I got this free with my pixel and I was astounded to find out that not only did google not offer any repairs on the watch, but there are also zero spare parts for it as well! That being said it is pretty good and I'm getting a way faster charging speed than advertised. Its usually about 30 to 40 minutes for it to get from 10% to 100%.
You can set the watch to stay "unlocked" while you're wearing it. So you only have to put in your PIN/pattern when you first put you watch on, at the start of your day. Or whenever you take it off and put it back on. At least I can do that on my Fossil Gen 6 Android Wear watch.
I wouldn't have paid $350 for this on my own, but getting it for free with the 8 Pro was a nice bonus. I hated the pin charger at first because you do have to align it, but it charges FAST. Coming from a Galaxy Watch5 I think this is a much much nicer looking watch but the OS needs some work. Not bad for a gen 2 though. They need to make some leaps to justify the price tag though, imo.
I think this is every major tech company. I swear using anything google/apple/amazon/facebook is always a terrible and buggy experience. It never just works. It's always some weird chinese brand or open source thing that end up being what just works.
seriously. Samsung had a chance to buy Android, that would be an amazing timeline to live in. It is so much more beneficial to Google to just surrender to Samsung. Collaborate with Samsung to create the ecosystem consisting of Google Products. Considering Samsung has partnership with Microsoft as well, it would be so nice to have it all work together. nonetheless, Samsung still did manage to create a nice ecosystem anyways. but Google should just let Samsung handle it. and focus on it's services to integrate, like Assistant, Maps, Search, AI, Cameras, etc Imagine Samsung Camera hardware with Google Camera Software.
@@MarcSpctrI’m just gonna correct this as someone who works for an agency that works with Google on certain products. Android going to Samsung would not be good. As without android Chromebooks won’t be around, so windows and Mac will have no incentive to make more competitive devices. Same for Samsung having a monopoly won’t help. Google also gives android to these oem for free. If Samsung owns it costs of phones will go up by about £100/dollars as Samsung would charge for access to android. That will affect pricing on iOS too to go up and lower end devices increase and budget becomes more expensive too. Whole reason android is buggy in Google is as they’re focused on Ai more then software currently. Also most products Google use get supported longer then the rest and are built to last longer and do get developed on as they age.
@@ssaini5028will you put the same argument when they solder the ssds on motherboard and say if want more pay for cloud and internet. I don't want to burn my cash just to keep my stored files.
As an actual watch enthusiast AND a tech enthusiast it's hysterical to me that not a single tech brand seems capable of creating a good watch even with their bottomless budgets, they ALL have substandard materials, terrible clasps, no bracelet options and children's toy watch looks. And that goes without even mentioning the walled garden software they're shoveling out with them. You're getting screwed with all smart watches and arguing with each other about the best one is missing the point.
Do you remember when TAG made a Wear OS watch? I never really heard anything about it and haven't seen any videos or anything. I just checked the site and apparently they're still making and selling them. I wonder if they are any good... Not that I'd pay that for a watch that will inevitably become outdated relatively quickly and will eventually die without being reparable.
the thing is...the battery will die at one point, so they aren't "timeless" pieces like mechanical watches where if i am buying one, i would use it for atleast 10 years. Repair is borderline impossible on these smartwatches, the only ones that are almost repairable are something huge like apple watch ultra.
fun factoid for people wondering. The charger on the pixel watch is the same one that's on the sense/versa series of fitbit watches. So if you have one of those lying around. It's compatible. My finance has a Fitbit and it works fine for me.
Oh sweet, thanks for the tip. I'm upgrading from a Sense and I loved my charging stand so I'm gonna keep using it. Didn't even think of that lol.@@Junebug89
I am grateful that the smart watches don’t get new band attachment methods every year, but I really do wish they came up with something, a little more seamless, especially Apple. Always bugs me how bends either don’t perfectly line up with the body or leave a little gap.
@@mjesticfalcoit already exists. It was implemented in the Huawei GT3. Also, Samsung has its own thing but it can still be charged wirelessly through Samsung phones.
God I miss my pebble 2. The seal on the back panel failed while I was swimming and I've never been able to find a working one for sale at a reasonable price. Literally no other smart watch comes close to the pebbles.
Not sure how it was overlooked but the pin is mainly requested if the watch is removed from the wrist. As long as it's on your person, the watch shouldn't ask you for a pin.
