Review: Google Pixel Watch 4 — bigger, brighter and more colourful display with more AI and improved fitness tracking

This year, Google updated its Pixel Watch to a fourth generation with some impressive improvements – as you would expect from a relatively new piece of hardware.

The new Pixel Watch 4 arrives with an upgraded display featuring 16% smaller bezels, a new side-mounted charging dock, a new speaker and haptic engine, and improved battery life.

This year has once again included the larger 45 mm-sized Pixel 4 to sit alongside the 41mm size in the portfolio for those who prefer a larger watch.  Google sent me the 41mm size to test out.  To me, the 41mm is suitable for smaller wrists, but the 45mm, in my opinion, looks much better on larger and male wrists.  Each to their own — I know Dan prefers the 41mm.

Hardware

The display once again sees a significant improvement with the new domed AMOLED LTPO display, called the Actua 360 display, sporting 16% smaller bezels, resulting in a significantly larger active area (10%).  Not only is the display bigger, but also brighter, at 3,000nits – 50% brighter than the Pixel Watch 3. 

To protect your new Pixel Watch 4, it is covered with Custom 3D Corning Gorilla Glass 5.

The new display is a lot easier to see in bright daylight, although it doesn’t seem to me all that much improved on last year, it is better.  The smaller bezels are noticeable and a welcome addition.  

The display is bright and colourful, responding quickly to any interaction – just what you need in a watch.

The Pixel Watch 4 is once again available in two sizes: 45mm and 41mm. The larger 45mm size features a larger battery to compensate for the bigger, more power-hungry display.  The battery life has been improved across both watches, with the 45mm designed to deliver 40 hours of use and the 41mm 30 hours.

The new Pixel Watch features numerous software enhancements, with the entire watch system built around the Gemini platform.  Gemini, through the new speaker and haptic engine, delivers more precise answers to your questions – simply raise your wrist to talk to Gemini.

How is it to wear?

The standard silicone band that comes with the watch is relatively comfortable.  I do love the way it is secured to the wrist, with no strap hanging out looking to catch on clothing or anything else. I’m not sure what the band design is called but I’m here for it.

Dan has purchased cloth bands for his Google Pixel Watches in the past, and he swears by how comfortable they are. If you are looking for more comfort, Google offers a multitude of different bands for the Pixel Watch 4.

Set up and software

Setting up the watch is super easy, as you would expect by this generation.  During the setup Google gives you recommendations for watch apps to install based on the apps on your phone.

The software throughout Wear OS has been updated in the Pixel Watch 4 to Material 3 Expressive.  This new industrial design gives the notifications a richer appearance and the tiles, such as for multiple notifications, have a sleek appearance with new shapes, making the design consistent with the curve of the display.

Gemini is front and centre with this watch, as it is with the Pixel 10 phones.  I use Gemini sparingly, a few times a day, so found this extremely handy.  The speaker in the side of the phone is loud and easily heard in all conditions.  I’m not a fan of this loud feedback in public, but I used it quite a bit in private.

Gemini can also be used to run actions which you can create yourself or choose one of the pre-made ones on the watch app. The AI is further extended with smart replies if you have the watch paired with a Pixel smartphone, specifically the Pixel 8 Pro and newer models.

One issue I noticed was that the Do Not Disturb feature on the phone still resulted in notifications on the watch – that buzzing at 5 a.m. is not fun.  There is a Bedtime Mode on the watch, but for some reason, it allowed some notifications through.  I suggest switching the watch to DND until you can determine the cause of the issue.

Charging + battery life

Google has changed the charging dock this year with a side-mounted dock and it has solved a massive issue I had with the previous generations – the charger often disconnected from the watch while charging due to the bands pushing it away.  This way it sits on its side, and you can easily see the display and the amount it has charged at all times.

The Pixel Watch 4 charges 25% faster than the Pixel Watch 3 from 0% to 100% with the Quick Charge Dock and a compatible adapter.  I just plugged it into my Thunderbolt 4 dock and it charged super fast.  I was impressed with how fast it charges.  

