Google Pixel Watch 5 review: Predictably competent, with new super-accurate GPS

Google Pixel Watch 5: One minute review The Google Pixel Watch 5 is one of those smartwatches that’s pretty easy to review after a week of wear.

It’s fast, it’s accurate, it looks nice and it’s comfortable to wear.

There are a few big, groundbreaking changes in this edition: more accurate fitness tracking GPS, Breathing Emergency Detection and Insulin Resistance Trends, which are great, but they work largely in the background, improving existing features, or waiting in the wings to detect an event that (hopefully) may never arrive.

Gemini has become smarter, but that change is a result of the entire Google ecosystem rather than the watch specifically.

The watch does give you the means to access Gemini on-wrist, which (if you have an internet connection) is like a little constant Hitchhiker’s Guide companion.

It’s less useful for driving the functions of the watch day-to-day though, and I ended up using it the same way as other, more basic voice assistants.

I’ve found some problems with Gemini, both as an entity in itself and as an agentic on-wrist assistant, which I’ll discuss later in this review.

The unique charging stand — in which the watch is vertical like a little clock — and the curved teardrop design, sizes and band-switching mechanisms are identical to the previous editions.

The biggest changes day-to-day are in the fitness features, thanks to the Google Health revamp.

Google Pixel Watches used to use Fitbit software, but since Fitbit morphed into Google’s AI-first Google Health app, the free version is quite stripped-back, and the premium version is heavily reliant on an AI chatbot (again, based on Gemini) to interact with your data, build workouts, log food and generally use it in a meaningful way.

Your mileage will vary for this, based on your patience threshold with AI, but the subscription-free version of the app is sparse.

That might be okay if you have the super-cheap Google Fitbit Air , but those spending $429.99 / £399.99 / AU$699 on a premium smartwatch, and don’t want to pay for Google Health Premium on top, might feel left out in the cold in terms of fitness features.

But, thanks to Wear OS’s vast library of third-party apps, the Pixel Watch’s elegant, repairable design, and some quality improvement and accuracy tweaks, the Google Pixel Watch 5 cements the series’ position as the best Android-native watch to buy for another year.