I’ll admit it: I’ve really been diggin’ Google’s purty new Pixel Watch.
I’ve been wearing the watch for the past few weeks, bathing and slumber-time notwithstanding, and here’s the twist: I absolutely did not expect to enjoy it.
I was actually really into Wear OS and Google’s smartwatch odyssey early on, too, way back when the platform first came out in the prehistoric era of 2014. But then, well, a couple things happened:
I reached a point where I wanted the ability to be less tethered to technology, and wearing a smartwatch made me feel perpetually on the grid and tied to my electronic obligations.
Google gave up on its thoughtfully conceived original vision for wearables, with a focus on contextual info and glanceable nuggets, and instead started chasing Apple’s more popular philosophy — with an emphasis on complicated standalone apps and intricate interactions. That stuff looks impressive in ads but doesn’t make for a great real-world experience in my eyes, and it just didn’t jibe with the way I wanted to use a watch.
So suffice it to say, I assumed my journey with the new Pixel Watch would be an interesting technological diversion but a short-lived adventure I’d be eager to abandon.