For reference, I popped the watch on the charger as I was typing this when the battery was at 26%.  10 minutes later, the battery was at  70%. So fast.

Google states that the Pixel Watch 4 is expected to provide 30-40 hours of battery life.  I found that I could get around 31.5 hours of battery life from a single charge which is pretty impressive.  For using the watch in everyday life, that equates to two full days of use – take it off the charger at 8am, add on 30 hours from that and you get to around 2pm the following day – 2 days.  

This is without using the extreme battery saver mode too.  For simple use, you can charge the watch while showering in the morning for 10 minutes, and it will easily last the full second day. Google states that the Pixel Watch 4 will charge to 50% from empty in just 15 minutes. In my testing, from 17%, it took just SIX minutes to reach 50%, which is sufficient for a workday.

Health and fitness

At this stage, I have only had the Pixel Watch 4 for six days, so it’s not easy to provide an accurate assessment of my thoughts on its health and fitness capabilities and overall performance. I can say that the watch, through the Fitbit app, can provide decent sleep metrics, including sleep stages, your oxygen variation (important for sleep apnoea analysis), and your sleeping heart rate.

Stress management is front and centre in the app. It tells you how stressed you have been during the day and then offers mindfulness session ideas to reduce your stress levels. The watch itself features a breathing app to help you calm down and relax through a series of slow, controlled breathing exercises.

Regular exercisers will like the ‘Daily Readiness’ score, which gives you an indication of just how ready you are for an intense workout. This is the key indicator I use when using my fitness/health devices.

Features I am yet to test out but will in the next couple of weeks, once this knee soreness disappears, are:

• Improved activity detection — once you have been performing a supported activity, such as running, walking, bike riding, spinning, rowing, or using an elliptical, for more than 15 minutes, the watch will automatically start tracking your activity. Within an hour of finishing the session, a notification will appear with a recap of your session.
• Bike real-time streaming — you will need to start a cycling session in the Exercise app on the watch for this. It will then provide you with real-time metrics during your session, including duration, heart rate, speed, time, and elevation on the watch.
• Improved running functionality with the ability to create a custom run with intervals, etc. The watch will then provide helpful prompts during your run, such as interval alerts, split alerts, pace coaching, and heart rate coaching. The Fitbit app will provide ‘advanced form analysis’ with insights, metrics and a deep dive into your run.
  • AI-powered daily run recommendations from the coach tab within the Fitbit app.
• ECG readings and irregular heart rhythm notifications

Conclusion

The Pixel Watch 4 is a notable evolution in Google’s wearable line. Although the design is the same and still very polarising, there are enough hardware changes and software enhancements that make it a decent upgrade from the previous third generation. The display is much brighter and more vibrant, with the software changes designed to show off these new colour capabilities perfectly.

The new smarts in the Fitbit app are well displayed and utilised by the Pixel Watch 4, although many of these will also be available on the Pixel Watch 3 once it receives the latest software updates. Battery life is much improved and the charging is incredibly fast and much more convenient with the side-mounted charger.

For those looking to make a foray into the Android and Wear OS space, the Pixel Watch 4 offers a wealth of capabilities, particularly in its fitness features, although much of them are untested by us at this stage.

As a watch and notification service, it looks great and functions extremely well. Its design is getting a bit old but it is very Pixel Watch-ey. If you own a Pixel smartphone and like the look of the Pixel Watch 4, then I can highly recommend it for you.

The Google Pixel Watch 4 is available now for RRP 9 and 9 (WiFi versions) and 9 and 9 (LTE versions) for the 41mm and 45mm sizes, respectively, at all the usual retail stores and Google. The 41mm Pixel Watch 4 is available in Obsidian, Porcelain, Lemongrass, and Iris colourways, while the 45mm model is available in Obsidian, Porcelain, and Moonstone.