Google has just launched its latest product, the Google Pixel Watch. In fact, it's the first smartwatch designed wholly by Google.
It’s quite a compact device at 41mm across, with a domed, round design, a touchscreen, gorilla glass and an always-on Amoled screen. Google claims 24 hours of battery life.
Significantly for cyclists, it packages health monitoring functionality from Fitbit, now a Google subsidiary.
So will the Google Pixel Watch be any good for cyclists?
Let's take a closer look at the features following the Pixel Watch's launch.
First up, like many of the best cycling watches, the Google Pixel Watch includes a wide range of health and activity monitoring features, as well as maps and navigation.
For much of this, you’ll need a BLE (Bluetooth) connection to your Android phone with the lower-spec version, although the higher-spec model has its own LTE network connection built-in and can operate independently of your phone.
Google offers a six-month free subscription to Fitbit Premium, giving you access to additional analytics, although you’ll need to pay for this after the free period to get the full fitness monitoring functionality.
Health tracking
Fitbit majors on health tracking, so it’s no surprise that a lot of that functionality finds its way into the Google Pixel Watch.
Google says the new watch includes Fitbit’s most accurate heart rate monitor yet (that said, it's still an optical HRM) and can track your time in training zones across 40 different workout types, including cycling, and that it automatically identifies when you start exercising.
The Google Pixel Watch will track your resting heart rate. While you’re asleep, it will also monitor your breathing rate and heart rate variability and give you a sleep score with times in deep, light and REM sleep.
You can analyse the data in the Fitbit app for trends, which is potentially useful to identify if you’re overtraining. As with the Apple Watch, there’s an ECG app and blood oxygenation monitoring built-in.
There’s stress monitoring in the Fitbit Premium app, which can also potentially add depth to your activity and recovery tracking.
Fitbit Premium also gives you a 'daily readiness score', indicating if you need to recover or can take on more exercise. Google promises you VO2 Max estimates, so you can monitor your fitness level and trends over time.
Google says that it will add fall detection to the Pixel Watch, which will identify if you’ve had an accident and alert your nominated contacts or emergency services.
It’s a function offered by plenty of the best bike computers and cycling apps, as well as tech including Specialized’s ANGi crash detector.
Maps and navigation
Google says the Pixel Watch will show maps and give you turn-by-turn navigation.
The implementation looks quite basic from Google’s screen images, in terms of the level of detail, and doesn’t seem to include street names, but it does look as if it will be clear and easy to follow for basic navigation. How that translates to riding, we'll have to see.
The Pixel Watch has built-in GPS, so you can track your activities without needing to take your phone with you.
There’s also in-built Google Assistant, which lets you tell the watch where you want to go and get directions. You can also answer texts and emails, and view your calendar.
Finally, the Google Pixel Watch incorporates Google Wallet, so you can use Google Pay for that cake at the cafe stop mid-ride, and leave your cash and credit cards behind.
The bottom line for cyclists
Based on what we know at launch, the Google Pixel Watch offers a good range of basic functionality that’s potentially useful to keep tabs on your riding, where you’ve been and how to get to your destination.
The health and fitness metrics are likely to be useful to monitor how you’re progressing and periodise your exercise too, particularly if you like to keep active off the bike.
But, like the Apple Watch, it’s a general-purpose smartwatch. As with any smartwatch vs bike computer comparison, it’s not, on paper, as honed-in on the specific needs of cyclists as a dedicated unit.
Google Pixel Watch models and prices
The Google Pixel Watch will be available in two models at launch.
The lower-spec model gets Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity and is priced at £339, while the higher-spec edition adds 4G LTE, letting you leave your phone behind and still stay connected. It’s priced at £379.
