The Pixel Watch is getting a clever new feature that doesn't require you to light up the display. It's called Vibration Watch, and it lets you discreetly check the time with a series of vibrations.
Here's the lowdown: with two taps on the watch face, you can get the current time conveyed through a haptic code. A single tap gives you the hour, while a double tap translates to the minutes.
But that's not all! Pixel Watch offers two different vibration patterns to choose from:
- Digits: This mode uses short vibrations for single units and long vibrations for tens. So, 32 past the hour would be three long vibrations followed by two short ones.
- Terse: This option keeps it simple by rounding the time to the nearest quarter-hour and then giving you a short vibration for each 15-minute increment.
This feature is particularly useful for situations where you might not want to light up your watch, like during a meeting or at the movie theater. It also offers an alternative time-telling method for users with visual impairments.
The update with Vibration Watch is rolling out now to both the first and second generation Pixel Watch. To activate it, just head over to Settings > Vibration > Vibration Watch.