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Google announced new features for Pixel Watch as part of its March Pixel Drop, which also includes updates for devices in the broader Android ecosystem and Pixel portfolio. For owners of the watch — which has most features available on the Pixel Watch 2 and newer — the biggest additions focus on safety, convenience and faster interactions.
Pixel Watch (2 or later) will notify you when you forget your phone.
One of the highlights: The Pixel Watch will now send “left-behind” alerts if you accidentally walk away from your phone. It also automatically locks your phone when you move out of range, adding an extra layer of protection for forgotten phones. When your watch and phone are together and paired, identity checks are faster, so you don’t need to authenticate twice (on phone and watch). And the Find Hub is now available on the Pixel Watch and more Wear an OS watches, tracking other intercepted gadgets is also easier.
Google also introduced Express Pay, which essentially removes the Wallet app as a middle step when you check out, allowing you to turn your wrist and tap your watch to a terminal. You can now use a designated card without opening the Wallet for transit payments, and Express Pay appears to extend that conveniencefrontier soon next week
On the safety front, Pixel Watch (2 or later) will now provide real-time alerts about nearby seismic activity and its magnitude, potentially giving you a few seconds heads up before the actual earthquake starts. Satellite SOS, first introduced on the Pixel Watch 4 in the mainland US, has also expanded to Hawaii and Alaska as well as Canada and several European countries. This feature allows people to contact emergency services when they are off the grid without a phone or cell reception.
Pixel Watch 3 owners can now mute a call, press the camera shutter or stop an exercise with a double pinch or turn of the wrist.
Google also says that the one-handed gestures that started on the Pixel Watch 4 are expanding Pixel Watch 3add more ways to interact instantly without using both hands. This includes answering calls, silencing alarms, triggering the camera shutter or stopping an exercise with a double pinch or turn of the wrist.
The new features will be available through software updates for compatible watches starting March 3.
Check it out: A Month With Google’s Pixel Watch 4: The Untold Surprises
