After trying its luck in the wearable space with brands like Motorola, Asus and Huawei among others, Google could change that in 2018. According to reports, Google is likely to add another Pixel product to its portfolio, a smartwatch that will compete against the Apple Watch.
The fact that Google is looking to name it ‘Pixel’ suggests that the device will be priced in the premium category, just like its Pixel series of smartphones. They will heavily rely on help from chipmakers like Qualcomm, who’re said to be working on special processors for wearables in 2018.
Google hasn’t succeeded in the wearable market and instead seen Apple taking the lead in the segment over the past quarter. Does this imply that Google sees a chance to redeem itself and make a comeback? Whatever be their reason, they’ll need Wear OS (Android Wear previously) to make a better case for it.
Evan Blass, a reliable informant of upcoming product launch suggests that the Pixel-branded watch is on the cards.
The new avatar of wearable platform from Google, Wear OS wasn’t a big part of the Google I/O 2018 keynote (didn’t even get a footnote mention) but developers were briefed about its potency.
More than anything else, the name, according to Google reflects its support for all platforms. So, if you’re an iPhone X user, you can look beyond the Apple Watch (that’s what Google is saying, not me). Other than the change in name, most existing smartwatches will get upgraded to Wear OS later this year.
Apple Watch leads the segment with 21 percent market share as per IDC quarterly report.
Google could take Apple’s cue and focus on offering a device with a premium set of features. They should also look at making a SIM-friendly version of the Pixel Watch, which has worked like a charm for Apple, according to analysts.
User tastes have become more sophisticated over the past several quarters and Apple pounced on the demand for cellular connectivity and streaming multimediaIDC Wearable report
If Google wants the rumoured Pixel smartwatch to compete anywhere near Apple Watch, they have got to fix the issues at hand with its wearable software. The Wear OS finally supports Google Assistant for wider tasks now (thankfully) but the app support is still a concern and so is the battery life on offer.
Granted, chipmakers need to smartly tweak their strategy for wearables, which lets watchmakers fit a bigger battery.
Having said that, it’s also Google’s duty to make the software a reliable battery manager. If these things don’t make it to the final version of Wear OS later this year, Google would have wiped off its last chance saloon in the wearable space.
We’ll have to wait and see if Google manages to convince developers to focus on Wear OS, which could make or break the scope for a high-end Pixel smartwatch.
Can a change in name (and some tweaks) bring a change in fortune? They’d be hoping for that. All in all, this has got to be Google’s final bet in the segment, if this doesn’t work then Apple (and even Samsung) will have the last laugh.
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