Google announces new Pixel 7 flagship and budget 6a, long-rumoured Watch, and Buds Pro earphones
Google has revealed a first look at its Pixel 7 smartphone, the Pixel Watch, and its Pixel Buds Pro at its I/O conference.
The keynote was streamed from the Shoreline Amphitheatre, giving developers more information about working with Google’s platforms.
“We’ve spent years focusing on ambient computing”, Google’s hardware chief Rick Osterloh said in a statement, referring to a design philosophy where technology works in the background without explicit user input.
These announcements “lay the groundwork for creating a family of devices that not only work better together, but work together for you”, he added.
Pixel Buds Pro
The Pixel Buds Pro, available in the US on 21 July for $199, are the newest pair of headphones from Google since discontinuing the main Pixel Buds line in favour of a budget version and this new premium range.
The Buds Pro feature active noise cancellation, running on a custom six-core audio chip that runs Google-developed algorithms, and will support spatial audio later this year via a software update.
Multipoint support is also included, so will automatically switch between laptops, tablets, TVs, and both Android devices and iPhones. The earbuds have IPX4 water resistance, and the case is IPX2 water-resistant. They come in four colours: Coral, Lemongrass, Fog and Charcoal.
Google says users will get up to seven hours of listening time on a single charge with Active Noise Cancellation on, and up to 20 hours with the charging case. A five-minute charge in the case gives users up to one hour of listening time with Active Noise Cancellation on, Google claims.
Pixel Watch
The long-rumoured Pixel Watch finally made an appearance at I/O, featuring a circular, domed design, with a tactile crown and a button on the side for navigation.
On the watch itself will be the new Wear OS operating system that Google designed with Samsung, as well as the staple Google apps and services built in such as Assistant, Maps, and Wallet. It will also feature health and fitness features from Fitbit, which Google purchased in 2021.
“Google Pixel Watch is a natural extension of the Pixel family, providing help whenever and wherever you need it. It will be available this Fall, and we’ll share more details in the coming months”, the company wrote in a statement.
Pixel 6a
As expected, Google brought out a budget version of its current Pixel 6 flagship.
The Pixel 6a features the same camera bar and front-facing camera as on the Pixel 6, as well as the Material You overlay that changes the colour scheme of buttons and menus to match the users’ wallpaper.
Google claims that the Pixel 6a’s battery will last for 24 hours on a single charge, and 72 hours in its Extreme Battery Saver mode. It includes 128 GB of storage and 6 GB of RAM, and will receive five years of security updates. It will also be among the first Android devices to receive the Android 13 update.
The Pixel 6a will be available for pre-order starting at $449 on 21 July and on shelves on 28 July.
Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, plus an Android tablet
Google also revealed the designs for the new Pixel 7 phones, which are coming this autumn. The company’s next version of Google Tensor will power these devices, but no more information has yet been revealed about the phones specs and price point.
Finally, Google showed off an early look at its new Android tablet - which also features the Google Tensor chip and is apparently “built to be the perfect companion for your Pixel phone”. More details about this new device will be revealed in 2023.
