Google Pixel Watch 5 (45 mm, LTE) / Garmin Forerunner 970

Google Pixel Watch 5 (45 mm, LTE): 45 mm · 4G LTE option

Garmin Forerunner 970: 47 mm · 010-02969-xx (colour options)

SpecificationGoogle Pixel Watch 5 (45 mm, LTE)Garmin Forerunner 970
Release year20262025
LaunchAnnounced and opened for pre-order on 12 August 2026; on sale 20 August 2026 Google—
DisplayActua 360; 320 ppi AMOLED LTPO; DCI-P3; up to 3000 nits; 1–60 Hz variable refresh; as low as 1 nit in always-on mode GoogleAMOLED touchscreen; five-button design

Garmin calls it its brightest AMOLED yet but publishes no nit figure. Touch and buttons can be used together.

Garmin
Cover glassCustom 3D Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Google—
Case and band100% recycled aluminium case; soft-touch HNBR rubber Active Band (2nd gen) Google—
Wrist sizeThe small band fits 150–185 mm wrists and the large band 165–215 mm; both come in the box Google—
Size45 mm diameter; 12.3 mm height Google—
Weight36.7 g (without band) Google—
ProcessorQualcomm Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 Accelerated; Cortex-M55 co-processor; Google cites a 12% CPU increase and 50% more RAM than the previous generation Google—
Storage64 GB eMMC flash (capacity before formatting) GoogleUp to 32 GB media storage

Used for music and maps; this is not RAM.

Garmin
SoftwareWear OS 7.0 Google—
Connectivity4G LTE and UMTS; Bluetooth 6.0; Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax (2.4 and 5 GHz); NFC; Ultra-Wideband Google—
LTE optionOn the LTE option the watch can be activated for calls, texts and music without the phone; carrier activation is required and the phone must use the same carrier Google—
Satellite SOSEmergency communication over satellite; no extra charge for 2 years after activation; may be unavailable in some countries or conditions Google—
PositioningDual-frequency GPS; US: GPS, Galileo, GLONASS; rest of world: GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou, QZSS Google—
GPS route accuracyGoogle says post-workout route correction uses Google Maps 3D building models and weather-station data, and claims twice the accuracy of the previous generation in difficult urban areas; the comparison rests on Google’s own July 2026 study Google—
SensorsMulti-path optical heart rate, red and infrared SpO2, electrical sensors for the ECG app, skin conductance (cEDA), far-field skin temperature, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, altimeter, compass, magnetometer, ambient light Google—
Health featuresIrregular rhythm and high/low heart rate notifications, ECG, loss of pulse detection; breathing emergency detection (launching in Europe first); monthly trend summaries for blood pressure, sleep breathing and insulin resistance (“coming soon” in the announcement). Availability varies by country Google—
Battery465 mAh (typical) lithium-ion; up to 40 hours with always-on display, up to 72 hours in Battery Saver mode Google—
ChargingWith the Quick Charge Dock: about 15 minutes to 50%, 30 minutes to 80% and 60 minutes to 100%; the 30 W adapter is sold separately Google—
Water and dust resistance5 ATM and IP68; Google states the watch is not waterproof or dustproof and that resistance can diminish over time Google—
ControlsTouchscreen, side button, haptic crown, Gen 3 premium haptics; touchless one-handed gestures Google—
AudioBuilt-in microphone and speaker Google—
GeminiGemini Intelligence; Raise to Talk, At a Glance and proactive suggestions; core actions run on the device. Features are offered in select countries and languages to users 18 and over Google—
Phone compatibilityWorks with most phones running Android 12 or newer; requires a Google Account and the Pixel Watch app; Android (Go edition) is not supported Google—
RepairGoogle cites a repairable architecture; repair manuals and options vary by region Google—
Warranty1 year in the US, Canada, Japan, India, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia and Mexico; 2 years in the UK, EEA, France, Switzerland and Australia Google—
Announcement and sale—Announced 15 May 2025; on Garmin.com from 21 May 2025 Garmin
Part numbers—010-02969-00, 010-02969-01, 010-02969-02

The numbers correspond to colour options; the US page does not map each number to a colour. The page image belongs to 010-02969-01, Whitestone case with Whitestone/Amp Yellow band.

Garmin
Case—47 mm; titanium bezel Garmin
Lens—Sapphire crystal

The Forerunner 965 used Gorilla Glass 3 DX; sapphire is more scratch-resistant.

Garmin
Flashlight—Built-in LED flashlight; adjustable brightness, strobe and red light

Red light disturbs night vision less in the dark.

Garmin
Speaker and microphone—Built-in; call handling with a compatible phone and voice commands Garmin
Health sensors—Wrist-based heart rate (PPG); ECG app; skin temperature

The ECG app screens for signs of atrial fibrillation; it is for adults 22 and over and is not available in every region.

Garmin
Running metrics—Running tolerance; running economy and step speed loss (with HRM 600)

Running tolerance suggests a weekly maximum distance. Running economy and step speed loss need the separately sold HRM 600 chest strap.

Garmin
Battery type—Rechargeable built-in lithium-ion Garmin
Battery (smartwatch)—Up to 15 days

With activity tracking, notifications and wrist heart rate; Garmin notes active features affect the result.

Garmin
Battery (GNSS)—GPS only 26 hours; Auto Select 23 hours; All systems + multi-band 21 hours

With music the figures are 14, 13 and 12 hours. Multi-band uses several satellite frequencies to improve accuracy in cities and valleys at the cost of more power.

Garmin
Water rating—Swim, 5 ATM

Withstands pressure equivalent to 50 m depth; it is not a dive watch.

Garmin
Operating temperature—-20 °C to 60 °C; charging 0–45 °C Garmin
Wireless frequencies—2.4 GHz (17 dBm maximum); 13.56 MHz NFC

13.56 MHz is the NFC band used for contactless payments.

Garmin
Maps—Built-in maps Garmin