What you need to know
- An APK dive into a recent Google Play Services beta shows Google will disable your Pixel Watch 3’s UWB connectivity if your phone enters Airplane mode.
- Google’s code states your device will resort to its Bluetooth connection, which brings back that so-so experience.
- The Pixel Watch 3 launched in a 41mm and 45mm variant with larger screen space, loads of Fitbit perks, and more.
Google’s latest smartwatch features UWB support and while it’s useful, a teardown shows its activity highly depends on your phone’s airplane mode.
An APK dive into the latest beta Google app version (24.35.30) by AssembleDebug (Android Authority) shows that airplane mode disables the Pixel Watch 3’s UWB functionality. Airplane mode is a safety feature that cuts back on radio waves that could interfere with the instruments during a flight.
With that in mind, it makes sense that the Pixel Watch 3’s UWB chip would stop working. A string in Google’s code states “Watch Unlock with Ultra-Wideband is not available in Airplane mode.” Users will switch to a Bluetooth connection to unlock the device. The company adds that your device can still unlock easily; however, users may experience a “delay” or “less accuracy” because of Bluetooth.
Your UWB chip will continue to work after Airplane mode is turned off or once users enter “a country that supports Ultra-Wideband.”
Additionally, the APK dive showed that Google will let users control whether or not their Pixel Watch 3 leverages the UWB chip. The publication states that opting out of its usage may prolong your watch’s battery life.
Google’s choice to add a UWB chip into the Pixel Watch 3 was likely due to the so-so experience of Watch Unlock. Available on both of the previous iterations, Watch Unlock lets users conveniently unlock their phone so long as their Pixel Watch is nearby. It originally leveraged your Bluetooth connection, which was often more fickle than dependent.
With UWB, the connection between your phone and watch should be stronger and help cut back on odd wait times.
The Pixel Watch 3 has yet to land in consumer hands. Google launched the device in two sizes this year: 41mm and 45mm, which offer more screen space than the previous Watch 2 edition.
Loads of new Fitbit perks make the Watch 3 a joy to have strapped to your wrist on runs and during workouts. With it slated to arrive early in September, the Pixel Watch 3 starts at $349 for its 41mm variant.