Pixel Watch 4 review: tougher, brighter and smarter

Philipp Rüegg

8/10/2025

Translation: Patrik Stainbrook

Pictures: Philipp Rüegg

The fourth version of Google’s Pixel Watch has improved in practically all areas. Nevertheless, it won’t win over smartwatch critics.

Google already achieved great success with its last model. There, the focus was on a larger display and new running functions. In addition to numerous hardware upgrades, the Pixel Watch 4 now relies on – what else – AI. But even without artificial intelligence, the Pixel Watch 4 is impressive.

The display is now slightly curved towards the outside, which I initially found irritating. I almost got a little dizzy when scrolling through the app overview. Now, I think it’s pretty cool actually. It comes into its own particularly well on some dials.

The new Android design is also really snazzy. Google calls it Material 3 Expressive. It’s full of small, pretty animations. For example, new notifications briefly display full contact information. There’s also a rotating pause symbol when you play music, and the button you select slowly extends when closing messages. In general, the new design blends in wonderfully with the round shape of this watch.

Of course, there are new dials too. My current favourite is called «Reveal». It looks pretty simple at first glance. However, when you tap on it, the view changes and several interactive icons appear – all free to configure.

In my test, I even managed two and a half days with two one-hour training sessions, one of them using GPS. With power-saving mode, the official runtime grows two days for the 41 mm model and three for the large watch.

Speaking of charging, the Pixel Watch 4 comes with a new dock. Since the charging pins are now located on the side of the watch, it can be positioned much more easily. Until now, I always used a 3D printed bracket. Finally, I don’t have to use it any more.

With its new dock, the watch charges 25 per cent faster, only needing 15 minutes to go from 0 to 50 per cent.

The button above it displays the last open apps. If you press and hold it, it’ll launch the Google Assistant or Gemini again. If you want, you can set it so that you only have to raise your arm to speak to the AI. This was always reliable. However, apart from setting reminders or making the phone ring when I couldn’t find it, I hardly used that feature. The Assistant already does both without any problems.

Navigation using both your finger and the crown is fast and precise. Google still uses a Qualcomm chip, their own Tensor CPUS apparently aren’t ready for smartwatches yet. The haptic feedback for various interactions and notifications is pleasantly complex.

Thanks to the optimised speaker, Gemini sounds just a bit better. Again, the quality of the Pixel Watch 3 was more than sufficient to take a call on the device already.

To me, the digital camera viewfinder is still one of the most practical features. Using it, you can set up your smartphone and see its picture on the watch. Perfect for those two or three obligatory family selfies a year.

The watch is IP68 certified, with water resistance down to 5 ATM. Feel free to swim or shower with it, but remove it before going diving. The watch automatically detects when it’s wet and locks the display. This works while swimming, but drops and splashes still unintentionally trigger commands when showering. Still, it’s less frequent than on the Pixel Watch 3.

Otherwise, there are the usual features such as contactless payment, music via Bluetooth headphones, navigation and messaging. It’s a shame that Smart Replies are only available for Google’s own Messages app, not for Signal and the like. At least there’s a standalone app for WhatsApp which can read all messages and not just new ones.

To track your sleep, all you have to do is keep the watch on. Sleep is automatically detected, and the watch switches to the right mode. As long as you always go to bed at roughly the same time, it’ll work wonderfully. When sleep mode is active, the display stays off and won’t glare in my wife’s face.

This was already the case on the Pixel Watch 3. It didn’t work precisely enough there, at least at launch, so I usually switched sleep mode on and off manually. Thankfully, this is finally a thing of the past with the Pixel Watch 4.

Some sleep data such as the monthly sleep profile or detailed sleep index are only included in the paid Fitbit Premium subscription. A six-month membership is included with the purchase of any Pixel Watch 4, after which it costs nine euros per month.

Luckily, all content displayed during an activity is understandable and simple. You can see at a glance how long a segment lasts and what’s required. It’s easy to read, even when running.

What bothers me is that you can turn off voice notifications, but not sounds. At least I couldn’t adjust this in any of the settings. The watch was constantly jingling when I reached the limit of my required heart rate. A simple buzz would’ve been more than enough.

Pulse hikes like on the Pixel Watch 3 are rarer. However, the fact that heart rate measurement is always around ten seconds late makes training related to it somewhat tedious. I often overshot my target long before the watch recognised any change in performance.

There’s nothing to complain about in terms of accuracy during route detection. The new dual-band GPS is even said to have improved detection compared to the Pixel Watch 3 thanks to two individual satellite frequencies. Still, that was enough for my amateur sporting requirements.

The Fitbit Premium package includes various workout videos for strength training, yoga, etc. The app suggests some tailored to you every day. You can also search the selection manually. The only thing that bothered me here was how badly training sessions in German were dubbed. You can only change language by changing the whole language of an app.

The Pixel Watch 4 also features ECG measurement, a skin temperature sensor, detects loss of heart rate and falls and can send emergency calls via satellite.

The Pixel Watch 4 will be available in two sizes from 9 October. I received the larger version with 4G from Google for testing.

Philipp Rüegg

Senior Editor

Philipp.Rueegg@digitecgalaxus.ch

As a child, I wasn't allowed to have any consoles. It was only with the arrival of the family's 486 PC that the magical world of gaming opened up to me. Today, I'm overcompensating accordingly. Only a lack of time and money prevents me from trying out every game there is and decorating my shelf with rare retro consoles. more

---

Product test

Our experts test products and their applications. Independently and neutrally.

Show all

These articles might also interest you