It’s anyone’s guess as to how well a Wear OS watch’s battery will perform until someone actually uses it. Companies will claim multiple days of battery life at times, but the watch’s realistic endurance typically sits around a full day of use with nothing to spare. Going into it, that’s sort of been the general consensus of the Pixel Watch’s battery life, but a new leak might indicate that it could be better than those expectations.
According to 9to5Google, Google might include a 300mAh battery inside the watch. That’s larger than the 247mAh battery in Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 4 (powered by Wear OS 3.0) and the 41mm Apple Watch Series 7’s 284mAh cell. In addition, 9to5Google reports that the Pixel Watch will be available with cellular connectivity.
Despite the battery being physically larger than many of its competitors, there’s no guarantee the Pixel Watch will deliver on the battery front. Watches like Samsung’s Galaxy line typically last a day and require charging every night, while the Apple Watch has managed to become a two-day device for many folks. Similarly, Fossil’s Gen 6 with its 300mAh battery is typically seen as a one-day watch. It’s much more hit-or-miss than any spec on paper could tell us.
It also doesn’t help that we don’t know what else the Pixel Watch will do to maintain efficiency. The software is obviously a bit of a mystery (will it be a newer version of Wear OS 3.0 or the same version found on the Galaxy Watch 4?), but what’s even more important is the processor. Is Google going to include a Tensor-branded chipset in this wearable, or will we see Samsung or Qualcomm’s logo on top the CPU instead?
Whatever chip winds up inside the Pixel Watch, it’ll have to balance efficiency very well, especially since some customers will reportedly have the option of cellular connectivity. That will undoubtedly drain batteries faster than something like a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth-only model would.
Regardless, as more details continue to surface, the Pixel Watch gets increasingly more interesting. Rumor has it we’ll see it debut at I/O 2022 this month, so stay tuned.
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