Ngl after all that missionformation and innacutacies drama they still messes it up. You dont need fitbit premium to access safety features. You need premium only if your LTE watch has no data plan and is not connected to the phone. In that case fitbit premium will connect to nearby tower even if you dont have a plan. Its even written on the screencap they highlighted. Come on lmao.
I upgraded from the Pixel Watch 1 to 2 (free with my 8 Pro), and I'm loving it so far! Besides much improved battery life, it's much zippier all around. From jumping between apps and firing up the assistant, huge improvement from the first one. That being said, really wish Google would give us the option to turn off the constant heart rate tracking (or at least make it less constant). Me personally, I don't really need to have my heart rate tracked every single second unless I'm actually working out (or maybe sleeping). Otherwise, fantastic upgrade overall!
I am really considering the Pixel 8 Pro, even more so with the free watch. I have a OnePlus 9 Pro, and a Fossil Q Gen 5. My watch doesn't get even half way through the day even in "theatre mode" in which the screen never turns on unless I press the crown.
@@hgpot I definitely would recommend the 8 Pro! Unfortunately the promotion is over so you'd have to buy the Watch 2 separately, but still a killer smartwatch (that should work with the OnePlus 9 Pro!)
@@JoshuaOlujide hey! I currently have the Watch 1 (love it) and I was thinking to upgrade to the 2, but I noticed that the new one has a slightly different charger? Just wanted to ask if you've been able to charge the 2 with the chargers from the 1? I bought multiple for my Watch 1 (one in my bag, one that I put in a 3D printed watch stand, etc.) and I don't want them to become e-waste.
@@Xitharis Hey! Unfortunately, Google did change the charger for the 2 to a puck with four connector pins, similar to how other FitBits are charged. While it does help the watch 2 charge noticeably faster, it definitely is not backwards compatibile with the first pixel watch (trust me I tried). It's also kinda annoying because now I can only charge the watch from one direction on the charger, whereas with the first one I could put it on any way I wanted and it'd charge, but yeah.
I had a Fossil 3 years ago with Wear OS and was also 24 hours battery, for the basic stuff like notification and heart rate, then I changed to Fitbit to get the same results plus a 6-7 day battery life. I just got the Sense 2 and a free Pixel Watch 2, but for that kind of use, I think the Fitbit is far better option.
I got one with my phone and I'm extremely happy with it. battery life is great and it charges quickly (I just charge while I'm in the shower and I'm good for the day), great fitness tracking and health features. default band is comfortable, controls are easy to get the hang of. hard to really find much to complain about (besides the fitbit premium, but that's not new)
I tend to use my PW2 more than my Galaxy Watch 6. It just feels more fun to use, has better GPS and heart rate accuracy and is a conversation starter when people see it.
I know Google,Samsung and Apple watches are the most popular brand but I've never enjoy any of them that much due to battery life... I found one that last 7 days on a single charge with the heart rate ON... Garmin are making smartwatch that are amazing, it would be nice to have a little shortcircuit for them 🙂
@@popullarmmax I didn't know they were making smartwatch. There's so much better brand compare to the 3 majors one we all know. Now I'll go have a look at that Xiaomi watch 😅
@@nadeoki I just don't want to think about charging my device to often and specific OS feature for me aren't that important. I would to be able to read my text, pick up or reject phone call, all the fitness fonction and also NCF payment. I do agree that having full os feature is nice but battery is my priority. 🙂
Btw I’ve used many many fitbits for many years and the sleep tracking on them has been pretty amazing. I’d assume the 2nd gen pixel watch is similar so you’ll probably get improvements there.
Pixel 2 Watch is my first wearable and I'm pretty happy with it. Mainly because it was free, along with my Pixel 8 which was also free from VZW after my Pixel 6 trade in. I'd never spend $400 on a watch that will become e-waste when for $400 you can buy a decent real watch that will never become waste. I agree, loving the Pixel 8 size. The Pixel 6 I had was just way too big.
@CinderRae I think the free watch deal was for anyone who ordered a pixel phone from the google store "While supplies last." I think the supplies are now gone.
Day two of using the Pixel Watch 2, it got skuffed? How? I have no idea. The battery life for me didn't even make it a full day with always on, had to turn it off. I'm going to be returning it
For me the best smart watch I had was a huawei GT something. Not a lot of functions, but battery would last 2 weeks. That is all I needed. Notificacions and a good battery
It's just mind-boggling that they design the watch to be as breakable as possible with the screen bulging out so much, and then offer no repairs. Nice one, Google.
We need someone to create a Graphene OS for these watches... not wearing a trashy data absorption device to my wrist so I can feel/see every notification every 60 seconds more than my phone already does.
