Despite collaborating on the development of Wear OS 3, the launch of the Pixel Watch has made Google and Samsung rivals in the smartwatch segment.
The Pixel Watch is Google's first attempt at a Wear OS smartwatch, but at $350, is it worth choosing over Samsung's Galaxy Watch 5? In 2021, Google announced that it had worked with Samsung to develop Wear OS 3 after years of practically abandoning the operating system. Later that year, Samsung launched the Galaxy Watch 4 series, running Wear OS instead of Tizen like its predecessor, the Galaxy Watch 3.
In Aug. 2022, it followed it up with the Galaxy Watch 5, which boasts some notable improvements over the previous generation. Alongside the standard Galaxy Watch 5 models, Samsung also unveiled a pro model designed for adventurers, just like the Apple Watch Ultra. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is bigger and is made from more durable materials such as titanium and sapphire crystal glass. It also has a much bigger battery capacity.
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The Pixel Watch, like the Galaxy Watch 5, has a round dial, but that's pretty much the only similarity in design between the two wearables. Google's watch has a 41mm case made from recycled stainless steel, and its domed surface is a piece of Gorilla Glass 5. It is bundled with removable fluoroelastomer straps and has a 5 ATM water resistance rating. Alongside supporting touch input, the Pixel Watch has a digital crown and a pill-shaped side button. On the other hand, the Galaxy Watch 5 is available in two sizes — 40mm and 44mm — and has its case made from armor aluminum. Samsung also uses sapphire crystal, which is stronger, for protecting the display of the watch. Furthermore, its watch has a 5 ATM water resistance rating and IP68 dust and water resistance rating. It also supports touch input, but instead of a digital crown, the Galaxy Watch 5 has two physical buttons on the right side of the case.
The display of the Pixel Watch is a 1.2-inch 450×450 AMOLED panel. It can get pretty bright, too, reaching up to 1000 nits. Depending on the size, Samsung's Galaxy Watch 5 boasts a 1.19-inch 396×396 or a 1.36-inch 450×450 Super AMOLED display. Thankfully, both watches have support for Always-on display. Samsung has put the 5nm Exynos W920 inside its watch, and while this is a more powerful chip than the 10nm Exynos 9110 inside the Pixel Watch, it is paired with 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. On the other hand, the Pixel Watch comes with 2GB of RAM and a 32GB storage capacity.
The two watches support heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen level measurement, sleep tracking and stress tracking. They are also capable of recording an electrocardiogram (ECG/EKG). However, only the Galaxy Watch 5 has a temperature sensor, although Samsung is yet to activate it. In addition, the Galaxy Watch also has a body analyzer that can measure body composition and blood pressure monitoring in approved regions. Samsung's watch is also the only one capable of women's health tracking. The two wearables can track tens of exercises and have built-in GPS for route tracking. There is also support for Emergency SOS and Fall Detection on both smartwatches, although the latter will be available this winter for the Pixel Watch.
For connectivity, the Galaxy Watch has Bluetooth 5.2, dual-band Wi-Fi, and NFC for payment (Samsung Pay). On the other hand, the Pixel Watch has Bluetooth 5.0, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and NFC with Google Wallet. They also have a speaker and microphone, so users can take calls on their wrists and get audio feedback from the voice assistant. Concerning battery life, the Pixel Watch has a 294mAh battery which Google says should provide up to 24 hours of use. In contrast, the Galaxy Watch 5 (40mm) has a 284mAh battery, while the larger model has a 410mAh battery. Samsung claims the larger model has a typical usage time of up to 40 hours.
The Pixel Watch starts at $349 for the Wi-Fi + Bluetooth model and goes to $399 for the version with LTE. On the other hand, the Galaxy Watch 5 starts at $279 for the 40mm Wi-Fi version and rises to $329 for the LTE variant. The larger 44mm model is priced at $309 for the Wi-Fi version and $359 for the LTE variant. Compared to the Pixel Watch, not only is the Galaxy Watch 5 packed with more features, but it is also cheaper. On the other hand, the Pixel Watch has the advantage of more RAM and storage. However, it doesn't have as many features as Samsung's smartwatch and needs a Fitbit subscription for users to get the best out of it, although Google includes six months of Fitbit Premium as a perk.
NEXT: Can You Use The Google Pixel Watch With An iPhone?
Habeeb has years of experience covering consumer technology and has written for multiple publications. As a Senior Writer at Screen Rant, he enjoys writing about wearables, smartphones, tablets, and Chromebooks. Several of his articles include guides and comparisons that help users get the best out of their devices or choose the one that bests suits them. When he's not writing, he's catching up on the latest TV shows. He considers The Crown as peak drama and Castlevania as one of the best game-to-screen adaptations. And on days when there is nothing to watch (is that even possible?), he sneaks in a few hours of games on his PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.