Pixel Watch Gets Its Own Factory Image, OTA File Pages

Google has kept up with Pixel Watch updates since the wearable launched last year. If anything, they have held to a monthly release cadence better than actual Pixel phones, hitting their monthly mark on-time just about every time.

But as Google pushes out updates to the Pixel Watch over-the-air, they have not been releasing any sort of factory image or OTA file like we get with Pixel phones. These files are a big piece of the Pixel hardware story, as they allow folks to often update quicker or restore devices if they run into issues after a touch of tinkering.

Today, Google posted new factory image and OTA file pages for the Pixel Watch for the first time. However, I’m not sure any of us can use them.

The new Pixel Watch factory image downloads page (and the OTA page) lists out every update from October 2022 up through the latest May 2023 update. Google also separated out the LTE files from the WiFi/Bluetooth model. That’s great.

Unfortunately, for those of us loving the idea of now being able to flash an OTA file for each month’s update, there’s a note on the page that squashes that fun. It reads:

Flashing factory or full OTA images on a Google Pixel Watch requires a debug adapter that Google distributes by invitation only.

So if you want to flash a factory image or OTA file on your Google Pixel Watch, you will need a special debug adapter that Google is only sending by invitation. In other words, these files are not currently for you and I and are instead likely just for developers.

Pixel Watch Downloads: Factory Image | OTA