Subscribe to Orbital: The Gadgets 360 Podcast via iTunes or RSS and just hit the play button below to catch us discuss Pixel phones and all other announcements from Google’s event on Tuesday. The latter is packed full of motion sensors, which Google claims make it capable of detecting extremely precise movements – so precise, in fact, that you can use it to sign your name. When it announced the new Pixel and Pixel XL, Google alluded to something we all know deep down in our hearts – having a headphone jack is a good thing. Pixel also comes pre-installed with Google Duo video calling app and messaging app Allo. They are powered by a Snapdragon 821 processor, come with five- and 5.5-inch screens and house 4GB of RAM.
Twitter users have been trolling Google’s choice of colours for Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones. We’ll have to wait and see how it holds up, but Assistant seems like it could rival Apple’s Siri with just how robust and specific it can be. With other phones, individual manufacturers and carriers have to approve changes, resulting in delays.
“[Google Assistant] will be a two-way conversation, a natural dialogue between our users and Google”, said Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive. The all-new Google flagship phone also comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 for protection. Swiping down on it reveals a revamped notification area on the phone’s display that’s designed specifically for Pixel.
However, a turnaround is in the horizon as Google dauntlessly take on the challenges of designing and selling the devices they manufacture. Even so, among all of Google’s new products, the Home is their best yet.
Home will be able to perform numerous same tasks as Echo, Amazon’s internet-connected speaker. The app will be able to register both voice and text messages. This is a big deal considering how much space 4K videos and 12-megapixel photos take up. Larger, more expensive streaming devices such as the $100 Amazon Fire TV already do that. The new Google Wi-Fi system will cost about $130 for the main device.
Still, Samsung and others may not be anxious. But for Google, this will mean more marketing, more pressure and more risks. Microsoft also has been making hardware through its line of Surface computers running Windows. It is also not really unusual for some Nexus units to be a little bit delayed in getting the most up-to-date Android software, Android Central reported. Google Home offers natural language speech, unlike Echo, which consumers may like.
At its core, Google is in the advertising business and it has built its wealth studying user activity and selling ads based on the data it collects. Of course, we don’t need to be surprised to be impressed and there are plenty of impressive packed into Google’s first smartphones that were “made by Google”.
Google services along those lines include Google Assistant, software that’s created to answer questions and retrieve information, conversation-style. You can control Google Street View, YouTube, and Google Photos apps from the remote itself. “Google’s model is ‘We connect you to everything, we’re the funnel, so if you want something, ask Google how to get it done.’ That’s what they want”.