Google quietly introduced precise Bluetooth tracking on the Pixel Watch 3

With the Wear OS 5.1 update that was released last March, Google quietly introduced a new feature called Channel Sounding for the Pixel Watch 3 that could improve the accuracy of pinpointing the location of other devices using its existing Bluetooth hardware. But while Channel Sounding is now supported by the smartwatch, it’s not yet in use because the wearable is one of the first Android devices to implement it, according to Android Authority, and you need multiple devices supporting the feature for it to work.

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) announced the latest iteration of its wireless communication protocol in September 2024, and one of Bluetooth 6.0’s most interesting upgrades has nothing to do with wireless headphones.

Most Bluetooth-based trackers rely on the signal strength between two connected devices to estimate their distance, but it’s frequently unreliable due to obstacles or interference. Channel Sounding instead measures the time it takes to send multiple radio signals at different frequencies between two connected devices. According to Bluetooth SIG, that approach allows for “centimeter-level accuracy,” as well as directional awareness.

Pinpointing the exact location of a tracking device like an Apple AirTag using an iPhone is easy thanks to their use of Ultra-Wideband (UWB) hardware. The wireless UWB protocol provides more accurate spatial awareness between devices, allowing apps like Apple’s Find My to determine the exact distance to a tracker like an AirTag and provide directional arrows guiding you to its location.

But UWB requires its own radio and antenna, which increases the hardware costs of a device. The advantage of Channel Sounding is that it uses the Bluetooth hardware that’s now common in nearly every smartphone, smartwatch, and set of wireless headphones.

Devices will need Bluetooth hardware that supports the new 6.0 protocol, but given the Pixel Watch 3 is nearly 10 months old at this point, there are plenty of devices available that are already compatible. We just need more companies to release software updates that add support for Bluetooth 6.0 so we can actually start taking advantage of these new features.