If you’ve noticed that the Apple Watch on your wrist has been looking over its shoulder lately, it could be because there’s a new kid on the smartwatch block gunning for it. Sort of.

Technically speaking, the Pixel Watch ($349, $399 with LTE), which comes out Thursday, Oct 13, is Google’s first-ever smartwatch. But the platform giant is not starting from scratch. Far from it.

Google has been building and maintaining a smartwatch operating system since 2014, the year before Apple unveiled the first Apple Watch. The platform, now called Wear OS by Google, undergirds smartwatches from other electronics makers like Fossil and Samsung.

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So all the smartwatch-y stuff – like email and calendar notifications, voice assistance, electronic wallet, music storage and control – is already pretty well dialed in.

Beyond smartwatch chops, though, what really sets the Pixel Watch apart is Fitbit. Tried-and-true health, fitness and wellness features from the fitness tracking pioneer, which Google bought nearly two years ago, are built in. Of course, it all works with Fitbit’s popular app.

I’ve been testing the Pixel Watch for a week now, and I like it. The domed display is bright and attractive, as advertised. It has the feel of a true premium device, something that’s been absent from the Fitbit lineup.

And yet, the Pixel Watch is lacking some of the advanced health and wellness features that premium-priced devices like the Apple Watch Series 8, Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 and even Fitbit’s own Sense 2 – which was released late last month and costs less than the Pixel Watch – include.

Like the others, for example, the Pixel Watch can perform an ECG test. But it does not have the ability to monitor your heartrate for signs of irregular beats and prompt you to take an ECG. And it doesn’t monitor blood oxygen (SpO2) or skin temperature, two wellness features that are now commonplace on other premium devices.