Pixel Watch 5: 3 GB of RAM, but a familiar chip

The Pixel Watch 5 is revealed in a new technical leak. Google would bet on 3GB of RAM, without significantly renewing its processor.

An entry attributed to the future watch appeared in the Google Play Console on July 22, 2026. Spotted by 9to5Google, it describes a device codenamed "godric" equipped with 3GB of RAM and a Qualcomm SW5100 platform, but Google has not yet confirmed any of these specifications.

[Image: Pixel Watch 5 and new Gemini interface]

Pixel Watch 5 features revealed by the leak

The sheet consulted by 9to5Google associates the codename "godric" with a configuration based on four ARM Cortex-A53 cores clocked at 1.7 GHz and an Adreno 702 GPU at 1 GHz. It also indicates 3GB of RAM, compared to 2GB on the current generation.

This information comes from a Google Play Console entry and not from a commercial announcement. It offers a solid clue about the hardware being tested by Google, but the configuration of an unreleased product may still evolve before its launch.

The specifications of the Pixel Watch 4 used in this comparison are available on the official Google datasheet. This page also confirms that the 41mm and 45mm models share the Snapdragon W5 Gen 2, the Cortex-M55 coprocessor, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage.

Pixel Watch 5: an identical chip to the Pixel Watch 4?

The presence of the SW5100 designation suggests that Google would retain the same Qualcomm base as on its latest watches. This reference is already associated with the architecture used since the Pixel Watch 2, with four Cortex-A53 cores and an Adreno 702 GPU.

However, we should avoid jumping to conclusions. The spotted entry does not mention the low-power coprocessor, even though it plays an important role in continuous sensor tracking, machine learning processing, and battery management. Google could therefore evolve this part of the platform without changing the main CPU.

The Pixel Watch 4 already illustrates this strategy. Google has maintained a familiar overall architecture while switching to the Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 and a Cortex-M55 coprocessor. During its presentation in August 2025, the company claimed that this new coprocessor was 25% faster while consuming half the energy of its predecessor, according to the official press release dedicated to the Pixel Watch 4..

This generation also introduced emergency satellite communications on the LTE version. Maintaining a SW5100 base on the Pixel Watch 5 would therefore not necessarily mean the absence of innovation, but it would reduce the chances of a major leap in overall performance.

3 GB of RAM could prepare Gemini Intelligence

The increase from 2 to 3 GB would be the first RAM increase since the launch of the Pixel Watch line in 2022. On a smartwatch, this additional gigabyte is probably not intended to transform raw performance. It could primarily allow more services to remain active, limit application reloads, and support more demanding artificial intelligence functions.

Google announced that some devices running Wear OS 7 would receive Gemini Intelligence during the year 2026. This evolution should notably allow the creation of personalized widgets in natural language, the automation of multi-step actions, and the exploitation of context provided by Google applications, according to the official presentation of Wear OS 7..

The 3 GB of RAM therefore reinforce the hypothesis of a Pixel Watch 5 designed for this new AI layer. However, they are not enough to confirm its compatibility. Google only speaks of availability on a selection of devices and has not yet published the list of models concerned.

This direction extends the changes already detailed in our article dedicated to Wear OS 7 and Gemini Intelligence. The main challenge would no longer be solely to display a voice assistant on the watch, but to enable it to act across multiple applications and to build an interface adapted to each user's needs.

[Image: Gemini Intelligence interface on Wear OS 7]

A cautious choice that could limit performance gains

Keeping the same Cortex-A53 cores would allow Google to reduce industrial risks and focus its efforts on battery life, sensors, and software. The Pixel Watch 4 officially offers up to 30 hours of use with the always-on display on the 41mm model and up to 40 hours on the 45mm model. Its batteries reach 325 and 455 mAh respectively, according to Google's technical sheet published in 2025.

Wear OS 7 should also bring up to 10% additional battery life to average users upgrading from Wear OS 6, according to Google in June 2026. A Pixel Watch 5 could therefore progress without radically changing its CPU, thanks to system optimization, a potential coprocessor evolution, or a different battery. None of these three elements, however, appear in the current leak.

The downside would be a less visible evolution compared to watches adopting more recent cores and dedicated AI accelerators. The Cortex-A53s are an old architecture, even if their consumption and maturity remain suitable for a wrist-worn device. For the user, the difference will be measured mainly in the fluidity of the interface, the speed of application opening, and the ability to use Gemini functions without compromising battery life.

A leak consistent with previous clues

The photograph associated with the Google Play Console entry corresponds to the renders that appeared in July 2026. It shows a round watch similar to the Pixel Watch 4, accompanied by a new analog watch face inspired by Gemini's Neural Expressive visual language. This connection reinforces the coherence of the leak, without constituting official validation.

The existence of the product had already been suggested in a much more unusual way at the end of May. A prototype bearing the inscription Pixel Watch 5 was found underwater near Saint-Martin, as we reported during the discovery of the watch in the ocean. The photographs notably revealed mentions of SpO2, electrodermal activity, skin temperature, and heart rate sensors, as well as UWB and IP68 certification.

These elements outline a generation based on continuity. The design would remain very close to that of the Pixel Watch 4, while the clearest hardware improvement for now would be the move to 3 GB of RAM. Essential details, particularly batteries, the coprocessor, definitive sensors, sizes, price, and availability, remain unknown or unconfirmed.

[Image: visual comparison Pixel Watch 4 and Pixel Watch 5]

The Pixel Watch 5 could thus favor software intelligence over a performance race. The 3 GB of RAM would be a useful evolution for Wear OS 7 and Gemini, but we will have to wait for Google's presentation to know if the coprocessor, battery life, and health functions truly justify the move to this new generation.