Google has achieved smartwatch greatness with the Pixel Watch 3, but it's time to join the Ultra party.
With its all-new, larger edition, Google finally produced what I described in our Pixel Watch 3 review as the top smartwatch for most Android users.
After arriving incredibly late to the smartwatch party – in a hardware sense, at least – what the company has been able to deliver over in just three generations is a remarkable achievement.
Led by an ever-improving Fitbit experience that now includes mature workout volume insights, a health tracking platform debuting exclusive features like Loss of Pulse Detection, and genuine multi-day battery life, it’s a smartwatch I can recommend without any grave caveats.
Yet, while Google has been locked in its basement successfully refining Pixel Watch to compete with the yearly remix of Apple’s Watch Series devices and Samsung’s Galaxy Watch lineup, the shift toward top-spec, high-end smartwatches has passed it by.
Once again, it will need to play catch-up to become a dominant force in the industry.
Time to toughen up
The Pixel Watch design is one I’ve loved wearing and testing over the last few years, even though, truthfully, the 45mm Pixel Watch 3 is the first one big enough to suit my wrist size.
The look has always been sleek and modern, and – despite being an iPhone user – is one I’ve gravitated to more than the square Apple Watch.
The wearability also improved greatly with the shift from stainless steel to aluminum in last year’s watch, which meant the final piece of the puzzle was adding a bigger case size. Probably a generation late, Google answered my prayers in this year’s release.
Still, something kept nagging at me during testing: the lack of durability.
After some near misses with power tools, outdoor excursions, and weightlifting with the first two Pixel Watch generations, the Pixel Watch 3 was one I found myself virtually cradling to avoid that redesigned edge-to-edge display from gaining an unsightly blemish.
As a full-time Garmin Fenix 8 user, it’s the biggest turn-off I’ve got with most current smartwatches – and why I’d gravitate more to the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or Galaxy Watch Ultra when I want Garmin’s missing smart features and LTE.
Google’s main rivals have created a compelling, high-end option for those caught between a sports watch and a ‘standard’ smartwatch like the Series 10 or Galaxy Watch 7. And it makes sense, with almost every market report (like this one from Counterpoint) forecasting important growth from this new high-end price point.
For as great as mid-range, ‘classic’ smartwatches are, there are tougher titanium cases, more scratch-proof sapphire crystal display glass, bigger batteries, and better waterproofing ratings out there for someone like myself who prioritizes them.
Creating the ‘Pixel Watch Ultra’
Of course, I’m not suggesting that the Pixel Watch 4 should be the host for this shift in momentum toward a more premium Google smartwatch.
No – after proving itself capable of delivering a great smartwatch, it’s time for Google to expand as we’ve seen Samsung do in 2024 (and Apple before it).
The lineup is now crying out for an all-new, high-end option to serve the weekend warriors and those who want a fancier Google option than ‘just the standard one’.
However, as we’ve seen with Samsung’s Galaxy Watch (and, to a lesser extent, the Huawei Watch Ultimate), doing so without appearing derivative can be a little difficult. After all, this premium smartwatch category is effectively one Apple created when it released the Ultra in 2022.
I don’t think Google will easily translate the svelte design language of the Pixel Watch into a ‘Pixel Watch Ultra’ or ‘Pixel Watch Pro’, but it has shown itself to navigate tough design issues in its other Pixel lines.
And given it’s already late to the party, there’s also a strong argument it should be advancing the segment, rather than merely following its rivals.
Does it do that by creating a women-first design, like it did with the original Pixel Watch? Is there a way it can leverage Fitbit Premium to become a Whoop alternative? Does it snub the outdoor fitness route in favor of the ultimate health smartwatch, reprising the vibe of the Fitbit Sense line?
Who knows. But there’s no doubt that adding a Pixel Watch is the brand’s natural next step in the smartwatch space.
If it dawdles – as it did with creating its original hardware – it misses another opportunity to become the industry’s top dog.
