Second April Wear OS 5.1 update ‘resolves’ bad step algorithm issues
What you need to know
- All Pixel Watch 3, 2, and 1 owners will receive Wear OS 5.1 version BP1A.250305.019.W8 in the next few weeks, staggered by device and carrier.
- Google says its enhanced step count algorithm was leading to “higher than expected” step counts, and is “reverting” to the original algorithm.
- Users stuck on the November 2024 patch will receive the March and first April update features and bug fixes after a long wait.
After a messy March update rollout, Google plans to finally merge Pixel Watch owners onto one late-April Wear OS 5.1 versuib — and remove a key feature from Wear OS that isn’t working as intended.
The March Pixel Watch update added several new features, including a new “enhanced step count algorithm” designed to better track steps in “challenging situations” like using a walking stick, stroller, shopping cart, or wheelchair.
Unfortunately, it also triggered several bugs on Pixel Watch 3 units like delayed notifications, battery drain, and artificially inflated step counts for some users. And many Pixel Watch owners never received it.
In early April, Google pushed an update to fix the battery and notification issues; now, this latest update, “BP1A.250305.019.W8,” will fix the step-counting issue by returning to the old algorithm.
People stuck on the old November 2024 patch will receive the other March 2025 features: menstrual tracking in Fitbit, a media controls upgrade, new dev tools, some UI changes, auto bed-time mode on the Pixel Watch 2, and high-severity security fixes. Only the step count algorithm algorithm is excluded.
Google promises that you’ll receive a smartwatch notification when the update becomes available. If you want to check for it now, put your Pixel Watch on a charger, go to Settings > System > System Update, and rapidly tap the screen for about 15–30 seconds to see if the update appears.
Based on past Pixel Watch update rollouts, older models or LTE models will take longer to receive this April 2025 Wear OS patch.
A disappointing Pixel Watch reversion
Ironically, I tested the enhanced step count algorithm on my Pixel Watch 3 last week. I knew Wear OS 5.1 had caused some bugs, but didn’t know that people’s watches were adding tens of thousands of steps or tracking movement while removed.
Despite my ignorance, I approached my test with some skepticism about whether Google’s “exceptional accuracy” claim was true, and I put it through some tough tests.
My results weren’t perfect, but in every scenario, my step count was below the actual step count. It was 100 steps short after 10,000 steps, 143 steps short after hiking up hills with a trekking pole, and a couple hundred steps short while walking through a store with a shopping cart.
My takeaway was that the algorithm had room to grow, but that it did a decent job of recognizing abnormal step movements, better than other brands that can only interpret natural arm swings as steps. And I appreciated that Google was trying to account for scenarios like pushing a wheelchair, stroller, or walker, not just able-bodied athletes.
That’s why I find it a shame that Google has reverted to the old algorithm, which we’ve typically found to be less accurate for normal step tracking. I asked my Google rep about what “certain scenarios” were causing issues and why the algorithm had to be reverted rather than fixed; I’ll update this post if I hear back.
Hopefully, they’ll be able to re-add the enhanced algorithm in the future, resolving the source of the false-positive steps while still helping Pixel Watches to recognize unorthodox steps and movement.
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