Google is holding its annual hardware launch event two months earlier this year, on August 13. Along with the Pixel 9 family (which will be larger in number than ever before), the Pixel Watch 3 is also expected to be unveiled on that occasion. For the first time, the Pixel Watch will come in two sizes – this has already been confirmed by the FCC.
A new leak today has revealed more details, reportedly coming from a source inside Google. The Pixel Watch 3 is said to use the Snapdragon W5 SoC along with a custom co-processor.
Google Pixel Watch 2
The 41mm Watch 3 has a 310 mAh battery, while the 45mm model will have a 420 mAh cell for better battery life. The smaller Watch 3 has a 32×32 mm display size (up from 30×30 mm on the Pixel Watch 2), the larger watch has a 36×36 mm display size, and the resolution is 408×408 and 456×456, respectively.
While the overall design will remain unchanged from the original Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2, the screen bezels will finally be slightly smaller. According to this source, Google will cut a full millimeter off the circular bezel, taking it from 5.5mm on the Pixel Watch 2 to 4.5mm on the Pixel Watch 3.
That’s still a lot of bezel, but it’s also (small) progress. In addition, the new watch will have better screen brightness, which will max out at 2,000 nits. That’s a lot more than the Pixel Watch 2’s 1,000 nits. We refrain from saying it’s “twice as bright” because perceived brightness doesn’t follow a linear scale, so chances are it won’t look twice as bright in person. Still, it’s another nice step up.
The Pixel Watch 3 will have UWB support, as the FCC has already confirmed, and it will be able to locate the exact device in conjunction with Google’s Find My Device system. In theory it could also be used to make your Pixel Watch 3 a car key, if car brands were up for the idea – BMW, Hyundai and Kia already support UWB for this purpose, but they’ll have to specifically support the Pixel Watch 3 as well, so we’ll see how that goes.
The 41mm Pixel Watch 3 will be offered in silver, black, and gold case colours with different coloured bands. The 45mm model will have a case in hazel, black, and silver colours.
