Google Launches Pixel Watch, Their First Smartwatch Starting at Rs 28,600 – Technology News, Firstpost

FP staff07 Oct 2022 13:51:42 IST

Google has officially entered the smartwatch business with the launch of the Pixel Watch. Unveiled at the Google IO developer conference back in May, Google will be taking on the Apple Watch series with their own Pixel Watch.

Unlike the Apple Watch, which is exclusive to the Apple ecosystem and only pairs well with Apple devices, the Pixel Watch will work seamlessly with most Android devices. It does have a few features that are exclusive to Pixel devices, but that in no way takes away from the Android smartwatch experience.

Google, like most other tech companies, pays a lot of attention to protecting the environment and has made the body of the watch face out of 80 percent recycled stainless steel. This is in line with the company’s sustainable development goals. The case is available in three colors – black, silver and gold.

Google Pixel Watch: Specifications and Features
The Pixel Watch is powered by the Samsung Exynos 9110 SoC and runs WearOS 3.5. It comes with 2GB of SDRAM and 32GB of storage. Connectivity options include Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n 2.4 GHz and NFC support. It also supports GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and Galileo. The watch is compatible with Android 8.0 or later.

The Pixel Watch display is an AMOLED panel with 320 pixels per inch and up to 1000 nits. It is an always-on display and comes with a special 3D Corning Gorilla Glass. The Pixel Watch runs on WearOS, although Google also offers some great features from Fitbit. Google says their Pixel Watch brings the best of fitness tracker and smartwatch with ML (machine learning) capabilities on the device.

The watch has a 294mAh battery, which Google promises will last a day. The charging speed is 50 percent in 30 minutes, and about 80 minutes for a full charge. Google supplies a magnetic USB-C charging cable in the box.

As sensors, users get a compass, altimeter, blood oxygen sensor, multi-purpose electrical sensor, optical heart rate sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope and ambient light sensors.

Users can also get a daily fitness score, which is available for Fitbit Charge 5 and newer smartwatches. It also has ECG, Google Maps, Wallet, Emergency SOS and International Emergency Call capabilities. Google will also add fall detection to the watch later this year. Google is also giving buyers six months of free access to Fitbit Premium and three months of free YouTube Premium. The watch has a water rating of 5ATM, which means it can be taken swimming, but only in shallow water.

Google Pixel Watch: Pricing and Availability
The Google Pixel Watch starts at $349 or around Rs 28,700 for the Bluetooth-only variant and starts at $399 or around Rs 32,800 for the LTE variant. Pricing for the Indian market is still unclear as Google hasn’t announced it, which remains unclear. The watch will be available in India later. Google has already started accepting pre-orders in some countries.