Just a few weeks ago, Google took its' first steps into the world of smart watches with the Google Pixel Watch. Released alongside the Google Pixel 7 and Google Pixel 7 Pro, the Pixel Watch featured a host of fitness tracking prowess courtesy of Google's Fitbit acquisition.
Google came out swinging. The Pixel Watch made a strong argument against some of the best smartwatches on the market. But despite a relatively strong spec sheet and sleek design, several users had early issues. In particular, the battery life seemed to be a point of contention, with many unable to get the Pixel Watch to last a full day.
Now, Google has released a list of the usage tested to give the Pixel Watch its 24-hour battery life. It includes 240 notifications, 280 time checks, a 5 minute LTE phone call, a 45 min LTE and GPS workout with downloaded YouTube Music playback, 50 minutes of navigation with Google Maps while connected to a phone via Bluetooth, and having the watch configured with the default settings, including the Always-On Display turned off.
That last point has caused some furore, particularly as the Pixel Watch prompts the user to turn on the Always-On Display as part of the initial setup. Beyond that, though, it's just not a great look.
Always-On Displays of the past may have been battery hogs, but this seemed to be something we'd moved beyond, thanks to LTPO screen technology. Even budget devices like the Xiaomi Smart Band 7 Pro boasted 6 days of battery life when using the Always-On Display, and it's a fraction of the price of the Pixel Watch.
There's some good news though. While some users were having trouble with battery life, others have reported more respectable figures. One Twitter user, Maciej Murawski, reported around 33.5 hours of life, even with the Always-On Display active. It seems, then, that making some adjustments to how you use the Pixel Watch can yield much better results.
