One of the joys of owning a watch with industry standard lug bars is how any strap, providing it’s the correct width, can be fitted to your watch, giving it a whole new look for a fraction of the price of a new timepiece.
This is also the case with some smartwatches, but not all. Specifically, the Apple Watch and Google Pixel Watch use proprietary connection for their straps, meaning that only bands sold by the manufacturer can be fitted.
Apple and others offer a wide range of straps, and the Watch has been out for so long now that loads of companies sell adapters to fit regular straps. This hasn’t been the case with the Pixel Watch.
Google sells the Crafted Leather Band, which comes with adapters for accepting a regular strap, but Google doesn’t offer these adapters on their own.
Thankfully, the smartwatch accessory industry has started to catch up. There are now several companies selling strap adapters for the Pixel Watch, in various sizes and finishes to suit your watch and whichever strap you choose to pair it with.
As highlighted by Droidlife, there are multiple options available now on Amazon, although we’ve found that some are currently sold out in the UK. Adapters available to both US and UK shoppers are priced at around $9 to $12, or £5 to £9, and can be bought in black, gold, rose gold and silver finishes.
We can’t speak for their quality, as we haven’t tried them for ourselves, so we urge readers to check user reviews and star ratings before making a purchase.
Sign up to the T3 newsletter for smarter living straight to your inbox
Get all the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products from the T3 experts
Hopefully though, this is just the start for customising the Pixel Watch. As long as the smartwatch itself proves popular, we should eventually see a third-party strap and accessory market as vibrant and buoyant as that for the Apple Watch.
Key here will be the Pixel Watch’s popularity, and also if Google retains the same strap connectors for future generations of its wearable, as Apple has across generations of Watch.
Alistair is a freelance automotive and technology journalist. He has bylines on esteemed sites such as the BBC, Forbes, TechRadar, and of best of all, T3, where he covers topics ranging from classic cars and men's lifestyle, to smart home technology, phones, electric cars, autonomy, Swiss watches, and much more besides. He is an experienced journalist, writing news, features, interviews and product reviews. If that didn't make him busy enough, he is also the co-host of the AutoChat podcast.
-
Build bigger arms in just 30 minutes with this 5-move dumbbell-only workout
It’ll leave the biceps and triceps popping!
By Bryony Firth-Bernard Published
-
OMEGA puts the moon on your wrist with its new Speedmaster Moonphase Meteorite
OMEGA adds two new Moonphase Meteorite watches to its Speedmaster line-up
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
A new Apple TV 4K box is reportedly coming, it's just a matter of when
What will it offer though and will it change design?
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
Apple's affordable iPad set for major speed boost and Apple Intelligence
It's exciting times ahead for the entry-level tablet
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
Apple already sells a device thinner than the rumoured iPhone 17 Air
The slimming world of Apple
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
Apple MacBook Pro set for its biggest upgrade in many years
It's great news for Apple fans
By Sam Cross Published
-
Your older Apple Watch may now be obsolete
Older Apple Watch users may be in for a nasty shock
By Sam Cross Published
-
Apple iPhone could get a major camera boost... thanks to Samsung
You’ll just have to wait a while for it to arrive
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
If the iPhone 17 Pro looks like this, I'll eat my hat!
Surely this is highly unlikely?
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
The next iPhone SE could be in for its biggest change yet
But will it simplify or confuse things?
By Britta O'Boyle Published