What People Say After Discovering New Google Products
With Google announcing several new smartphones, voice assistants, and accessories yesterday, it makes sense to gather a few opinions before proceeding to purchase what your favorite search company is announcing. Sure, some products may look good on stage, but how will they last when you pick them up? Sure, there are several reasons why you’d like to ditch the $ 49 for the tiny Google Home, but could the $ 399 Google Home Max be your voice assistant speaker? What about the Pixel 2 XL versus its smaller Pixel 2 companion? Should you even consider grabbing a Google Clips camera to record my normal existence? Well, it’s no surprise that many already have thoughts on this matter. Below are the first round-ups of the major new products and features announced this week:
Pixel 2 Sure is … a phone
Google’s new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL smartphones have been hotly anticipated, especially after Apple ‘s recent iPhone 8 debut and the unveiling of the upcoming iPhone X. While the new Android smartphones are Google’s latest and greatest Android devices, some are disappointed with the design, especially when it comes to smaller Pixel 2. Ron Amadeo of Ars Technica notes that the differences between the two are partly a result of their different manufacturers:
“LG’s Pixel 2 XL looks pretty. Thanks to the front-facing speakers, the bezels are slightly larger than those of its closest relative, the LG V30. But the 2 XL still looks like a modern smartphone with a thin bezel. The display has curved corners like the iPhone X, Galaxy S8, and LG V30, and it blends well with the rest of the high-end crowd.
The smaller Pixel 2 made by HTC looks a little messy from the front. The top and bottom panels are huge – and quite ugly, to be honest. “
He is not wrong. The Pixel 2 does look a little tired compared to its larger counterpart, but otherwise both phones have the same specs, so your choice comes down to which screen size you want to use. Both have an amazing camera, according to Engadget’s Devindra Hardawar , although both also lack a key port or headphone jack:
“With the Pixel 2 and its larger companion in particular, we won very little by losing the headphone jack. Of course, they are much more water and dust resistant than previous models. But the Pixel 2’s IP67 certification is something that several Android phones have offered for years, and they didn’t have to lose a port to achieve it. Usually, when we ditch outdated equipment, we are moving towards something better. But in the case of the 3.5mm headphone port, the tech world seems to have forgotten about it. “
Oh, and Google’s answer to the missing headphone jack? A pair of his new Bluetooth headphones and a $ 20 USB-C to 3.5mm adapter .
Google Pixel Buds are AirPods for Android
The $ 159 Google Pixel Buds are the company’s wireless earbuds closest to a pair of AirPods from Android devices. While the earbuds don’t look too fancy, the really interesting feature is their real-time Google Translate feature, allowing users to speak the same language and their words translated and repeated on their Google Pixel phone (sorry, this is a Pixel Exclusive feature). But the question of whether this attractive new feature is really good or not remains a matter of controversy. According to Dieter Bon of The Verge , Google has a bit of work to do before this becomes a reality:
“Since the Google Translate app can translate into 40 different languages — that’s 1600 combinations — it’s the same with the Pixel Buds. There is another pop culture reference here (The Babylonian Fish from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy ), but the Pixel Buds translation isn’t that easy. “
“I doubt it’s a little more convenient than just passing my phone back and forth and doing everything on it, but in the demo it worked really well: a fairly natural voice in my ear translated what the other person said. It’s not really real-time, but very fast. “
This real-time translation service may one day prove invaluable, but at the moment it seems more of a party gimmick than a reliable tool for communicating in another language.
Google Home is cheaper, louder and covered in cloth
Google Home has several new family members. The $ 49 Google Home Mini is a cheaper version of the Google Home voice assistant , although it has the same features in a smaller package. It’s also pretty cute and will likely rank # 1 in terms of sales, according to The Next Web’s Napier Lopez :
“That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if Mini quickly becomes the most popular way to use Google Assistant outside of my phones. It’s cheap, looks good, and Google includes it with the Pixel 2. “
As for the Google Home Max, $ 399 for a new speaker is a hefty price tag, especially since Google isn’t quite known for making speakers. At the same time, the first impression about the sound quality of the device is mostly positive. Business Insider ‘s Matt Weinberger noted that it is gaining traction, which may be costly:
“And most of all, I can tell you that it is loud. Overall, the sound quality is good or excellent, but Google has definitely prioritized bass and volume for this device. “
Still, $ 399? Come on.
Pixelbook is too expensive
A Chromebook’s appeal usually starts with its price tag. Google has other ideas for Chrome OS laptops, however, and has unveiled their $ 999 Pixelbook, a sequel to the even more expensive Pixel Chromebook. To take advantage of the more impressive Google Assistant search features like smart image search, you’ll also need to buy the $ 99 Pixel Pen. Ars Technica noted that the high price tag prevents you from accessing high-quality apps available on other similarly priced devices:
“You can’t use a Pixelbook for things that would normally justify a $ 1,000 or more price tag, such as gaming, photo editing, development, or video. Chrome OS defenders might come up with some crappy web or Android apps that roughly mimic some of these use cases, but none of them are industry-specific software that you get on other platforms. ”
For a thousand dollars, you can buy a decent MacBook Air, iPad Pro (including Apple Pencil), or a laptop like Microsoft’s Surface Pro, all with full-featured apps from a variety of developers. Google’s Pixelbook needs to add more high-performance apps to its Chrome OS platform before it can convince anyone that a new way of searching is costing a lot of money.
Google Clips is a strange camera for life magazines
Google Clips is a new clip camera designed for capturing the moments you miss when not taking pictures with your smartphone. It’s tiny, records seven seconds of video at a time, and lets you upload or edit footage to create still images, GIFs, and regular video files. Everything is uploaded to Google Photos, although you have the option to choose what stays and what leaves the device. Darrell Etherington of Techcrunch drew attention to the strange lack of audio recording, making it difficult to determine who it is for other than parents of babies or dog owners who need computer content for their Instagram page:
“It does not capture audio, but it has built-in intelligent recognition functions. It also doesn’t use any network connections, so it doesn’t broadcast the recorded data anywhere. You can connect to your phone to check what you have. “
That’s $ 249, which is a pretty high price tag for what is supposed to be a lifelogging camera. While its intelligent face recognition features mean it can recognize the faces of people and animals, its usefulness remains to be seen. However, I would not bet on it for it to take root. Who needs a body-tied camera anyway? Specifically, as pointed out by Ben Popper of The Verge , from a company that makes money selling data about you:
“Many have reacted to this device, calling it creepy and aggressive. This is a similar reaction to the one that failed Google Glass. People don’t like the idea of an always-on camera watching them doubly if it’s powered by artificial intelligence and built by a company that makes money by collecting your personal data and allowing advertisers to target you. “
These ads are a clear indicator that Google is not playing to improve the user experience – and expand its presence – both in your home and on your phone. Improvements to the machine learning algorithm; cheaper voice assistants for more smart home functionality throughout your home; and the sequel to its Pixel smartphones, enhancing both the camera and display; everything makes embedding in the Google ecosystem more useful and functional.
That, and accessories like the Pixel Buds and Google Clips, put the company in direct competition with other giants like Apple and Amazon. With attractive products at varying prices, their gambit for promoting them into your daily life depends on how well all of the elements work together, what remains to be seen (though come on, you probably get this cute like … a-button Google Home Mini).