Intro
The Pixel Watch 3 will be available soon, alongside the Pixel 9 series. Google’s third attempt at a true Wear OS smartwatch will come in two sizes, have an AI-enhanced interface, and have a very bright display.
Aside from the standard options, there is one that is a little less unique and underappreciated, but well worth it: the Garmin Venu3. This unconventional wristwatch may have the smooth interface and functionality of other smartwatches, but it shines in one aspect that is perhaps the most important: battery life.
And, with the Garmin, you can be confident that your watch will last several weeks. Not a typical thing to say about smartwatches, is it?
Which one should you choose?
Pixel Watch 3 versus Garmin Venu 3: Differences and similarities
- 41mm/45mm size vs 41mm/45mm size
- 2,000 nits peak brightness on Pixel Watch 3
- 4nm Snapdragon Qualcomm W5 vs MediaTek chip
- 10 or 14-day battery life on the Garmin, depending on the size
Table Of Contents:
- Design and Sizes
- Bands
- Software
- Battery and Charging
- Models and Prices
- Specs
- Summary
Design and Sizes
This year’s Pixel Watch 3 will come in two sizes: 41mm and 45mm. We think it’s excellent that Google is releasing its flagship wearable in two sizes, as it gives users additional options.
According to leaked pictures, the 45mm version of the Pixel Watch 3 would have a 40% larger display than the 41mm Pixel Watch 2. In contrast, the 41mm version will have a 10% larger display, most likely due to smaller bezels.
We don’t know what materials will be utilized on either watch, but we don’t expect Google to employ titanium or stainless steel. At best, we’d anticipate the watch’s case to be composed of aluminum, ensuring its modest weight. The Pixel Watch 3 will most likely be IP68 rated, indicating standard water resistance.
Meanwhile, the Venu 3 is a classic-looking watch that is also rather lightweight, which is nice. The device’s construction, which includes a plastic body and Corning’s Gorilla Glass 3, could explain this.
The Pixel Watch will have a single button/digital crown, whereas the Garmin will have three buttons, which should be useful during intense workouts.
Both watches use OLED screens. However, the Pixel Watch 3 will have a significantly higher peak brightness of around 2,000 nits, which the Garmin will be unable to match.
Bands
Leaked promotional documents claim that the Pixel Watch 3 will work with a wide variety of watch bands in three distinct styles: sporty, modern, and classic. The phone will come pre-installed with an Active Band, most likely a regular silicone one. It appears that Google will include a small and a large band in the box so you may adjust the fit.
If you prefer a different watch band than the sporty silicone one that comes with the Garmin Venu 3, you may use any conventional lug and spring-bar mechanism watch band with it. It should be noted that the Garmin Venu 3 (45mm) and the smaller Venu 3S (41mm) have different band sizes. The larger Venu 3 utilizes 22mm spring bar bands, while the smaller Venu 3S uses 18mm spring bar bands.
Features & Software
Wear OS 5, which is currently available on the Galaxy Watch 7 series, will be included with the Pixel Watch 3. But Google is also going to infuse the Pixel watch with some AI wizardry. Apart from that, it appears that the Pixel Watch 3 will function as a kind of remote control for the Pixel phone’s camera. Additionally, you will be able to view the live feed from your Nest Doorbell or Cam on your wrist.
There are supposedly some new health and activity-related features on the Pixel Watch 3. To keep yourself motivated, you can design personalized runs and compete against your previously saved exercises. It was possible to attain feature parity with the rest of the Wear OS 5 lineup because a comparable feature was also included in the Galaxy Watch Ultra/Galaxy Watch 7 lineup.
You’ll receive haptic cues from an electronic wrist trainer telling you when to run, pause to cool down, or just keep going. You can get information from the Pixel Watch 3 regarding your stride, vertical oscillations, and cadence.
Readiness is a new feature as well. It sounds a lot like Samsung’s Energy Score and Garmin’s Body Battery. Readiness uses your most recent sleep data to determine whether you’re ready to resume activities. Cardio Load, on the other hand, uses information from your heart rate and perhaps blood oxygen saturation to determine how fit you are for exercise.
Advanced health data and Fitbit Premium, an AI-powered health tracking software, will be included with the Pixel Watch 3. Every morning, you will receive a summary of the most significant fitness and health metrics in the Fitbit Morning brief.
