The Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch are some of the very best smartwatches released in 2022. While the Galaxy Watch 5 succeeds the Galaxy Watch 4, the Pixel Watch is a whole new series and the first from Google. These two watches spot intimidating specs and as such, it wouldn’t be a wrong decision if you finally decide to settle for any of these two.
While the Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch run on the Wear OS 3.5 platform, the design and features differ greatly. Nonetheless, with each of these two, you get a compact and lightweight smartwatch that’s well-equipped with health tracking features, onboard music storage, and lots of productivity features. We’ll be discussing the difference between the Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch – which is a better smartwatch? Continue reading to find out.
Before we continue, you should note that both the Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch are available in Wi-Fi and Cellular models. The Cellular model is a standalone smartwatch as its equipped with an eSIM that allows it to make and receive calls without connecting to a phone.
Meanwhile, while the Pixel Watch is only available in 41mm size, the Galaxy Watch 5 is available in 40mm and 44mm. The 44mm unit has a larger display and slightly longer battery than the 40mm unit.
Galaxy Watch 5 vs Pixel Watch Full Specification
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Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 vs Google Pixel Watch – Further Discussion
Design
Over the years, I have noticed that brands struggle to make the average smartwatch smaller. This is very evident in the Galaxy Watch series over the years.
Both Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch are very compact and lightweight. However, even the 44mm unit of the Galaxy Watch 5 weighs less than Pixel Watch. It weighs 33.5g compared to 36g. This is obviously due to the stainless build of the Pixel Watch.
The Galaxy Watch 5 at 9.8mm is extremely thin compared to the 12.3mm of the Pixel Watch. Obviously, the Galaxy Watch 5 is sleeker.
Meanwhile, while the Galaxy Watch 5 has an armor aluminum build paired with silicone bands, Pixel Watch has a stainless steel case paired with a fluoroelastomer band. A Corning Gorilla Glass 5 screen protects the display of the Pixel Watch while Sapphire glass is used for the Galaxy Watch 5.
Both watches are rated 5ATM which means that you can wear any of these while swimming.
The bottom line, both watches have got a durable and compact build, although the Galaxy Watch 5 is slimmer and spots a more superior sapphire glass while Pixel Watch has a stronger case.
Display
While the Galaxy Watch 5 40mm unit has the same 1.2 inches display size as the Pixel Watch, the 44mm unit has a 1.4 inches display size. AMOLED powers the display of both watches and each of these two has a very colorful and bright display that is easy to read even under direct sunlight.
The Pixel Watch offers a physical button and digital rotating crown alongside a touch-sensitive screen that makes interacting with the watch very easy.
On the other hand, Samsung retained the digital rotating bezel in addition to a touch-sensitive screen and two physical buttons, all of this help make the Galaxy Watch 5 very easy to navigate especially with the one UI 4.5 interface.
Both watches also have customizable watch faces, you get a handful of preloaded watch faces to choose from, and there are many more to choose from on Google Playstore.
In terms of display, both watches have very colorful and sophisticated UI that’s easy to use.
Health Tracking
The Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch 5 are very fitness-focused. With each of these two, you can track all your daily activities including steps, calories, floors climbed, stress, sleep, blood oxygen, ECG, and heart rate.
Both watches also have inbuilt GPS that allows you to track your routes and locations when you workout outdoors.
Both watches also feature incidental fall detection that will enable the watch to start a call when it detects a hard fall. Emergency SOS is also available on both watches.
However, the Galaxy Watch 5 features blood pressure measurement plus the newly introduced skin temperature measurement. The Galaxy Watch 5 also has more preloaded sport modes plus body composition measurement that allows you to measure BMI, skeletal muscle, and muscle mass.
Bottom line, while the Pixel Watch is a comprehensive health tracker, the Galaxy Watch 5 is no doubt a more comprehensive fitness tracker.
Music Storage
While I believe the Galaxy Watch 5 is finer and has more health-tracking features than Pixel Watch, it trails behind in terms of available storage.
The Pixel Watch is equipped with a 32GB storage capacity compared to the 16GB of Galaxy Watch 5.
You can add music to both watches using YouTube Music and Spotify. You can also add your personal music to these two.
Making and Receiving Calls
The Galaxy Watch 5 and Pixel Watch are both equipped with a microphone and speaker. In other words, you can make and receive calls from any of these two when your phone is nearby.
The LTE models of the Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch 5 can make and receive calls when your phone is not nearby.
Notifications and Payments
You will be able to receive and manage messages directly from the Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch 5. Both watches offer robust options to reply to messages from your favorite apps.
You will also be able to make payments directly with any of these two when you store your card details on the watch. While Galaxy Watch 5 features both Google Pay and Samsung Pay, the Pixel Watch features Google Pay.
These non-contactless payment systems will allow you to make payments directly from the watch. Meanwhile, these services are not available in every country.
Platform and Apps
Google settled for the older Samsung’s Exynos 9110 chip for the Pixel Watch. The 9110 chip is a 10nm chip used on Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch 3, Galaxy Watch Active, and Galaxy Watch Active 2. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 5 is powered by a more advanced 5nm Exynos W920 chip.
Nonetheless, the Pixel Watch is reported to have a decent performance. The Galaxy Watch 5 also has a wonderful performance.
Battery Life
One of the new improvements to the Galaxy Watch 5 is the slightly longer battery life. While you can get up to 50hrs with Galaxy Watch 5, Pixel Watch boasts up to 24hrs. In other words, the Galaxy Watch 5 lets you go longer from a single charge.
Galaxy Watch 5 vs Pixel Watch: Which is Better?
Now, this is a daisy one, however, going by the design, fitness tracking features, and battery life, I will give it to the Galaxy Watch 5. I think it’s a better smartwatch than Pixel Watch.
Personally, I prefer the 2D design of the Galaxy Watch 5’s screen to the domed design of the Pixel Watch’s screen. The Galaxy Watch 5 is also slimmer, far cheaper, and features BP, body composition as well as skin temperature measurements. It also has a longer battery life.
On the other hand, the Pixel Watch is also highly sophisticated. It has an awesome design, it’s compact, lightweight, and has a storage capacity that’s twice that of Galaxy Watch 5. It’s no doubt a great first attempt at the booming smartwatch industry. Though, it will cost you a little more money.