Google introduced the Google Pixel Watch 5 alongside the Pixel 11 series last month. My reaction to the announcement was decidedly lukewarm.

The new Pixel Watch is not a bad device. It is a polished product that makes sense if you are upgrading from an older Pixel Watch generation.

However, crucial gaps remain unaddressed, and Google declined to ship the meaningful leaps I expected.

I walked away convinced to skip this generation. I plan to keep my wrist strapped with my Fitbit Air and Huawei smartwatch until Google releases a Pixel Watch generation that delivers the true upgrade.

Pixel Watch 5 is a fantastic wearable

But it's not the game-changer that I want it to be

Before anyone brands me a chronic Pixel Watch basher, hear me out: I genuinely appreciate the lineup.

I have followed Google's wearables since the original Pixel Watch debuted. I repeatedly toyed with strapping one on my wrist, especially after adding the Pixel 9 Pro XL to my arsenal a year ago.

Before that, I gravitated toward the Fitbit Air. I have spent months wearing it, consistently enjoying its screen-less form factor and week-long battery.

Still, I miss having a screen to check notifications, take calls, or reply to messages on my wrist, or even glance at the time, as I can on a standalone smartwatch.

Eventually, this made me revisit my plans to upgrade my aging Huawei smartwatch this year.

I had set my sights on a Pixel Watch 5 before it was announced. I thought it would bring a cohesive experience with my Fitbit Air, filling the gaps my tracker can't cover.

However, when the new Pixel Watch 5 arrived, my enthusiasm evaporated, and my plan fell through.

Sure, it's an exciting upgrade for those coming from the Pixel Watch 2 or even Watch 3, but as a long-time smartwatch user, I wasn't instantly sold on it.

I wanted to justify it and find ways to fit it into my everyday use, but it still lacks the crucial upgrades I expected.

The minimal battery improvement is lackluster

It's a figure that has changed little

I've worn smartwatches for well over a decade. Although I've switched to a handful of timepieces, they all share features I greatly prefer.

One is the long, unapologetic battery life. I appreciate that my current Huawei Watch GT 4 runs a week between charges.

That's with a few workouts mixed in, constant connection with my phone, and the always-on display enabled.

That robust endurance has removed my battery anxiety about checking my smartwatch's charge level or when I should plug it in.

I was waiting for that moment when Google would push closer to real-world battery champions. Or, at bare minimum, introduce a meaningful leap for the Pixel Watch 5.

Instead, we get an uninspired spec bump, specifically a minor battery capacity increase.

The smaller Pixel Watch 5 is rated for 30 hours, while the bigger model gets 10 more hours at 40. That's not bad either.

The trouble is, the rated battery figures haven't essentially changed from last year's Pixel Watch 4.

Competitors have cracked the code

But Google is still catching up

Although we should expect slightly better battery life, the figures would be negligible in practice.

Real-world use would still yield a day on the smaller model and a day and a half on the bigger model.

Sure, you can turn off the always-on display and stretch it for another day. But that compromise remains laughable next to my current smartwatch.

I loved how Google handled the cell capacities, but it's still a big trade-off that I would take if I ever switched to the Pixel Watch bandwagon.

It could have changed my mind if Google had delivered a notable change, but no.

Perhaps a few more hours would have made a difference, especially on the smaller Pixel Watch 5 model, which I was eyeing over the larger variant.

You could say I'm nitpicking, but brands like OnePlus have overcome battery woes in their Wear OS watches.

The OnePlus Watch 4 is rated at 100 hours, more than double compared to the Pixel Watch 5. Not only that, the older OnePlus Watch 2 has started this trend.

I don't need Google to match those numbers, but I would appreciate continued genuine battery improvements each year, which were missing in this year's Pixel Watch.

Google might need the Ultra Pixel Watch

An option that fans have been asking for years

Although I'd prefer my next smartwatch to be lighter or more compact, I would be open to Google creating an Ultra model of the Pixel Watch in the name of battery.

I can take extra weight or add thickness, or even drop the sleek, unique domed look in exchange for double the battery life.

I know many people would take these trade-offs rather than be stuck with the standard Pixel Watch models and a day's battery.

It's frustrating that Google has been stuck with the same Pixel Watch models for years, while Samsung, Motorola, and Apple have long offered a more robust smartwatch.

More options have always benefited consumers. That's something I wish Google would follow with the Pixel Watch.

I believe Google can deliver a smartwatch that matters

It's true that there's no smartwatch that's perfect. But Google needs more than a minor annual polish to make the Pixel Watch a solid, enduring tech investment, not an overpriced daily-charging timepiece.

I love that the Pixel Watch 5 has unique perks like side-way charging and new health-based monitoring tools.

But I would also appreciate it if Google consistently prioritized worthwhile enhancements to core functions, including battery life.

Until Google delivers a genuine battery upgrade on the Pixel Watch, I will enjoy strapping on my Fitbit Air and aging smartwatch.