With the Google Pixel Watch 4 launching to Jimmy Fallon fanfare this week, we’re taking an early look at how the Pixel Watch 5 can build on its solid template and become even better.
We were impressed with the Watch 4 during our hands-on, particularly its on-device Gemini smarts and striking new look. Other upgrades, such as extra battery life, faster charging, and the new Fitbit AI coach, we won’t be able to test until October.
You might think it’s too early to speculate about the Watch 5, but we can look back to reports from as early as 2023 to predict what Google might do in 2026. A smartwatch takes more than a year of planning to make, so why not think ahead to what the Pixel Watch 5 can do better?
Here’s everything we know, suspect, and hope to see from the Pixel Watch 5 next year!
Google Pixel Watch 5: What we know so far
In 2024, I interviewed Qualcomm VP of Wearables Dino Bekis, and he told us that the goal was to make a new chip with “more on-device AI capability” and “more compute capability” while consuming less power. He addressed the challenges of porting Wear OS software to a new platform like RISC-V, while confirming they are still “working on it” with Google.
This year, of course, we got the Snapdragon W5 Gen 2, which kept the same last-gen Cortex cores for unchanged performance, but added new tools like satellite messaging and enhanced GPS accuracy. During a press briefing, Qualcomm wouldn’t directly address questions about more powerful chipsets, but said it wouldn’t rule them out in the future.
On top of all this, we saw a leaked report in 2024 that Google intended to make its own Tensor chip for the Pixel Watch 5 specifically, codenamed “NPT,” with one ARM Cortex-A78 core and two ARM Cortex-A55 cores; for context, the Snapdragon W5 series uses four Cortex-A53 cores, while the Galaxy Watch 8 uses one Cortex-A78 and four Cortex-A55s.
Combine all this information, and it’s clear the Pixel Watch 5 can go in several directions: Keep the Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 for another year, use a hypothetical W5 Gen 3 that’s more powerful, adopt a Tensor chip that’s slightly more powerful (but still behind Samsung), or finally complete its work with Qualcomm and switch to RISC-V, potentially enabling much better battery life. It’s hard to predict which path Google will take.
Chipset aside, we don’t know too much else about the Watch 5. We’ve seen a few Fitbit patents that Google could try to bring to the Watch 5, most notably blood pressure monitoring and arterial stiffness data, but patents are never a sure thing to see in a final product.
Google Pixel Watch 5: Everything we want to see
I’ll have a more complete Pixel Watch 5 wishlist in October after I get my review unit and can use its new features. But for now, here is an early list of things we’d like to see changed or improved with Google’s fifth-generation smartwatch, from easy asks to unlikely dreams.
Before the Pixel Watch 4 launch, Android Headlines confidently leaked that it would launch with an “all-new strength training experience,” but none of Google’s materials mentioned this, nor Google’s reps when we asked.
A few fitness watches offer reps and exercise recognition, helping you track your progress mid-workout. Without this, the Pixel Watch 4 is harder to recommend to gym-goers because the only useful data you’ll get is general cardio load and burned calories.
The Pixel Watch 4 did improve in key areas, adding new sports modes like basketball and pickleball, and letting you project your cycling stats onto your phone. But other brands offer more sports modes than its current 50+. And for runners and hikers specifically, I’d still like to see a method to create a route in Google Maps, download it to your watch, and then follow the course with turn-by-turn directions during the workout.
Thin out that thicc body or go all-in on battery life
Even if you see it as a feature rather than a flaw, the Pixel Watch 4 design is the roundest you’ll ever see on a smartwatch. And as striking as it might be, it looks even thicker now that Google added the domed Actua 360 display.
Even though people have scoffed at the Galaxy Watch 8‘s chunky squircle design, its “cushion design” helped Samsung make it quite skinny and light. I’m curious if Google can keep its distinctive edgeless look but also make it bulge out slightly less from our wrists.
Android Central managing editor, Derrek Lee, who performed the Watch 4 hands-on, said that he “wants it to be thinner, but if it’s gonna be thicc, at least give us some OnePlus Watch 3-level battery life.” The Watch 4’s 455mAh capacity is already on the way there; maybe we can see a version that gets closer to the Watch 3’s 631 mAh or Galaxy Watch Ultra’s 590mAh down the line.
A totally new design or model
When I asked my colleagues what they wanted out of the Pixel Watch 5, I got several immediate responses that they want fundamental changes to the design.
Our managing editor wants a rotating bezel like the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, though I doubt Google would steal its partner’s trademark trick. Meanwhile, our Contributor Brady Snyder, who reviewed the Watch 8, said he dislikes the dome and wants Google to “flatten it out, make it thinner and more comfortable to use.”
While I think Google will keep doubling down on a design that makes the Pixel Watch series stand out, many people associate a traditional bezel with “style” or simply want a metal layer around the display to protect it from falls. I wonder if Google would ever copy Samsung and sell a Pixel Watch Classic or Ultra that goes in another design direction.
Continue to improve Gemini
Most Wear OS watches have Gemini, but only the Pixel Watch 4 has Raise to Talk — activating Gemini without a shortcut or wake word — and on-device smarts like contextual quick replies to messages. Our managing editor was impressed enough by their relevance that he said you “might actually want to use them” instead of just typing yourself.
We’re not sure what other Gemini tricks Google has in store, but we want the Pixel Watch to keep getting new AI tools every year, the same way Pixel phones get a new “Magic X” photo trick annually.
Google Pixel Watch 4
As impressive as the Pixel Watch 5 might be, you can skip past the hypotheticals and know that the Pixel Watch 4 will be one of the best Android watches of the year. Its 3,000-nit display, up to 40 hours of battery with AOD active, improved haptics and speakers, lightning-fast charging, Fitbit AI coaching, and the option of satellite SOS all combine for an impressive smartwatch experience.
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