Google has nailed it with the Pixel Watch 3, the latest version of its Android smartwatch. The first two versions were well designed circular wrist gadgets but suffered from sluggish performance and underwhelming battery life. Google has fixed both these issues, but only if you can handle a larger watch.

The Pixel Watch 3 comes in the familiar 41mm size of the older versions as well as a bigger 45mm model. I’ve been testing the larger device for the best part of a month and though it loses the dinky charm of the smaller, it’s the Pixel Watch to buy if you don’t want to be reaching for the charger as often. I’ve eked out two days on a single charge, something that’s rare to see with wearables running WearOS, Google’s smartwatch software.

That’s also impressive given the Watch 3 has the exact same Snapdragon W5 Gen 1 processor as its predecessor, so there is likely some extra efficiency added with some software tuning in the new WearOS 5 software.

The Pixel Watch 3 starts from £349 for the 41mm version, which is expensive, and the 45mm starts at £399. You have to pay £100 more for both if you want the 4G LTE compatible model.

I personally like chunky watches so the extra size didn’t bother me too much, but if you want a slender and subtle smartwatch you’ll want to stick to the diddy 41mm version. The larger one means that extra battery life though, and the screen displays more text in various apps and watch faces look less cluttered.

I’ve tested the Pixel Watch 3 with the Pixel 9 Pro and various other Android phones to see if I got the same experience. Pleasingly, the answer is mostly yes, though there are some Pixel-exclusive features such as syncing Do Not Disturb and Bedtime modes between watch and phone, which I missed more than I expected when not using a Pixel.

Otherwise, the only thing keeping you from enjoying all the smartwatch’s bells and whistles is paying for Fitbit Premium - without forking out a fee you can’t see your detailed sleep or stress scores, two of the most useful and interesting measurements the watch can take.

Google has also added a surprising number of workout tools to the Pixel Watch 3 and WearOS 5 that remarkably improve the watch for runners, of which I am one. From better in-run displays with more data to being able to create workout plans on the watch, this now feels a lot more geared towards fitness. I’ve enjoyed the additions of new running efficiency metrics, including ground contact time, form analysis, cadence and stride length that you only usually see on sports watches from Garmin or Polar.

One thing that irked me was the watch’s automatic workout detection. It worked when I went on a run and asked me if I wanted to record the workout, but it only started recording from that moment, which was several minutes in. The Apple Watch detects a run but can go back to record from the very beginning. Google needs to work out how to do this or get quicker at detecting.

I found the heart rate sensor accurate, but when leaving my phone at home I did occasionally run into GPS connection issues which was a shame considering the price of the Pixel Watch and its concentration on fitness. Standalone GPS did work reliably some of the time, but compared to the Apple Watch Series 10 and Garmin Forerunner 265 it was disappointing.

Google has plenty of safety features built into the Pixel Watch including fall detection and emergency SOS, but the new interesting one is ‘loss of pulse’ detection. You must agree to it in settings, but it has the ability to call the emergency services if it detects no pulse from the heart rate sensor. For obvious reasons, I couldn’t test this, but if you have a certain medical condition or live alone these are valuable features for a smartwatch to have.

If you are big into Google products such as Google Home, you can also control your smart TV or lights from the watch, and Google’s even added the ability to talk to someone if they ring your Nest Doorbell, the watch’s weeny screen showing the live video. This is excellent for Google to show customers it’s thinking more about creating a viable ecosystem of hardware and software to rival Apple. With a Pixel phone and watch plus the Pixel Tablet and a Chromebook, you can start to see how Google’s devices are better synchronised in 2024.

Despite all its new features, the Pixel Watch 3 manages to feel simple and out of my way when I’m not using it, which isn’t something I feel when wearing a Galaxy Watch. Samsung makes you download a plethora of plugins and extra apps no matter the phone you’re using with it, whereas after you’ve optionally linked the Pixel Watch 3 to Fitibt, you can rely on it to leave you alone if that’s what you’d prefer. I also really like the new watch faces, in particular one called Active that is highly customisable and shows me all the data I want throughout the day.

Overall the 45mm Pixel Watch 3 is an excellent Android smartwatch that doesn’t keep too many features away from buyers without a Pixel phone. It’s a better option over the latest Galaxy Watch, unless you have a Samsung phone.

Improved battery life, a larger screen and tighter integration with existing Google products make the Pixel Watch 3 markedly better than its predecessors, but if you want a WearOS watch with multi-day battery life you should go for the OnePlus Watch 2.