I’m excited for a large Pixel Watch XL, but it’d better have a bigger battery

From persistent rumors to leaked photographs, an XL variant of the Google Pixel Watch 3 is all but confirmed to be heading to cabinets this fall. Though I’m not often one to place the cart earlier than the horse, I’m already emotionally dedicated to the bigger construct. However, I don’t simply need a bigger display; I need a bigger battery.

Compared to the Apple Watch line on its tenth entry and the Galaxy Watch line about to introduce its seventh, Google’s smartwatch lineup is pretty contemporary. In reality, it existed as rumors for extra years than it has existed on wrists. It lastly debuted in 2022, and although the OG mannequin had a lot of first-generation quirks, we had been all largely gracious and prepared to patiently see how Google would enhance over time. When the Pixel Watch 2 landed a 12 months later, I used to be completely satisfied to see a few key enhancements and dubbed the machine a “solid second draft.”

However, I’ve but to undertake the road as my day by day driver, and to be sincere I wouldn’t even rank it as my high Wear OS decide. Like all smartwatches, there are a vary of minor tweaks I’d like to see on the road, but the one issue holding the Pixel Watch again probably the most is battery life. The Pixel Watch 2 claims 24 hours of battery life and, in apply, simply barely makes that mark.

That means a disciplined charging schedule for those who don’t need to end up with a useless machine (and missed sleep monitoring stats for those who slack off too near bedtime). The second era launched quick charging, assuaging among the first era’s battery woes, but a single day of use between costs nonetheless seems like a main hindrance in comparison with different Wear OS choices. If Google desires to earn a everlasting place on my wrist, it might want to sustain with the competitors this 12 months.

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 6 sequence gadgets, arguably the preferred Wear OS watches, supply as much as 30 hours between costs, permitting for a lot extra wiggle room. The suped-up Galaxy Watch 5 Pro stretches even additional with a 490mAH cell to energy as much as 80 hours between costs. Each of those gadgets is ready to get replaced by newer fashions within the coming weeks, which can supply even better energy effectivity and cost occasions. If the Galaxy Watch 7 and seven Pro elevate the bar, I hope the Pixel Watch 3 XL can rise to the event.

Meanwhile, Wear OS gamers just like the TicWatch Pro 5 and the OnePlus Watch 2 are already pushing battery limits even additional than Samsung. Utilizing a distinctive dual-chip structure to accommodate two distinct working programs, the OnePlus Watch 2 boasts extremely efficient energy effectivity, leading to as much as 100 hours of use between costs. The watch can final even longer in its pared down low energy mode. Likewise, the TicWatch Pro 5 leverages the facility of two with a dual-display design that I can’t say sufficient about. This secondary low-power show gives entry to key stats, helpful coronary heart fee zones throughout exercises, and the flexibility to stretch utilization to as much as 80 hours in smartwatch mode. In quick, each these watches blew me away when it got here to handy put on.

Of course, I’d be remiss to not point out gadgets outdoors of the Wear OS bubble. Apple has been constantly providing an 18-hour declare for years, although the watches simply stretch to greater than 24 hours in real-world expertise. The Apple Watch Ultra line elevated the corporate’s efforts some with a 36-hour declare, but that comes at a a lot greater price ticket. Garmin’s high smartwatch, the Venu 3, gives multi-day battery life but lacks the strong app assist discovered on a lot of the gadgets talked about up to now. Fitbit’s ghost of a smartwatch secure historically delivered multi-day battery life as effectively, which is what initially made the Pixel Watch line’s specs so disappointing. However, these choices are now not actual contenders within the area; the Pixel Watch line is the corporate’s golden youngster.

The 41mm Pixel Watch 2 is on the smaller facet and, for some customers, is genuinely too small. Blessed with scrawny wrists, the machine works wonderful as is, but my choice is all the time most show house. Not solely do I need my wearable to make a assertion, I need it to be as helpful as attainable, and meaning extra room for textual content, menus, maps, and apps. To this finish, I’m excited for the Pixel Watch 3 to be much less dainty, but most significantly, I hope the additional cargo house is packing a bigger battery.

Rumors counsel the machine will have a bigger thumbprint, leaping to 45mm, or the identical measurement as Apple’s large mannequin. It may also reportedly be thicker, touchdown on wrists at 13.89mm. In my humble opinion, this could go away loads of room for beefed-up battery life.