On October 4th 2017, Google announced their second set of AI first products and their conference was livestreamed on Youtube to reveal the stunning new updates they have made to the world that has been eagerly waiting for new Google products from Made by Google. As a summary to all the new devices and their advanced capabilities, this blog may help you decide your choices when purchasing the products.
Google Pixel 2
Large amounts of Google fans have been enthusiastic about Google’s new phone, the Pixel 2, for a closer connection with AI. Pixel 2 is empowered with new features that boost its capabilities and enhance its connectivity with other compatible Google products to give a fantastic all-round experience.
New Features
The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL welcome us with their new camera system which is a new level at its own. Despite the dated design with only one camera(not dual), both phones feature the same 12.2MP rear camera and 8MP front camera at f1.8 and f2.4 apertures respectively. The rear camera features optical and electronic image stabalization which stabalizes the camera excellently, as demonstrated in their conference. Pixel was rated the best camera and you won’t be surprised to know, they remain the best cameras!
It has never been more than a joy to launch Google Assistant with a squeeze of your phone and even more so with Google Pixel 2. Google announced a new way of launching the voice-assistant which is more unique and hysterical than ever before unlike a Bixby button. You may question, “Will this happen in my pocket or could it happen by accident?”
The answer to this comes from the name EdgeSense, which is the technology that allows squeeze to happen; it will only sense the squeeze when someone’s holding it. The only complaint, has been that people can’t customize the squeeze to launch other applications.
A point to mention, which could be worth knowing, is the new colours that Google has decided to give to their new family member. They offer three choices now: Just Black, Kinda Blue and Clearly White. They even stated that the best part about them was the names. Simple yet valiant. There is an additional Black and White colour which is only available for the more bezel-less Pixel 2 XL.
What more could you ask for than stereo front-facing speakers? The sound on the Pixel 2 is perfect for entertainment alongside the volume which is loud and effortlessly clear.
Google Pixel 2 offers a premium water resistant body which can stay 1 metre underwater for one hour and retain a glass and metal back.
Disadvantages
There’s always something disappointing or not quite up to your expectations with technology. As an attempt to promote the Google PixelBuds, the Pixel 2 doesn’t come with a 3.5mm Headphone Jack and so includes an adaptor for this.
The distractingly thick bezels for a phone of this period is a slight disrepute towards the Google Pixel 2. However, it reclaims it with a stunning 5-inch HD bright and colourful display.
Additionally, the Pixel 2 may not be a wise choice for entertainment in VR especially, with the new increasingly better Daydream View due to its bezels however, the Pixel 2 XL may let you off on this one with a more expensive cost though.
Pixelbook
Google announced what they captioned the high performance Chromebook, the Pixelbook. To improve portability and versatility, Google took a step forward with this beautifully versatile laptop.
Advantages
To begin with, the Pixelbook is a beautiful and well designed piece of hardware. It has a nice aluminium unibody finish and a very comfortable backlit keyboard. Some say it’s probably the best laptop hardware this year. With a thickness of just 10.3mm and a weight of simply 1.1kg(2.4lbs), the pixelbook is ultra-portable.
The base model for this laptop features:
- Seventh-generation Intel Core i5 processor
- 8GB RAM
- 128GB SSD Storage
As for the screen, it’s a 12.3 inch Quad HD LCD display with a 2400×1600 resolution at 235 ppi. Quite simply, the screen is beautiful for sharper images. Additionally, the Pixelbook is a touchscreen device, enabling you to do more things seemlessly with the tablet mode.
This brings me on to my next point, the Pixelbook has 360° hinges enabling it to be used in not one but four ways; a laptop mode, tablet mode and two cinematic modes.
Google designed a new smart and responsive Pixelbook pen in addition to the versatile Pixelbook. With this new rechargeable pen which supports tilt and has pressure sensitivity, you can use it to write, draw, design and work with virually no lag.
Google assistant is not only with Pixelbook but with the pen too; when you circle something in the web you are unsure about, Google assistant will pop up and give you information based on your inquiry.
The combination of an edge-to-edge glass trackpad, a silicone palm-rest, a super touchscreen display and a beautifully versatile design makes the Pixelbook the leader in its field for Google, overtaking the Chromebook by far. But, can it replace your current device?
Disadvantages
The Pixelbook, as great as it may seem to be, is very expensive at a dear £999 and still isn’t an all round performer. It simply has worse apps compared to an iPad Pro, a Macbook or a PC. However, it has better web browsing than the three devices mentioned above. With the pixelbook, you probably won’t be able to handle all tasks with ease or at least with the features provided. Whether you want to replace your device with the Pixelbook or not is your call.
When you’re on tablet mode, you want to do multiple things at once effortlessly. Does the Pixelbook have splitscreen multitasking? Unfortunately, you will be sad to know this is lacked by the Pixelbook which is quite a dissppointment for an expensive laptop like this.
Lastly, Google stated that the battery lasts for 10 hours in their intro video however, it tends to last for about 8 hours on average and is still quite poor for an expensive device like this.
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