Google has pledged to offer Pixel Watch software updates for at least three years, guaranteeing feature drops until at least October 2025.
Google says the three-year period commences when the device goes on sale later this month, and it seems possible Google will look to extend the support beyond the promised date when it comes to security updates.
In a support document Google says “software updates include Google Pixel Watch security updates, and may include feature drops and other software updates.”
Google doesn’t necessarily measure these updates as operating system versions, as it does with Android. Traditionally, the company hasn’t released a new version of Wear OS operating system every year. As 9to5Google points out, the updates are delivered via the Play Store through apps/services updates at irregular intervals..
The idea of Pixel phone-like Feature Drops is perhaps more attractive, as Pixel Watch users will get regular new features as Google improves its suite. Those updates will likely bring features in line with what Google offers with future generations of the Pixel Watch too.
If you’re on the fence about buying a Pixel Watch before the year is out, this is probably good news. You’ll know you’ll get a solid three years of the best features, and probably at least some continued security updates thereafter.
It’s a similar strategy to the one Google uses with its Pixel phones. Last week Google launched the last guaranteed software update for the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL smartphones, which were released in October of 2019. Now the three-years is up, we’ll see what Google continues to provide in the future.
We’d hope Google continues with security updates for the next few months, to a year. How it proceeds might give us more clues about support for the Pixel Watch following the end of the guaranteed three-year update period.
