With Wear OS 5.1, Google changed the behavior of Touch Lock on the Pixel Watch.
Previously, Touch Lock just disabled the touchscreen so that you can’t accidentally tap on notifications or leave your watch face. Officially, Google says it “turns off the ability to navigate the screen with touch,” with the always-on display or raise-to-wake behavior unchanged.
Meanwhile, the rotating crown would let you scroll down for Quick Settings (which lets you check battery percentage and connectivity status), or up to browse notifications. This is the case on Wear OS 4 and 5 Pixel Watches we checked today.
With Wear OS 5.1, Touch Lock disables crown rotation on the Pixel Watch. The only available action is long-pressing for two seconds to disable.
For some, this is a pretty disruptive behavior change. One impacted user points out how Touch Lock is convenient when using the Pixel Watch in wet environments, including when showering, to check notifications.
It’s unclear if this is a bug or an intentional change as Google hasn’t updated the description for Touch Lock. If it’s the former, the company will hopefully address it in the next scheduled update (June).
More on Pixel Watch:
- Google Store discounts bring Pixel 9 to $599 and Pixel Watch 2 to $149
- Pixel Watch rolling out rich Wear OS media controls: Queue, Shuffle, & more
- Wear OS add Find My Phone confirmation before ringing
- Google rolling new April 2025 Pixel Watch update for all users
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