5 things I’d like to see on the Google Pixel Watch 4

Three generations in, the Google Pixel Watch is among our favorite Android smartwatches. It may not sport an Ultra design or deliver multi-day battery life like the OnePlus Watch 2. However, Google’s smartwatch stands out for its clean Wear OS experience, speedy updates, and deep Fitbit integration.

As someone who has extensively used the Pixel Watch 2 and Watch 3, I’d like Google to double down on its smartwatch efforts and improve the Pixel Watch 4 in many key aspects. If you are a Pixel Watch fan like me, check out the improvements I want to see on Google’s next smartwatch.

5

Slimmer display bezels

Give the Pixel Watch 4 a more futuristic look

The Google Pixel Watch 3 ships with slimmer bezels than its predecessor. The 41mm model sports 16% smaller bezels than the Pixel Watch 2 while packing a 10% larger display. Its 45mm sibling houses a 40% larger display.

While all this sounds impressive, there’s room for improvement. Google should aim to achieve an almost bezel-less front with the Pixel Watch 4, pushing the bezels to the edge. This will give the watch a more futuristic look and help it better compete against the Apple Watch Series 10.

The bezel-less front will look even better on the 45mm Pixel Watch and its bigger display. Given the watch’s design, Google may not be able to eliminate the bezels. If so, the company should take inspiration from Samsung’s Galaxy Watch lineup and transform it into a touch bezel. This would allow for quick navigation through the UI and scrolling through lists.

4

More durable cover glass

Ditch the Corning cover glass for sapphire crystal

Besides a bezel-less front, Google should switch to a more durable cover glass on the Pixel Watch 4. It currently uses Gorilla Glass 5, and while Corning’s toughened glass can resist scratches, it is not as good as the sapphire crystal glass that Samsung uses on its Galaxy Watch lineup. The latter provides better protection against scuffs and scratches.

A strong cover glass is even more important on the Pixel Watch because of its dome-shaped front. This design exposes the glass more to impacts and scratches. On the Galaxy Watch Ultra, the display is protected by raised bezels, ensuring the cover glass does not directly bear the full impact of bumps or drops.

The Pixel Watch 3 carries the same 5ATM water resistance rating as the Apple Watch Series 10. This means you can safely use the watch in up to 50m deep shallow-water activities like swimming or snorkeling. Google should enhance this experience by adding a water temperature sensor to the Pixel Watch 4, allowing it to track the water temperature, time, and depth during underwater activities.

3

Repairable design

Current Pixel Watches are not repairable

Three years into the Pixel Watch lineup, Google has yet to address its smartwatch’s biggest design issue. The Pixel Watch is not repairable, so if you break the display, the company can only replace it. There’s no way to repair the damage.

This is bad not just for your wallet but also for the environment. It means Google and its repair partners will discard damaged Pixel Watch 3 units as e-waste, even for minor issues.

Despite the challenges, Google should ensure the Pixel Watch 4 sports a repairable design, at least for common damages, like a cracked screen. The company is considering making its smartwatches repairable, but we may not see the fruits of this change with the Pixel Watch 4 this year. If that happens, the company should offer customers heavily discounted pricing for replacement units.

2

Better Fitbit experience

Fitbit fails to nail the basics

The Pixel Watch is the only Wear OS smartwatch to feature Fitbit integration. This makes a good Fitbit experience crucial, as you will use the app to track your health metrics and workouts. Even after launching three generations of the Pixel Watch, the Fitbit experience on Google’s smartwatch is nowhere as polished as it should be.

For starters, the Fitbit companion app for Android still lacks a dark mode, even after all these years. The app also does not provide granular controls over the various health features. For example, there’s no way to turn off sleep tracking or blood oxygen monitoring. They are enabled by default, and there’s nothing you can do about them.

Another puzzling limitation is the inability to see your live heart rate through the Fitbit app, be it on the phone or watch. You can only see your live heart rate through a tile on the watch face. When you open the Fitbit app on your Pixel Watch, it displays your heart rate range for the day, followed by the week.

Similarly, on-demand blood oxygen measurement is not possible on the Pixel Watch. It tracks your nightly SpO2 levels, which you can view through the app, but that’s about it.

You can view your health metrics — like breathing rate, heart rate variability, and resting heart rate — over a week, 7-day, or 90-day timeline to see how they have improved or worsened. But there’s no way to view the trend for a longer timeline, which could be a bummer if you follow any program or are preparing for a competition.

As a longtime Pixel Watch and Fitbit user, I want Google to do more with the collected health data. The Fitbit app doesn’t notify me about changes in my resting heart rate or sleep pattern trends. I only discover them when I open the app.

The problem is that you get this experience after paying $350 for the watch and another $10 for Fitbit Premium monthly. The experience is anything but premium.

With the Pixel Watch 4, I hope Google focuses heavily on improving the Fitbit experience, given it is an integral part of the watch.

1

Get on the Gemini bandwagon

Because 2025 is all about AI, AI, and AI

Gemini is everywhere. Google integrated Gemini into most of its services and devices, including Google Search, Drive, Nest speakers, and displays. But the AI-powered chatbot is missing from the Pixel Watch.

While there could be several reasons behind this, the company should make Gemini the highlight of the Pixel Watch 4. For this, it may need to add a custom SoC to its smartwatch, something a report indicates may only happen in 2026.

However, that will be too late, and I hope Google makes Gemini the star of the show with the Pixel Watch 4. The AI-powered assistant would be more useful on the wearable, especially with its superior natural language processing and contextual understanding. It should enable you to change the watch’s settings using your voice, switch watch faces, and more.

There’s a lot Google can improve with the Pixel Watch 4

The Pixel Watch 2 was a big upgrade over the original Pixel Watch, switching to faster internals and delivering longer battery life. Then, in 2024, Google made all the right upgrades with the Pixel Watch. It used a brighter and bigger display, introduced a larger 45mm model, and improved charging speeds.

Now, with its 2025 Pixel Watch, the company should address the other shortcomings in its smartwatch lineup to deliver an even better experience to users. The success of the Pixel Watch is also important for the Wear OS ecosystem, as its rising popularity will get more users to try out smartwatches.