I spoke to my colleagues Derrek Lee, Andrew Myrick, and Jerry Hildenbrand, who’ve all used each Put on OS watches and Garmin watches, to determine what Put on OS ought to borrow from Garmin to grow to be even higher. Here is what we collectively got here up with.
Dynamic coaching programs
An auto-generated course on the Garmin Fenix 8 (Picture credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
Google Maps is among the greatest instruments on Put on OS, particularly now that it has offline maps. However what it lacks are offline, downloadable programs so that you can generate and comply with for runs, hikes, and rides; you may solely comply with GPX maps utilizing a few third-party apps.
With Garmin, you may obtain GPX information from apps like Strava to comply with, with on-wrist turn-by-turn navigation and upcoming forks on trails. Or, with the “Create Course” software, you drop a map pin, select a distance and beginning route, and obtain an computerized course that avoids inaccessible roads and makes use of the “Garmin Join Trendline Recognition Routing characteristic to generate a course based mostly on in style routes.” You then ship it to your watch.
I’ve to imagine that Google may provide higher routes or heatmaps with its worldwide Maps knowledge for pedestrians, the identical approach it exhibits real-time site visitors for commuters. Now that Google Maps is including Gemini AI , it ought to solely get smarter over time at determining the very best routes. I may even envision a Google Programs spin-off app of Maps that lets folks create and share their favourite routes, tagging them for good hills or surroundings. Then you would obtain and comply with them in your Put on OS watch and compete towards different runners’ phase occasions like you may on Strava. Make it occur, Google!
As a aspect observe, as soon as Put on OS helps correct programs, it must also add the equal of Garmin’s ClimbPro widget for runners and cyclists, exhibiting the grade, distance, and whole variety of climbs left for a tough path.
Higher pairing with equipment
(Picture credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
Put on OS would not play good with Bluetooth equipment in addition to wi-fi earbuds and some train tools machines. Any athlete who prefers the accuracy of an ECG chest strap or an optical armband is out of luck, apart from some area of interest Put on OS apps with the potential; the identical goes for area of interest instruments like temperature sensors or kind evaluation pods.
The true downside is for severe biking or MTB, although. Not like Garmin, you may’t join your energy meters or velocity/ cadence sensors to see key knowledge in your watch face throughout actions. Since these watches have the most recent Bluetooth customary, this looks like an overdue no-brainer for Google.
Cater to greater than runners
The Galaxy Watch Extremely has the ruggedness for excessive sports activities, however not the software program (Picture credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
Garmin has specialised software program for area of interest sports activities, from golf swing teaching and browsing wave monitoring to ski maps and oxygen monitoring for diving. That is quite a bit to ask for with customary Put on OS watches, however “premium” watches just like the Galaxy Watch Extremely have to develop in these areas to draw superusers.
My gym-loving coworkers, in the meantime, dislike how fundamental Put on OS is for energy coaching. The Galaxy Watch can rely reps considerably decently for a number of fundamental routines, whereas the Pixel Watch has nothing however energy and time. The newer Garmin watches have nice rep-counting accuracy for over 1,000 workout routines and even mechanically enter relaxation between units with out enter.
Garmin additionally exhibits animated steering for correct kind, muscle maps for every train’s influence, and a brand new Garmin Coach plan for energy coaching on the Fenix 8, supplying you with weeks of routines that alter based mostly in your skills. Put on OS has loads of room to develop, in different phrases, and it is a far more frequent use case that lots of people would recognize.
And sure, make the working even higher
(Picture credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
As a runner, I used to be thrilled by the Pixel Watch 3’s working focus , because it added customizable exercises with intervals, Cardio Load and Goal Load , working kind evaluation, and each day exercise suggestions — all consistent with Garmin Forerunner instruments. The Galaxy Watch 7 added dual-band GPS, delivering extra correct monitoring nearly on par with Garmin’s.
General, Put on OS has improved for runners, however there’s room to develop. Samsung has but to supply a coaching load characteristic, falling behind Google and Apple in guiding runners’ long-term progress. And Google’s TL software lacks Garmin’s finesse as a result of it would not differentiate between low/ excessive cardio and anaerobic actions, which is one of the best ways to enhance your VO2 Max .
Neither Samsung nor Google affords the working energy metric to evaluate your real-time effort stage in robust circumstances, a typical working watch software. Extra particular to Garmin, Put on OS may use some type of restoration estimate calculator for judging how a lot relaxation you want after a exercise or the Forerunner 965 ‘s potential to chart your enchancment in Endurance or Hill scores over time.
Most easily, I would prefer to see Fitbit and Samsung Well being allow you to monitor your mileage for sneakers and bikes so you recognize when it is time for a shoe or tire alternative.
Copy Garmin’s wheelchair mode
Monitoring pushes on the Garmin Venu 3 (Picture credit score: Jerry Hildenbrand)
My colleague Jerry Hildenbrand wrote final yr about why the Garmin Venu 3’s wheelchair mode made a smartwatch extra viable for him than different manufacturers. It swaps out “steps” for “pushes,” but it surely’s greater than that: It focuses on “wheelchair physiology” to think about that your diminished muscle mass “restricts the utmost quantity of cardio power you may produce” and that “higher physique train sometimes produces higher physiological pressure than decrease physique train at related workloads.”
Garmin’s focus is laudable and uncommon; most different manufacturers, together with the Put on OS ones, have both perfunctory or nonexistent modes for wheelchair-bound people and can fortunately encourage everybody to rise up and transfer when some customers cannot. That is why this Garmin characteristic is one thing Put on OS wants to mimic.
Ultimately, it is all about battery life
Even at low battery, the Fenix 8 nonetheless has 5 days left (Picture credit score: Michael Hicks / Android Central)
Google needed to invent a Hybrid Interface and make watch faces boringly low-powered simply to increase its Pixel Watch 3 battery life from one to 2 days, whereas the Galaxy Watch Extremely lasts three days. In the meantime, nearly any non-Put on OS health watch can final per week, and Garmin watches final anyplace from weeks to months with photo voltaic recharging.
These watches use fundamental, low-powered chips that may’t deal with speedy apps; Put on OS is simply too demanding to final lengthy at full energy, particularly if it begins including Gemini tips. So loads of folks decide an affordable, easy watch so they do not have to fret about charging it usually, and that is the largest hurdle Put on OS has to beat.
Once I interviewed Qualcomm VP of Wearables Dino Bekis , he acknowledged this, saying the objective is to ship “per week’s price of battery life,” both with RISC-V or customized Oryon cores. I can solely assume that Google, their consumer, is asking for this battery improve to compete with health watches when it comes to their strengths.
If the {hardware} cannot ship a battery enhance, then Put on OS wants to supply a greater Battery Saver mode, just like the one on the TicWatch Professional 5 Enduro that extends the lifespan to 45 days per cost — solely with out disabling all of the options that make folks wish to put on a smartwatch within the first place. As a result of Garmin watches might not have apps, however they’ll nonetheless final a very long time with out reducing well being monitoring and background knowledge.
