Google Pixel Watch 4 hands-on: grading on a curved display
The Pixel Watch 4 has Google painting outside the lines with its curved domed display
✅ Pros
⌚ New Acuta 360 display offers a curved screen, not just domed glass
📐 16% smaller bezel, 10% more screen real estate, and 3,000 nits (up to 2,000)
🔋 25% faster charging and more battery life (up to 40 hours on normal mode)
🛰️ First standalone watch to offer SOS Emergency satellite service
⚙️ Dual-chip architecture featuring Qualcomm’s Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 chip
🚵♀️ Bike streaming will beam watch stats to your phone display
📳 Strong haptics, clearer speaker, and raise-to-wake Gemini functionality
💰 Same price as last year, starting at $349 (41mm) and $399 (45mm)
❌ Cons
⚡ 4th-gen Pixel Watch yet Google’s third new new charger
🏋️♂️ Fitbit Premium health coach won’t launch until October 2025
🪨 Not as durable as Apple or Samsung’s Ultra
🔥 The Shortcut hot take
The Pixel Watch 4 is painting outside the lines. When last year’s Pixel Watch 3 finally offered a much-needed larger screen size and a battery life boost via two display sizes, I thought, “Where does Google go from here?” The answer is beyond the border.
There are also some neat AI tricks, better battery life, a raise-to-wake AI feature and an all-new SOS mode that goes beyond what the Apple Watch offers. It’s Google’s most stylish gadget with a sizable upgrade that pairs nicely with a Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 XL, or Pixel 10 Pro Fold.
🛍️ Pixel 10 preorder deals
⌚ About face. Google’s Actua 360 display goes beyond the flat screen in domed glass. The edges of the display are actually curved. We’re one step closer to having a stylish smartwatch display that wraps around your wrist and doesn’t just sit on top of it.
📺 More screen. The new display offers a 16% smaller bezel and 10% more screen, which is noticeable when you put the Pixel Watch 4 next to its predecessors.
💡 50% brighter at 3,000 nits. It’s brighter by 1,000 nits, which makes a difference when you really need it: outside in bright sunlight. That puts it on par with the Apple Watch Ultra 2.
💰 New tech, same price. Despite the redesigned display, Google is keeping the price the same: $349 (41mm) and $399 (45mm). Those prices increase by $50 if you get the version that has LTE cellular connectivity.
⚡ But also a new new charger. This is the fourth-gen Pixel Watch and the third charger. It works better with faster charging, and there’s a bedside-friendly standby mode. Great. But contrast that with the Apple Watch, which has had the same charger for 10 years (it’s only gotten faster). That means I have many backward-compatible chargers (one for my bed, one for my office, one dedicated to my luggage). We’re starting over again with the Pixel Watch 4.
📆 Launches in October. You won’t be able to pair your Pixel Watch 4 with a Pixel 10 phone right away in August. It’s not launching until October 9 alongside the Pixel Fold 9 Pro and Pixel Buds 2a.
🧰 You Fix It. Google says you’ll be able to repair your Pixel Watch (or have it fixed by a pro) much more easily than previous smartwatches. That was a major knock about the Pixel Watch series previously.
🛰️ Standalone SOS Emergency Satellite. We’ve seen SOS mode before on other watches, but Google says this one works without requiring a smartphone nearby. So if you’re in trouble on a hike, for example, you’ll be able to pull down a signal from space.
🎨 Redesigned apps. Generally, many of Google’s watch apps looked like they were designed in MS Paint. They’re getting a fresh coat on the smartwatch thanks to its Material 3 Expressive design ethos. They’re still fairly minimalist, but there’s more to glance at now.
💬 AI smart replies. Google’s LLM is able to narrowly focus on a text thread to offer better replies based on the conversation. It’s better than having the software guess or offer “Yes” and “No” responses when you’re in a hurry.
📳 15% stronger haptics. The Pixel Watch 4 has stronger vibrations despite having the same overall footprint. You’ll be less likely to miss important notifications. It’s a small, but important change.
🔊 Clearer speaker. When Gemini feeds back information, it’s easier to hear. That’s thanks to a new speaker that makes the audio clearer. Audio playback is no longer an afterthought.
🤖 Raise-to-wake Gemini. “Hey Google” is for those Pixel Watch 3 lameo’s. You can talk to the AI with a simple raise-to-wake gesture on the Pixel Watch 4. Since your watch is always strapped to your wrist, this motion acts as the fastest way to ping Google’s AI with questions that pop into your brain.
Fitbit Premium. We didn’t get to test out the virtual coach feature coming to the Fitbit app’s Premium redesign, as it won’t launch until sometime in October (and even then, it’s just a preview of the final app). But it sounds like Google is taking on its rivals with personalized health coaching, where you can ask questions.
💦 Waterproof up to 50m. This is unchanged but worth mentioning. In addition to the IP68 rating, you’ll be able to take the smartwatch down 50 meters.
🔋 25% longer battery life. Google estimates you’ll get 30 hours from the 41mm watch and 40 hours from the 45mm watch. That’s before battery saver mode kicks in as an option, which extends the life to two or three days, depending on your watch size.
⚡ 25% faster charging. You can go from 0% to 50% in just 15 minutes, according to Google. So in the time it takes you to get a shower in the morning, you could have nearly a full day’s worth of charge. That seems ideal (pending our full review testing, of course)
More Pixel Watch 4 coverage to come
This is just the beginning of our Pixel Watch 4 coverage. We’ll continue talking a lot more about Google’s redesigned smartwatch in the coming weeks, leading up to the October 9 release date alongside the Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Pixel Buds 2a.