Pixel Watch 2 vs Pixel Watch: What’s new in Google’s updated wearable?

After just a year on the market, Google has announced a full-on follow up to the Pixel Watch, and there’s a few upgrades you should know about.

The Pixel Watch didn’t exactly have the smoothest launch. After being nothing more than a collection of rumours over several years, the device finally dropped in October of 2022 and was unfortunately let down by a lacklustre battery life that sold the device short in achieving its lofty goals of competing with the Apple Watch.

Still, there was a lot to like about the Pixel Watch, particularly in its OS and design, and now that the curtain has been pulled back on the Pixel Watch 2, here’s hoping that Google can actually deliver on its promises this time around.

If you’re considering doing away with your old Pixel Watch and upgrading to its successor, then here are the five things you need to know.

Pixel Watch 2 is running Wear OS 4

Even though the next generation of Google’s Wear OS software was announced way back at the start of the year, it has yet to make any sort of appearance on the original Pixel Watch. This is particularly bizarre as it’s been made available for the Galaxy Watches 4, 5 and 6, but there’s no word yet on a potential deployment date for Google’s wearable.

By comparison, the Pixel Watch 2 will pack Wear OS 4 right out of the box, granting it access to upgraded versions of key Google apps like Gmail and Google Calendar. For this reason alone, it seems as though the Pixel Watch 2 will be more future-proof than its predecessor.

There’s a much needed battery bump

At a glance, it may seem as though the Pixel Watch and the Pixel Watch 2 have the same quoted battery life of up to 24-hours, but in the case of the latter, this is now achievable with the always-on display toggled. That’s great news for anyone who wants the proper always-on experience, but it should mean that the battery can go even further if the always-on display is switched off.

Google also claims that the charging is now faster than before, nabbing you a full battery from 0% in 75 minutes which, if that proves true, is just slightly less than the 80-minute charge time we tracked for the original Pixel Watch.

Two new sensors under the hood

Temperature sensors are the hot new thing in wearables at the moment, as they’ve been added to recent Galaxy Watch and Apple Watch devices, alongside the new Withings ScanWatch 2. Not wanting to be outdone, Google’s added the same sensor to the Pixel 2 which should allow for more precise menstrual cycle tracking and stress monitoring throughout the day.

There’s also an upgraded multi-path heart rate sensor to provide more accurate HRM results during a workout. Of course, we won’t know exactly how much more accurate the sensor is until we test it, but it does point towards the Pixel Watch 2 working well as a fitness tracker, particularly with Fitbit on board.

Essential safety features

Easily one of the most useful features to be added to the Pixel Watch 2. Google’s Safety Check app lets you set a time for when you anticipate arriving at your destination, and if you don’t switch off the alert when that time of day comes, then your emergency contacts will be pinged your location.

There’s even an adjacent feature called Safety Signal that lets you utilise the Pixel Watch 2’s safety features without having your smartphone nearby. The only downside is that this feature is locked to Fitbit Premium subscribers, but it’s intriguing nonetheless.

There’s a slight price increase

As is fast becoming the norm with almost any new smartwatches released over the last year, the Pixel Watch 2 is also dropping with an increased RRP. Luckily, it’s not a huge increase (the one being afforded to the Pixel 8 is far more staggering), as the Pixel Watch 2 starts at £349.

That’s a £20 increase over the £329 launch price of the original Pixel Watch, which again isn’t a huge uptick but it’s still worth knowing about if you are looking to upgrade on day one.