The Pixel Watch has an Apple Watch-like Fall Detection feature. Here’s everything you need to know – including how to enable it on your Pixel Watch.
The Google Pixel Watch has motion sensors that can detect if you’ve fallen, prompting the watch to ask if you need emergency services. It’s cool but may not be perfect and isn’t promising to detect all falls. It’s also dependent on network connectivity, location settings, and more. In this guide, Pocket-lint provides step-by-step instructions on how to set up Fall Detection on Pixel Watch, plus we answer basic questions you may have about the feature.
What is Fall Detection on Pixel watch?
Fall Detection is a new safety feature now available on Google Pixel Watches. It uses the device’s motion sensors as well as machine learning to detect if someone has taken a hard fall. If a fall is in fact detected, the watch will vibrate, sound an alarm, and flash a notification asking if the Apple Watch user needs help. If the user does not respond after a minute, the watch will automatically call emergency services and share its location. The feature is opt-in and can be turned on manually.
Google claims that this safety feature can differentiate between a hard fall and physical activity that mimics falling, but its effectiveness honestly remains to be seen. While a Fall Detection feature is a welcome addition for many, it shouldn’t be relied on as the only method of emergency communication for those at risk of falling.
How does Fall Detection work on Pixel Watch?
If Fall Detection is enabled, your Pixel Watch can detect a hard fall. When it does detect a fall, it will wait about 30 seconds before vibrating, ringing loudly, and asking if you want to call emergency services for help. If you don’t move or respond or dismiss the alert, your watch will vibrate, sound an alarm again, and wait 60 seconds before placing a call to emergency services. Your Pixel Watch will then play an automated voice message to let emergency services know it has detected a fall.
Your Pixel Watch can also share your location with emergency services, but you have to allow that in settings first. More on that later.
Note: To call emergency services on a Google Pixel Watch without 4G LTE, you need a nearby paired phone.
How to enable Fall Detection on Pixel Watch
If you own a Google Pixel Watch and want to take advantage of Fall Detection, you have two ways of turning on the feature.
Turn on Fall Detection on Pixel Watch
To turn on Fall Detection on the Pixel Watch, follow these steps:
- Press the crown on your Pixel Watch.
- Tap “Personal Safety” and then “Fall detection.”
- Toggle the switch to turn on Fall Detection.
Turn on Fall Detection in the Pixel Watch app
Alternatively, if you prefer to use the Pixel Watch app on your phone to set up Fall Detection, follow these steps:
- Open the Google Pixel Watch app on your phone.
- Tap “Watch preferences,” then “Safety and Emergency,” and then “Fall detection.”
- Toggle the switch to turn on Fall Detection.
Turn on Location Permissions
When you enable Fall Detection, your Pixel Watch can provide its location to emergency services – but only if you grant the “While in use” location permission. F
- On your Pixel Watch, press the crown.
- Tap “Personal Safety,” then “Fall detection,” and then “Update permission.”
Can you talk over the automated voice message?
When the Pixel Watch detects a fall and places an automated emergency call, it’ll play a pre-recorded automated voice message that informs emergency services the Pixel Watch has detected a fall and shares the location of the watch. According to Google, it is possible to speak over the voice message during an incident. If you ever want to preview what the automated voice message says, here’s how to listen to the example:
- Open the Google Pixel Watch app on your phone.
- Tap “Safety and Emergency,” then “Fall detection,” and then “What the emergency operator hears.”
Want to help improve Fall Detection?
If you want to help improve Fall Detection by sharing motion sensor data with Google, follow these steps:
- On your Pixel Watch, press the crown.
- Tap “Personal Safety” and then “Fall detection.”
- Toggle the switch to turn on Help Improve Fall Detection.
That’s it! Now you can help improve Fall detection on your Pixel Watch by sharing motion sensor data with Google.
Where is Fall Detection available?
Google said Fall Detection is only available in these Pixel-supported countries. (It’s not available in Germany.)
Does Apple Watch have Fall Detection?
Similar features are available on other watches, including the Apple Watch. For instance, the Apple Watch can look for a sudden change in acceleration or movement to detect a fall, and then it’ll serve up the option to contact emergency services or will automatically call and share a location if the user is unable to respond.
Want to know more about Pixel Watch?
The Google Pixel Watch is a smartwatch designed, developed, and marketed by Google. It launched in October 2022. It features a round dome-shaped display, heavy integration with Fitbit, and comes in two models (one with and one without support for cellular connectivity). The device is powered by Samsung’s Exynos 9110 SoC and contains a 294mAh battery, 2GB of RAM, multiple sensors, and wireless technologies. It runs on Wear OS 3.5 and is accompanied by a Pixel Watch app.
The Pixel Watch is compatible with Android smartphones running Android 8.0 or above. Critical response to the Pixel Watch has been generally positive, with many praising its sleek design, health features, and performance. However, some have criticised its battery life and the screen size. In Pocket-lint’s original review of the device, we said the experience is generally very good. You get pretty much everything you need from a wrist-worn gadget. There are contactless payments, great fitness tracking, interaction with notifications/messages, downloadable third-party apps, and – crucially – watch faces you can customise.
Google added fall detection capabilities in February 2023.