Google announced the Pixel Watch 5 on August 12 at its Made by Google event in New York, alongside the Pixel 11 series, with a strong focus on health. The new smartwatch introduces tracking of blood pressure and insulin resistance – two metrics that are outside of what most smartwatches currently measure. However, both features will arrive as a software update in September rather than at launch. Google pairs them with a rebuilt fitness experience, built around a daily fitness reading, deeper sleep analytics, and an interface with more Gemini integration.
If you’re seeing any of the signs that it’s time to replace your smartwatch, the Pixel Watch 5 should be a strong contender. It offers twice the storage of last year’s Pixel Watch 4 model, a new band material, a faster chip, and a longer warranty in some regions too. The Pixel Watch 5 goes on sale on August 20, the same day as the Pixel 11 phones.
New health, sleep and fitness tracking features
The new blood pressure feature is designed to detect trends over time, signaling the type of progressive strain on the heart that a single reading might miss. Similarly, tracking insulin resistance follows a trend throughout the month rather than providing a single number. Google considers both wellness tools rather than medical tools, so neither replaces a dedicated monitor. Both are in addition to existing health tracking features that the smartwatch already handles, including atrial fibrillation detection, stress tracking, heart rate and SpO2 monitoring, and respiratory rate monitoring.
Workouts now start with a readiness score, calculated from nightly recovery, which suggests whether to train hard or take it easy. If you’ve ever used a Whoop or Oura Ring tracker, this should be familiar to you. This score appears alongside sleep metrics and weather forecasts in a revamped Morning Brief. From there, the Google Health app lets you create a session with more than 50 tracked exercises, including strength training, HIIT, running, swimming, hiking, basketball, and pickleball.
Customized strength and HIIT circuits with set reps, weights, and rest intervals will arrive in September, in the same update that will deliver blood pressure and insulin resistance features. Once you start a workout, the watch provides audio and visual cues for each set and rest period and allows you to adjust reps or weight mid-session. The outdoor workouts use dual-frequency GPS, which Google says is the most accurate yet at retaining a signal on tree-covered trails and between high-rise buildings. A new Key Metrics view then analyzes your performance and shows how close you are to your next personal best.
New Gemini features make their way to the watch
Wear OS 7 brings Gemini closer to the center of the Pixel Watch experience. It can now surface information based on the context of a text message. For example, if a friend asks for your babysitter’s number, the watch should automatically display it. It also displays flight status and other timely updates at the bottom of the watch face, just like in the latest versions of Apple’s watchOS. Gemini on the Pixel Watch can now handle multi-step requests, like finding a nearby lunch spot with instructions when you raise your wrist and ask, and can manage timers, alarms, and workouts by voice even when the watch is offline. This is similar to Magic Cue, the pop-up feature Google introduced on Pixel phones last year. The Pixel Watch 5 can handle these tasks thanks to the Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 Accelerated – a faster variant of the same chip that powered its predecessor, with 20% faster processing.
The Pixel Watch 5 also makes a great case for being among the best wearables for sleep tracking, thanks to a few additions. Bedtime automations can automatically turn off music and silence notifications when you relax. A new Sleep Breathing Quality feature, still listed as coming, analyzes minute-by-minute changes in blood oxygen during the night and links breathing patterns to energy, recovery and heart health. The watch still divides sleep into wake, REM, light and deep stages, rolling it all into a sleep score that Google says aligns with clinical metrics, while smart wake-up alarms aim to wake you at the best time within a set window.
Double the storage and upgraded hardware
The Pixel Watch 5 runs Wear OS 7 with twice the storage of last year’s Pixel Watch 4. Battery capacity also increases slightly, to 465 mAh on the 45mm model and 332 mAh on the 41mm. Google’s battery life rating is unchanged from last year, however: up to 40 hours with the always-on display on the larger watch and 30 hours on the smaller one, extending to 72 and 48 hours in Battery Saver mode, respectively. The Quick Charge Dock still reaches both sizes to 50% in around 15 minutes, with a full charge taking around 60 minutes on the 45mm model and 45 minutes on the 41mm.
The display – a dome-shaped Actua 360 panel with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and a peak brightness of 3,000 nits – appears unchanged, as does the 5ATM water and dust resistance and IP68. The strap changes from fluoroelastomer to a material called HNBR with a soft-touch coating. In the UK, EU, Switzerland and Australia, Google is also extending the warranty to two years, up from one.
Then there’s satellite SOS for when you’re off-grid, safety check and emergency sharing for solo workouts, fall detection and car crash detection for accidents, and loss of pulse detection, which can automatically call emergency services if the watch detects that your heart has stopped and you’re unresponsive. When paired with a Pixel phone, the watch can also trigger the camera remotely, lock your phone when you walk away, open Google Wallet, view offline maps for navigation, screen calls, and control a Nest Cam or doorbell through the Google Home app.
New style options for Pixel Watch 5
The 45mm case of the Pixel Watch 5 comes in matte black, polished silver, and a new Satin Pyrite finish paired with an Olive strap, while the 41mm adds a fourth color – Champagne Gold – with a Canyon strap. The software brings a few new watch faces, including an animated design called Weave and a Chronograph watch face, as well as the ability to generate custom faces with AI. Google is also launching a special edition designed with NBA champion Stephen Curry, featuring an exclusive strap and watch face, alongside its usual Active Sport, Metal Links and leather strap options.
The Pixel Watch 5 is available for pre-order and arrives on August 20, with pricing unconfirmed at this time; We will update this article once Google shares it. Compared to the Pixel Watch 4, the upgrade boils down to twice the storage, a faster chip, and software that plans your workout and monitors your heart rather than just recording data.
The watch’s fitness coaching features build on the Google Health Premium plan, which uses Gemini to transform fitness, sleep and cycle tracking data into tailored training plans and recovery tips. The subscription is included for three months with the watch, comes with the Google AI Pro and AI Ultra plans, and otherwise costs $9.99 per month.
