In the past the face of the watch was flat but curved around the sides. This is more of a true dome. 

This is best displayed by placing a Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Watch 4 face down on a flat surface. The Pixel Watch 3 remains flat and firm, but the Pixel Watch 4 has a wobble to it.

It's subtle, but it gives the watch a sense of true edge-to-edge coverage which hasn't been possible in years past. It's one of those last little refinements that shows polish and poise in an overall build.

Finally, there is another below-the-surface detail that you'll hopefully never have to use is the satellite connectivity that is built into the Pixel Watch 4. Full disclosure: I saved this for the end of the review because I didn't get a chance to actually test this feature. I didn't visit anywhere that was beyond cellular connectivity in the past week, but I have tested satellite connectivity in general in the past. Generally speaking, it's fine, and it's definitely something that's nice to have in case you do find yourself off the grid, but it can also be tricky to use properly.

All that being said, it's good to know the feature is there if/when I ever need it. It can be a lifeline in the right (or wrong situation) and when/if I find myself in a position to properly test this feature, I will be sure to update this review. For now, it's safe to say it's there if you need it, but, you know, try not to need it.

The Pixel Watch 4 is available starting today from the Google Store. It's priced at $349.99 which is the same price as the Pixel Watch 3 when it launched last year. That's good news for obvious reasons. As of now, you can buy the Pixel Watch 3 for 249.99 which muddies the water a little bit here.

What I can say is, overall, the Pixel Watch 4 is my favorite WearOS smartwatch that I've worn yet. The polish of this generation really puts finishing touches on my concerns from previous generations. When used in conjunction with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold — another battery champion — and this is a powerful combination. Of course, as for whether you should buy it is another matter.

If you have a Pixel Watch 3, you probably should not. While the final pieces of fit and finish are attractive, I don't think they're enough to justify a whole other purchase. If you're in the market for a Pixel smartwatch, it's also hard to justify an extra $100 for these final pieces. The Pixel Watch 3 is still very good, and now it costs $100 less, which is compelling. Personally, I like these final bits for an extra Benjamin, but your budget may say otherwise. What I wonder is, what Google can build on for next year, because this hardware is as good as it gets.