For some reason, I couldn't stop focusing on the big circular object on the table in the background, as they looked over this circular shaped Pixel Watch. My brain work weird. 🤪
Now that I've experienced the indestructible sapphire crystal on the Galaxy watch I can't go back to regular glass. Especially not something domed like that that I wouldn't be able to put a reasonable screen protector on.
Google really doesn’t catch enough criticism the same way Apple does. If you couldn’t get an Apple Watch screen fixed at all, there would be massive online backlash. They pull the same shit Apple does, as well as Samsung.
I did vote with my wallet. Premium construction and nice design are must haves. I got the GW5Pro because titanium case, saphyre crystal OLED, then got a metal mesh band. Lasts 2-3 days or even 4 with always on display off. Before this I had the original Huawei Watch for 9 years because of the same premium construction idea. The thing still looks new, it's just slow. It also somehow still looks better than any other wearable ever released.
this is the second time i've seen the review express frustration about the PIN/pattern unlock affecting google-pay. once you put the PIN in, you DON"T need to do it again unless YOU TAKE OFF THE WATCH! I put the watch on in the morning, enter the PIN, and use it the rest of the day without having to enter it again, even when I pay with the watch, it's just a double click on the crown, choose the card, pay. I never have to put the PIN in after the first time when I put it on my wrist.
I've honestly never even considered Apple or Google as an option for a watch. If I want any smart features from my watch, it's either Garmin or Suunto.
My wife has POTS and sinus tachycardia, i.e. heart issues, and from what weve seen, it is much more accurate with the heart rate, especially with heart rate spikes. Its not perfect, but it is MUCH better than her Versa 2 and Galaxy watch 4. Those watches would basically never catch spikes and were pretty inaccurate when they did. The Pixel 2 watch catches sudden spikes and is either pretty close, or margin of error level spot on when compared to an actual medical heart rate device. Other watches are like 20-40 bpm off and take way too long to finally catch up and detect. TL;DR, if youre looking for a watch with very good heart rate detection, this is a very good candidate. Probably the best aside from a medical grade heart rate sensor.
My Pixel Watch 2 is scuffed after less than a week. I have no idea how.. I have been wearing long sleeves and it's been covered but somehow its got multiple scratches on it...
I've been daily driving the Pixel 1 watch also and the one thing I wish they would push is the ability to turn down the HR sensor like he said. I only care during workout to get perfect accurate readings. It also does not follow your DND from your phone which is just stupid. how hard would this setting be?? Those are my 2 biggest gripes with the watch that they need to fix!!
My Pixel Watch 2 has DND and Bedtime mode synced with ny phone. If I recall correctly, this is a feature of WearOS 4 and should be rolling out to the Pixel Watch 1 by the end of this year.
@@RikkiMama I really hope that's true. my phone automatically kicks into bedside mode after 9:00 at night and I have it plugged in. then I forget about my watch and at 2:00 in the morning the stupid RU-vid notification goes off and vibrates my watch and wakes me up
I have the Pixel Watch 2 and I'm very happy with the battery life. It's on-par with my Apple Watch 7. The only thing I don't like about it is the new charger. I hate the pins! I have a bunch of wireless charging bases for watches and I can't use any of them with the Pixel Watch 2. Now I have to carry one more cable when I travel just for the bloody watch. Really irritating.
Apple releases a new watch and not much is different and everybody criticizes them. Google releases a new phone and watch that are almost identical to the last ones and nobody says a thing? I don't get it.
Only having 24 hours of battery life is something we should have worked on by now. Having 3 days of battery life on the Watch Pro 5 (with a decent amount of usage with the health/workout app) should be a standard but not even Samsung followed that with the updated version sooo....🤷♂️
I want a pixel watch 2, but I know I'd wear it twice a month and use 20% of its functions. What a waste of $300 (for me) but what sealed the deal is its unrepairable and more garbage after 3-4 years. Otherwise it looks good and on paper fantastic. Seems some people fit into my category with any smart watch; some just stop wearing it out of habit. Plus, who wants another thing to charge every day?
Showering with watches with only IP68 is a big risk since the water pressure and soap can seep in (with lower surface tension for the water) and ruin the device.
Having to pay for the safety features reminds me of cyberpunk. How David and his mom were left to die because they didn't pay for food enough insurance
Here is an unintended issue from the safety settings. I was at a wedding and a song was playing all of a sudden my pixel 2 watch vibrates I look down and it is doing a countdown timer to call 911, WTF. I turned that off fast as I could.
