OPINION : With the late strides that wear out OS has taken in devices like the OnePlus Watch 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra , the gap between Google ’s wearable oxygen and Apple ’s watchOS has been narrowing . What I did n’t expect from the Pixel Watch 3 was for Google to take a turn and go after Garmin or else .
This is n’t to say that Google has completely take its eye off the Apple Watch – far from it . With the ability to teem the feed of your Nest cameras and doorbells directly on the vigil , as well as utilise Google Maps offline , Google has certainly tightened up the allurement of its ecosystem on the Pixel Watch 3 .
What I ’m specifically referring to are the progress that Google has made in the Pixel Watch 3 ’s fitness tracking , and how they ’re almost all purpose at the ladder community of interests which has long been connect with Garmin .
For deterrent example , you could now create running routines on the Watch 3 itself , with specific warm up and cooldown times , as well as revamp media control to bring up , making the experience of run with a Pixel Watch 3 finger far more seamless than on thePixel Watch 2 .
There ’s also a majuscule vehemence on recovery via the new Fitbit Morning Brief which can let you make love right away precisely how well you ’ve rested and whether your body is quick to take on a hard workout , or if something lighter might be a better idea .
This is before mentioning the additional benefits coming to Google ’s Fitbit Premium service . The heavy highlighting here is the exercise of Google AI to analyse your previous workouts and make hint for the dear ones to tackle on any given day , further optimising your routine .
Deja vu for Garmin?
It amounts to one incredibly tempting package , but to any Garmin user , it all sounds eerily familiar . Creating your own education program has long been part of Garmin ’s bread and butter , and in concept at least , the Fitbit Morning Brief seems identical to Garmin ’s Morning Report . Speaking from my own experience , these are the lineament that have kept me going back and onward between Garmin ’s wearables and theApple determine SE 2(unfortunately Apple has yet to make inroads here , but there is a Training Load feature on the horizon inwatchOS 11 ) .
The only area where Google has beaten Garmin to the punch is with the use of AI . Whoop has already demo how AI can offer telling insights in the worldly concern of fitness through its AI Coach , and so the lump is now firmly in Garmin ’s court to try and get up with the competition in this regard .
instead , if Garmin does n’t require to go down the road of AI then in ordination to void being left behind by the contest , it postulate to expand its impertinent capabilities , and fast . For instance , Garmin Pay has been left to gather dust while both the Google and Apple wallet have gone from strength to posture , and the list of banks that Garmin has partner with is so small that I just never apply it .
There ’s also very little in the elbow room of third - party app integration . Beyond backing for the the like of Spotify and YouTube Music , there ’s nothing official in the mode of smart home command , wellness apps like Calm or even everyday apps like Trainline . Even compatibility with Apple Find My would go a long direction , and while some of these requests might be fairly difficult to achieve , they are move to be the sticking point going forrader as smartwatches ever trench into the mankind of fitness .
While Garmin certainly has the lead on the Pixel Watch 3 where barrage fire life sentence is occupy , not to name the fact that its picket ferment with both iOS and Android , Google has in spades picked up some land here . When you factor out in its smart capabilities and the direction in which the Pixel learn 3 complements Google ’s ecosystem , it ’s soft to see it becoming a more beguiling steal for some , particularly Pixel users .
To find out more about how Google ’s new wearable raft up against Apple , take a coup d’oeil at our write - up for thePixel Watch 3 vs Apple Watch Series 9 . likewise , we ’ve also compare the intergenerational changes in thePixel Watch 3 vs Pixel Watch 2 .
