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Pixel Watch 5

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191–200 of 401 posts

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

PebbleTime 2 has a pedometer, HR monitor, and sleep tracking. You can set it to do continuous HR measurements during activities. This covers all the basics. GPS is covered by the phone that you're going to be carrying anyway. Really the only missing part is NFC payments.

> GPS is covered by the phone that you're going to be carrying anyway Unless you go for a run, for example. > Really the only missing part is NFC payments. And custom applications, not the least of which are navigation tools like Google Maps or Citymapper.

> Unless you go for a run, for example.

You can bring your phone with you! Then you can combine its GPS tracks and the information from Pebble.

> And custom applications, not the least of which are navigation tools like Google Maps or Citymapper.

They won't work without the phone connection because Pebble does not have a cellular modem.

But there are mapping apps for the Pebble that use the phone's GPS: https://apps.repebble.com/maptastic_52e7521679f937c182000004 or https://apps.repebble.com/maps-nav_99279aadf6df4c0fadfdb39a

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#192

So I kinda hate smart watches, a lot. Mainly because they are about notifications and apps, both of which SUCK to use on my wrist. Notifications are especially horrible (looking at you Apple, not able to disable reaction notifications in iMessage…), distracting, stressful, make it hard to stay present and focused. What I actually want: - sleep tracking - basic health tracking - maybe basic GPS to track hikes/runs etc…

This is kind of why I’m still using a Fitbit. Google doesn’t really pay attention to them but they do the basics of fitness and sleep.

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

PebbleTime 2 has a pedometer, HR monitor, and sleep tracking. You can set it to do continuous HR measurements during activities. This covers all the basics. GPS is covered by the phone that you're going to be carrying anyway. Really the only missing part is NFC payments.

OP specifically called out GPS in relation to a watch as a desired feature. You can’t just summarily dismiss that with a hand wave of “you have a phone don’t you?”

It can mean different things: support for fully autonomous GPS or for the phone-assisted GPS.

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#194
post #81

I overheard a conversation between someone on the Pixel Watch team and a woman I know. He was quizzing her at a party about what features she used - which were pretty much step counter and payment. He somewhat dismissively sneered, "Well, you're not exactly a power user, are you?" I'm trying to imagine what being a "power user" of a watch is like. Can anyone enlighten me? I think smart-watches are much like Alexa. Wh…

Power users are buying the pebble time 2 because they can modify it to do whatever they want with high sp#cificity

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#195
I just use garmin watches to track health stuff. I would literally jump for joy if there were a free alternative software and hardware stack to replace this watch or at the very least a cycling computer.

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#196

So I kinda hate smart watches, a lot. Mainly because they are about notifications and apps, both of which SUCK to use on my wrist. Notifications are especially horrible (looking at you Apple, not able to disable reaction notifications in iMessage…), distracting, stressful, make it hard to stay present and focused. What I actually want: - sleep tracking - basic health tracking - maybe basic GPS to track hikes/runs etc…

This is kind of why I’m still using a Fitbit. Google doesn’t really pay attention to them but they do the basics of fitness and sleep.

I need something basic to keep track of swimming pool laps. Is there a simple fitbit that can do it reliably and holds a charge for at least a couple of weeks?

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This. Totally. I would say I'm quite a power user usually. I very carefully explored every feature my apple watch has and tried to incorporate as many of them as I could. Very, very few features stuck because they were genuinely helpful. Almost everything being pushed is a gimmick or a feature bullet point from some product manager. The actual good stuff: Time Workouts Payments The occasionally useful stuff: Notifica…

Personal favorite: unlocking my laptop

The only thing I miss from switching to a Casio

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The charger on the 4 both sucks and blows. Countless times I’ve taken it off the charger to find 0%. The nice strap they showed in the adverts broke instantly when I took it out of the box. Two pins sheared right off the in the middle of the band. WearOS Apps are trash. I wish I had gone garmin. ;(

My experience is so different from this. I love the stock strap. I've never found the watch at 0% on the charger. The charge is magnetic, so it's really obvious when it's actually charging. The apps do everything I need them to do, but maybe you're asking more of the watch than I am? My only complaint is that the charger has its own cable instead of a plug that I can use with whatever charger I want.

> > Countless times I’ve taken it off the charger to find 0%.

> The charge is magnetic, so it's really obvious when it's actually charging.

It's possible to dock it in the charger enough for the charging display to start showing, but not enough for it to actually charge. But the watch notices this itself after about 5 seconds, and it switches to "not charging" display and sends a notification to your phone. I've had my Pixel Watch 4 since January and I've only had this happen twice, so it's fairly rare, but certainly possible.

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#199
post #81

I overheard a conversation between someone on the Pixel Watch team and a woman I know. He was quizzing her at a party about what features she used - which were pretty much step counter and payment. He somewhat dismissively sneered, "Well, you're not exactly a power user, are you?" I'm trying to imagine what being a "power user" of a watch is like. Can anyone enlighten me? I think smart-watches are much like Alexa. Wh…

This. Totally. I would say I'm quite a power user usually. I very carefully explored every feature my apple watch has and tried to incorporate as many of them as I could. Very, very few features stuck because they were genuinely helpful. Almost everything being pushed is a gimmick or a feature bullet point from some product manager. The actual good stuff: Time Workouts Payments The occasionally useful stuff: Notifica…

Walking navigation is immensely useful for me when I am going somewhere in an unfamiliar town or neighborhood.

Re: Pixel Watch 5

#200
post #2

30 hours of battery life is a deal breaker. I don't want to charge my watch every day. I've been using the Garmin Forerunner for a few years now and the battery life is 2 weeks!

I still have the Pixel Watch 2 and it's much the same, battery barely lasts a day, if even that. I didn't know this going in. I had purchased the Pixel 8 I think it was and saw the watch was heavily discounted if I bundled it in so I did. Will never buy another one. I'm a heavily sleeper and need multiple alarms sometimes to wake up and would often use my watch alarm to supplement my phone. So it became a nightly rou…

> I still have the Pixel Watch 2 and it's much the same, battery barely lasts a day […] Will never buy another one

The later models are way better. When I switched from a Pixel Watch 1 to a Pixel Watch 4, my battery life increased by at least double. And this is me comparing both watches when they were new, before any battery degradation. The charging is also twice as fast with the newer models, so it's much quicker to charge if you forget it.

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