Why buy a watch now, when wearable displays are ALREADY here?! Fuck having to look at your wrist and control it with your other hand;look at whatever and control it with a ring!
I am annoyed that I have to pay to use the safety features. I am older and wanted the fall detection feature. Do I need to switch to an IPhone and Apple Watch? Thanks!
Clearly better than watch gen1. However wearing it advertises the fact that you can't even run a marathon, well not with this watch anyway :-) It reminds me of early Apple watches, so this compares to about Apple watch gen4 or 5. Thing is Apple is now at gen8. As a lifelong google fan and apple skeptic I bought the Pixel Watch 2. But honestly compared to an Apple watch it is at best a meh.
A whole 1 day of battery life?...barely? Hard pass. I wanted a watch but didn't want something ELSE to charge constantly...got a Garmin Instinct 2 Tactical Solar. I charge it literally once every nearly THREE WEEKS...a charge lasts me 19-20 days and, if I were outside more, I wouldn't even have to charge it at all. It's friggin EPIC!!
What many people miss is that it's now the best Android Watch in regards of hearth tracking and sleep tracking. It's on the level of the Apple Watch now, giving very very accurate data. They kept almost everything else, but improved a lot in fitness tracking.
Quite a few of the higher end watches from this year are at Apple level on health and fitness tracking. Sensors have improved a lot since last year and many manufacturers with non-Apple watches use the same suppliers for the sensors, including Google. Also noticing it on my new Amazfit watch, last year's were pretty bad on heart rate tracking, the new one is pretty damn close to a chest strap.
I honestly wanted an option for a bigger screen. I have bigger wrists and it looks too small on my wrist currently with Gen 1. Hopefully next year brings a bigger screen
3:47 same here with Samsung Watch 4. One day it somehow didn't reconnect to my Samsung phone after I went to the bathroom. And there was no way to connect except factory reset. Same lesson that every watch user has to learn.
11:57 no, my watch 4 always tells me I sleep 60 ish out of 100, everyday. But then when i really sleep badly it says 85. Oh, 85 is the "average" person, so I never sleep above average for some reason.
"Wow 24h heart rate monitor" -laughs in Garmin. Literally i would never consider a watch with 1-2 days battery life. This is just a joke, toy in my mind. Don't care of that "super important" extra features.
As an original Pebble backer and fan, the Garmin Instinct series is the 2nd coming of the Pebble for me. Month-long battery, no dumb touch screen, hardware buttons, no-look media controls, and plenty durable.
Just get a Mi watch active, got one for 80€ last year. Oled screen, long battery life, looks good, charges quick, gets you notifications, phone calls, waterproof ect...
Screen protectors, I learn to use that for everything. I would've scratched my Sense to hell and back if I hadn't used a screen protector for it. I just bought this so there's no way in hell I'm going to ruin it by not protecting it. I was able to also score it for 235 brand new so I'm happy with that price :)
The first gen Pixel watch make a pretty good 24 hour attempt with always on display with a more efficient face. I paid for Pixel Minimal Watch Face and it's been worth it
I have the 1st gen and it's surreal for me that in the UK the LTE version doesn't work with all the networks. I'm with O2 (one of the biggest players) and it's not compatible 😬
I wish you could just turn all the fitness bs off most people aren't doing fitness and even if they are, the power drain is not necessary feel like notifications, the time and interacting with music and stuff is what most people need
Wow, I just assumed with how much Apple and Google copy each other that Google would copy the wrist detection or keeping the Watch unlocked but with a pin so you can use tap to pay. That seems weird that they wouldnt
They did, my Pixel Watch 2 only locks if I take it off my wrist... Just because it's not in an unboxing video doesn't mean it's not there! James just missed it.
So like, do these things have actual features yet? Are they still just fitness toys that don't actually do anything meaningful besides telling you your fucking heartrate and how many steps you walked? I have waited for so long for these watches to do anything interesting, and somehow after all this time I still feel like they haven't progressed an inch.
Listening to a review like this just further drives the point home that smart watches are such unnecessary nonsense. Why do I need to know my heart rate 24\7? Why do I need notifications on my wrist? Why are phone screens getting bigger while we choose to fidget with these small screens? Why do people sleep and shower with their watches? I'm so confused about this trend. There's 10 dollar watches that last 3 years on a battery, they're always on, because... Well it's an actual watch. Just sans the sharing every detail of your life with big tech.
