Google Fi is giving customers a free Pixel Watch 3 — but there is a big catch involved

If you're a Google Fi customer, you might want to check your email inbox. Various users on the Google Pixel and Google Fi subreddits have spotted that Google is offering subscribers a free Pixel Watch 3. From the looks of things, most users are receiving this offer via email, but others claim to have seen it on the Google Fi Store or via a push notification from the Fi app.

Sadly, this offer doesn't seem to be open to everyone. Some users say they've only seen the option to purchase a discounted Pixel Watch 3, while others aren't seeing any special deals at all.

Nothing in life comes free, though, and the catch here is that anyone who redeems the offer will be locked into using Google Fi for at least two more years. Likewise, the Pixel Watch 3 is hardly the most cutting-edge smartwatch. It was replaced by the Pixel Watch 4 last year, and we'll likely see a Pixel Watch 5 in the near future.

My guess is that Google is clearing stock with a mixture of giveaways and discounts, so that it's not holding onto two-year-old smartwatches when the Pixel Watch 5 arrives. But free is free, and if you don't own any kind of Pixel Watch, then a complimentary Pixel Watch 3 is a pretty good deal. Especially if you were planning on staying with Google Fi for the foreseeable future anyway.

It's not like the Pixel Watch 3 doesn't have a great selection of features either. It has a brighter screen than the Pixel Watch 2, while also offering all the best health, wellness and fitness features that Google (and Fitbit) has to offer. Better still, the larger 45mm model has a two-day battery life, which will save you from having to recharge every single day.

Of course, it lacks the even bigger and brighter display of the Pixel Watch 4, which also packs in satellite SOS messaging, improved charging, gesture controls and other upgrades. But that will cost you $349, which is a lot bigger ask when free stuff is available. Assuming you were lucky enough to get this offer.

So be sure to check your emails, check the Google Fi store, and check your phone's notification history to see if you missed that crucial update.

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