PSA: The Galaxy Watch 4 supports one digital assistant, and it’s not Google’s
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
TL; DR
- At the start, the Galaxy Watch 4 will be delivered exclusively with the Bixby voice assistant from Samsung.
- Google Assistant seems to be an option as a later upgrade.
- Samsung is working with Google to bring various apps on board.
Although it is a Wear OS collaboration with Google, the Galaxy Watch 4 only comes with Samsung’s own Bixby voice assistant. That Android authority Test device is only limited to Bixby. We asked Samsung about it, but they told us it had “nothing to share” on the subject.
However, it is likely that the Google Assistant could be added in the future. While Bixby is the only pre-installed option, the Watch 4’s settings menu includes an option to switch wizards. The Google Assistant could be installed either through an OS update or a Play Store download.
Related: Our complete guide to the Google Assistant
Bixby ships on many Samsung devices but is struggling to gain popularity. Rivals like Assistant and Amazon Alexa are usually preferred because they are more platform independent and have seen additional refinement over the years. Some Samsung phone owners will intentionally reassign the Bixby button using first or third party tools.
Samsung notes that it is working closely with Google to bring its apps to the Watch 4. That should at least include Google Pay, which will be installed on the watch but not yet work. Google has confirmed plans to provide support alongside Samsung Pay, but appears to be in development ahead of the Watch 4 launch date on August 27th.
