Google Pixel launch event – expect new iPhone rival, ‘Home Hub’ smart speaker and more
Google is set to unveil a wide range of exciting new products at its annual hardware event today, including the Pixel 3, the Google Home Hub, and the Google Pixel Slate
GOOGLE is hosting its annual hardware event today in New York and London, where it's set to unveil a range of nifty new gadgets.
These will include the much-anticipated Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL smartphones, as well as an Amazon Echo rival and a new tablet.
The American tech giant hosts the 'Made by Google' event every year in early October, using the showcase as a launchpad for new products and as a way of promoting its brand.
In 2016, it used the event to launch the original Google Pixel smartphone, while 2017's instalment saw the launch of the Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2 XL.
This was reason enough to suspect that this year's event would feature the Pixel 3, yet the leaks that have emerged in recent weeks and months have only confirmed this suspicion.
And aside from launching the smartphone and its bigger sibling (the Pixel 3 XL), this year's Made by Google event is introducing the Google Home Hub smart speaker, the Google Pixel Slate tablet, and most likely much more.
Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL
Recent have confirmed that the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL smartphones feature a number of important upgrades over the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL.
Both phones will come equipped with the highly capable Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, and both will have 4GB of RAM and either 64GB or 128GB of internal memory.
While the Pixel 3 looks much like the Pixel 2 and 2 XL, the Pixel 3 XL boasts a new design that features a notch at the top of its touchscreen and two front cameras.
This will make it comparable to the iPhone X, as would the rumoured possibility that both phones will come with face-recognition technology.
Google Home Hub
Pitting itself against the Amazon Echo, the Google Home Hub is a smart speaker that comes with a 7-inch touchscreen fitted on top of it.
Users can speak to it in order to make calls and set reminders via a wi-fi connection, while the touchscreen lets them control smart devices such as thermostats.
It will be available in white or black, with the device looking much like a normal tablet placed horizontally on a wide stand that functions as the speaker.
While pricing for other devices being announced by Google today isn't currently available, a credible via US-based retailer Home Depot indicates it will sell in America for $149 (about £114).
Google Pixel Slate
The Google Pixel Slate is the first ever tablet to run on the Chrome OS operating system, which has previously been used only on computers (also known as 'Chromebooks' and 'Chromeboxes').
The Pixel Slate is being set up as a versatile tablet in the vein of the Microsoft Surface, with revealing that it will come with a detachable keyboard and a stylus pen.
It can therefore be used as a normal work or study computer, although it also runs apps like any Android smartphone.
So far, it looks as though it will be available only in dark blue, while it comes with one front camera and one on the rear of the device.
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New Pixelbook, Chromecast and more
Aside from the three big product lines above, Google will also be announcing a variety of other new devices and updates.
There's likely to be a new Pixelbook, which is Google's existing laptop-tablet hybrid.
There's also likely to be a Google Pixel Stand, enabling owners of the Pixel 3 and 3 XL smartphones to charge their phones and perform a variety of Google Assistant-style functions.
And there are also rumours that Google will be launching Google Pixel Buds 2 and a new Chromecast media player, although details on these two are currently slim.
Which new Google devices are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below!
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