Pixel Watch and Pixel 7 could make me ditch Apple for good

Since the end of I/O, I've had a lot of thoughts on what's to come from the campus. You should know that I use an Apple Watch on a daily basis. I'm one of those people who believe in the Apple system, and it makes my job a lot easier.

Being able to hand things off between my Mac and iPhone or iPad is just amazing, and the Apple Watch is my favorite watch at the moment. There is a reason why the Pixel Tablet was my favorite announcement made during the keynote.

The Better Together plans seem to be kicking things into gear. I could end up relegating my Apple hardware to backup gear if the plan succeeds.

Better Together

I'm not going to change anything that I've already written about, but I do think that Google is making the right moves in an effort to create a cohesive Android-powered ecosystem. If the Tensor 2 is as good as the original, the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro will satisfy the mid-range and budget markets.

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We hope that the changes to the interface of apps on tablets will make waves in the developer community. We should be able to enjoy the changes this fall with some of the best tablets, despite the fact that the Pixel will not be available until next year.

I feel that my continued use of Apple products may be halted by the Pixel Watch. At I/O 2022, everything that was shown off on stage was in keeping with my desire to have a Google-created wristwatch. I'm still holding onto hope, even after reports surfaced that it would be using a comically-outdated processor.

It all hinges on the watch

For me, the most important factor is whether I leave Apple's walled garden behind hinges or not. I don't expect them to break the mold completely, but from what we've seen from the promotional videos and different images, that's what they're trying to do.

The design of the Pixel Watch looks like it will be a masterpiece. It blends aluminum with glass without looking bulky. I am not a fan of the first-party watch bands, but they are still a unique take and will allow us to use pretty much whatever other bands we want. There are likely to be a lot of fun watch band colors to pick from.

I think I'm most excited about the health and fitness features. This was created to make it easier to access your health data, regardless of what app or service you are using. It has been difficult for years to sync data between the two, and that is just one example. I would prefer to have an implementation that works, but it can be too cumbersome.

This is very important because of the deep integration that appears to be built into this version of Wear OS. It would only make sense for Google to create a tool to sync your data across different services, since there was a Fitbit complication that was shown off. You can now link your fitness data with the Assistant in order to see activity metrics on the Nest Hub. It may seem like a small step, but it is more important than you think.

I want to believe

I prefer to use one device at a time. My devices all work together. The same can be said for the custom-built Windows PC that I built.

I want to use my Pixel 6 Pro more and more. While I have the best Chromebooks and a Fitbit Sense, that's only part of the puzzle. The Sense feels out of place. Phone Hub works great on my Chromebook and is getting even better, but it doesn't offer the same features as using the Your Phone app with my Z Fold 3.

I believe that this is the point at which Google has reached the point where it is coordinating all of its efforts into providing a cohesive and seamless environment. It might be the first time in a long time that I take my phone out of my pocket and start using it all the time if the Pixel 7 and the Pixel Watch deliver on their promise.

There are a lot of things that could be in the equation. If the execution doesn't match up, then we're back to square one. That likely won't be good for the devices.