What about the Venu 3 from Garmin?
To start with, its UI is very different from the stylish and user-friendly one found on the majority of Wear OS devices, including the soon-to-be Pixel Watch. It’s awkward and hard to use; even basic tasks like switching watch faces require a lot of touches and menu navigating. As a matter of fact, navigating the various settings and menus on the exclusive Garmin OS is a must.
That being said, the Garmin has a good feature set. The device is equipped with Garmin’s Elevate Gen5 sensor, which facilitates several functions such as heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen monitoring, ECG, and heart rate variability (HRV), which gauges the variation in heartbeat timing and may be predictive of sickness or sleep deprivation.
In addition to identifying the various stages of your sleep, the Garmin sleep tracker also includes a body battery metric. This one, which it seems like everyone is attempting to imitate this year, determines how rested and training-ready you are based on a variety of health parameters, including the quality of your sleep and the activities you performed the day before.
Charge and Battery
Although we’re not sure what kind of battery the Pixel Watch 3 will come with until we disassemble it, Google claims that it will last up to 30 hours in power-saving mode and up to 24 hours when used regularly.
Meanwhile, the Garmin Venu 3 has remarkable battery life that surpasses that of other smartwatches by a wide margin. The least amount of time you get is about four days, even with the 41mm Venu 3S version, one workout per day, and the always-on display feature turned on. You may easily get a week’s worth of use out of the device if you turn off the latter.
The situation is much better with the normal 45mm Venu 3: with typical usage and always-on turned off, you can go up to 14 days between charges, which is about 14 times more than most modern conventional smartwatches can accomplish.
It’s interesting to note that the Pixel Watch 3 will only charge 20% faster for the tiny model. Without a doubt, charging the larger one will take longer. The magnetic charging puck that comes in the package will allow you to accomplish that.
In contrast, the charging cable for Garmin’s Venu 3 includes a proprietary connector. While it is undoubtedly more cumbersome than most smartwatches with their “place-and-charge” design, the inconvenience is justified because you wouldn’t be using it very often!
Prices and Models
There will be two sizes for the Pixel Watch 3: 41mm and 45mm. We anticipate that there will be LTE+Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi only models. The 41mm model could start at $349, while the 45mm model could cost $399. The LTE versions of both watches are available for an additional $100, meaning that the small model costs $449 and the giant watch costs $499.
In the meanwhile, there are two variations of the Garmin Venu 3 available: the Venu 3S, a 41mm model, and the Venu 3, a 45mm version. With prices starting at $450, this one is a little more expensive, but it’s well worth the money because it offers an unparalleled battery life.
Specifications
The key specifications that we expect for the Pixel Watch 3 vs. Garmin Venu 3 are listed below:
| Specs | Pixel Watch 3 | Garmin Venu 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Models (Size, Weight, Prices) | 41mm / 45mm, both in Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi + Cellular versions | 41mm / 45mm |
| Processor, RAM, Storage | Qualcomm W5* | MediaTek MT6739 |
| Software | Wear OS 5 | proprietary |
| Battery and Charging | 24-hour battery life with always-on display 20% faster charging (41mm model only) | 41mm: 10-day battery life 45mm: 14-day battery life |
| Sensors | HR Blood oxygen altimeter, ECG GPS | Garmin Elevate V5 (Gen5): optical heart rate ECG single-band GPS |
| New features | AI-enriched interface | IP68 5ATM resistance |
Summary
The Pixel Watch 3 is a testament to Google taking smartwatches seriously, at least based on the preliminary information we have.
The tech giant seems to be trying to better compete with companies like Apple and Samsung, and the Pixel Watch 3 seems like it might be the product to do so. Although it’s challenging to break into established ecosystems, the watch’s compatibility with any Android phone is already a benefit.
We’re not sure if any features will be available only on Pixel phones, but we really hope not (looking at you, Samsung).
The Garmin Venu 3, on the other hand, is the anti-smartwatch—it’s for people who detest having to constantly charge their devices, gaudy app shops, and an excessive number of watch faces. It’s a practical gadget with a straightforward design, an outstanding battery life, and a straightforward, reliable health and wellness tracking system.
The masochistic interface is true, but it shouldn’t be too bad if you get the feel of it. All that is known is that Google will be up against yet another rival in the form of Garmin’s OLED watch.