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The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 was supposed to mark a turning point in Android smartwatches with the Korean OEM’s adoption of WearOS and implementation in its devices offering better build quality and smartphone integration. Here, the availability of Google Assistant on Samsung hardware was a major selling point for many in the list of promised features.
Now it’s been over a month since Google Assistant made its way to the Galaxy Watch 4, and I’ve spent some time with it since it arrived in late May. But now that Bixby is already available on the wearable, are you better off using the tool that’s been available since the beginning, or is the Google Assistant worth the hype? In this article I share some of my observations of the small quirks of the wearable with the two voice assistants it offers.
And in the end, we will try to answer the question of which Voice Assistant works best on your Galaxy Watch 4.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 4
Galaxy Watch 4 is the device to pick if you’re looking for a fitness-focused smartwatch that won’t hurt your wallet. Priced at $249, its range of features and quality assurance make it worth buying.
How do they compare?
To compare the performance of the voice assistants, I asked a few questions about system applications, internet and third-party apps. Since I don’t currently have any smart home equipment configured, excuse the lack of these questions.
The test for this article revolved around the following set of questions:
- check the weather
- To call
- Send a message
- Start a workout
- Create a reminder
- general trivia
Check again
Once I had both Bixby and Google Assistant up and running, I used the keywords ‘Check Weather’. For some reason Bixby thinks I live in Oklahoma and needed a constant prompt with ‘Check Weather’ and the location where I lived! On the other hand, the Google Assistant can retrieve the required data without any errors and in one go.
I’ve tried this several times with Bixby and there were more misses than hits. So I would give this round to Google Assistant. Overall, GA is a much better source if you need information.
Make a call
In terms of placing phone calls, both voice assistants were able to place a call without any problem. Accessing the contact list was easy enough for both of them, and the whole process was smooth and didn’t require any external input.
Send a message
Then I asked Google Assistant and Bixby to send a message to someone from my contact list. Bixby responded to the keywords “Send a message” with the error that this feature was not available with the paired phone. This is probably because my Galaxy Watch 4 is paired with a OnePlus 9RT. On the other hand, Google Assistant responded to the keyword by asking who I wanted to message, what application I would like to use from my smartphone, and then the content itself.
I had previously set WhatsApp as the default for this contact; hence there was no prompt but you can also mention the application you want to use in the instructions for google assistant.
This improvement through the addition of Google Assistant itself makes the Galaxy Watch 4 a lot more useful than before.
Start a workout
Then, with the way these wearables are loaded with fitness features, it made sense to check if one of the services could start a workout to track my activity. Unfortunately, Google couldn’t access the internal workout app to create a session. It returned results for nearby gyms instead.
Here, Bixby was able to leverage the Workout application and provide prompts to track a specific activity from the plethora of options available.
Create a reminder
The next step was to create a memory. Bixby and Google Assistant were able to do it without any problems, but the latter was more specific in the creation process. The order of questions ensured that each memory had a title, date, and time.
Bixby created memories without time-based information. You have to mention it during creation or add it manually. Nobody makes memories without these details, but I thought I should say this to show how much more experience Google Assistant brings.
Deleting created memories was a breeze with both Assistants.
Remark: Reminders created through the Google Assistant appear in Google Calendar, while those from Bixby were only available on the Watch. This scenario is probably different if you are using a Samsung phone.
general trivia
And finally, we tested the two assistants for general trivia. The question I asked here was, “How high is Mount Everest?” followed by another question, how long would it take to climb to the top.
Bixby was unable to return any results, while Google Assistant was able to work with the continuous line of questions and pick up where it left off with a previously provided answer.
Which Voice Assistant works best on your Galaxy Watch 4?
That brings us to the end of this article, and the answer to the question in the title of this article is, “The Google Assistant is better for most activities, but you’ll probably need both.”
Google Assistant on Galaxy Watch 4 has access to most components on the wearable. Still, the lack of a built-in training application on WearOS limits the voice assistant from fulfilling an important function these wearables aim to achieve. And while I hope the upcoming Fitbit integration will help alleviate these problems, Bixby in its current state should co-exist on your Galaxy Watch 4 and be something you should rely on for fitness tracking.
But if your use is limited to smart activities like calling, creating reminders, sending messages, and finding out details quickly, Google Assistant is the way to go!