When picking up a new smartwatch, questions of compatibility are always on the mind. Competing products in the smartphone and smartwatch space don’t like to play together when it comes to mixing and matching devices, but they aren’t always consistent in their exclusivity. For example, you can’t use an Apple Watch with an Android device, but you can connect a Fitbit (a Google-owned company) to an iPhone without issue.
Luckily, Google and Samsung accessories tend to be a little more willing to work with phones from the opposite manufacturer, thanks to Android being shared across both platforms. Now that the Google Pixel Watch is here, a new question is on the minds of some interested shoppers: Does the Google Pixel Watch work with Samsung phones?
Google Pixel Watch and Samsung phones
So, does the Pixel Watch work with Samsung phones? Plain and simple, yes. Because the Pixel Watch runs on Wear OS 3, it’s compatible with any Android device running Android 8.0 or later. Essentially, if you’ve bought an Android phone since 2017 or later, your device should be compatible with the Pixel Watch. That said, the Pixel Watch doesn’t work with iPhones of any kind. While there was some compatibility between previous iPhones and Android smartwatches, that has disappeared with the Pixel Watch.
Although the Pixel Watch is compatible with all Android phones, it’s worth pointing out that it has a feature that works exclusively when paired with Pixel smartphones. The smartwatch includes a remote camera app that allows you to control your Pixel phone’s camera through the watch. You can adjust all camera settings using the app and then use it as a remote shutter, so you don’t have to rely on the timer function to get a full group shot without someone manning the camera. It works great with phones like the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro but not a Galaxy S22 Ultra or OnePlus 10T.
More of Wear OS 3
With the launch of the Pixel Watch and the Fossil Gen 6 Wellness Edition, Wear OS 3 has started to see something of a revival over a year after it first debuted. Before the Pixel Watch, there were only three devices that ran the operating system, but now there are eight in total — with more hopefully coming down the line.
Thanks to the Pixel Watch’s excellent compatibility options with Android devices and the overall lack of Pixel-exclusive features, it’s an easy recommendation for just about anyone with an Android smartphone. That said, it’s still worth taking some time to compare and contrast other smartwatch flagships by other Android device manufacturers, such as the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.
