I'm not holding my breath for the Google Pixel Watch in 2021, but I would love to see this rumored smartwatch in person. I like Samsung's Galaxy Watch 4, but would like to use the new Wear OS in a way that is separate from Samsung's smartphones. What better company to create hardware than the one that created the software?

Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 is more than just Wear OS. Combined with Samsung's own One UI, it maintains some familiar aspects of the abandoned Tizen platform. In particular, it retains Samsung Health for activity tracking and wellness data. And that could be a key feature that Google weakens when it releases its own smartwatch. And that weakening could happen in 2022, as a new report suggests that Google is actively developing smartwatches.

In the past, most Wear OS watches tracked activity through Google Fit. This works fine, but is nothing special. Most notably, breath counting via the Pixel phone's camera was introduced earlier this year, but there have been no significant updates since then.

Perhaps it is because Google is moving away from Google Fit and shifting its focus to a portfolio of more reputable fitness tracking services; now that the Fitbit acquisition is complete, it may be time to extend Fitbit's excellent features to other wearables. Perhaps it's time to extend Fitbit's great features to other wearables.

Google must know that smartwatches and fitness trackers are the fastest-growing consumer technology category. In other words, almost all of its competitors are making some kind of companion smartwatch for their phones. Pixel smartphones, like the upcoming Google Pixel 6, also deserve dedicated accessories.

The Pixel is often some of the best Android phones because Google can perfectly match the hardware to its own software. The latest Pixel lineup is expected to offer a refined version of Android 12 with Material You.

Don't you think Google should apply this logic to challenge the best smartwatch on the market? Certainly, the Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Versa 3 are technically Google's domain. But the company can't shy away from leveraging Fitbit's famous fitness-tracking capabilities in its own wearables for very long.

Pixel Watch features that Google could easily borrow from Fitbit include workout tracking, sleep tracking, and stress tracking; if the Pixel Watch can master the basics, it will not need to employ advanced health sensors like ECG and EDA. Perhaps early Pixel Watch users could also gain access to Fitbit Premium.

In my workout test of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, I liked the watch's activity tracking tools. However, sleep tracking and stress tracking were poor, and I have ongoing concerns about body composition analysis; Samsung Health is not as sophisticated as Fitbit; and the watch's performance is not as good as Fitbit's.

If the Pixel Watch is real, it should be the ultimate Wear OS smartwatch, combining everyone's favorite Google apps with Fitbit's health and wellness suite. I am not saying that as if it is a done deal. In fact, there is almost nothing we know about this smartwatch except for bits and pieces of rumors.

That said, I am not optimistic that the Pixel Watch will make an appearance at the Pixel Fall Launch Event; have you seen the amount of leaks of the Google Pixel 6? If the Pixel Watch is going to make an appearance, we should have heard something substantial about the Pixel Watch at this point, only a few days after the keynote.

Either way, it won't be long before we find out anyway; the Google Pixel 6 event is on October 19; check out our guide on how to watch the Pixel Fall Launch event.