Google’s Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro smartphones take on Apple

The history of capitalism is littered with great but failed products. Betamax in video format is his one such famous flop. While technically superior to VHS, it was robbed for its lack of customer friendliness and marketing.

And for a while it seemed like Google’s Pixel smartphone line was doomed as well.

But with a number of announcements this week, it looks like Google is taking the Pixel brand seriously again after years.

At Thursday’s event, Google unveiled the new Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, expected to feature improved performance and camera quality. After being acquired by Google, the Pixel Watch has finally arrived with Fitbit features built in. And a promising tablet is due next year.

Additionally, the Pixels are priced significantly higher at $799 for the Pixel 7 and $1,179 for the Pixel 7 Pro. It’s certainly not cheap, but those numbers are well below similarly spec’d phones from Apple and Samsung.

So, for $800, you can buy a phone with nearly the same screen and camera as the best high-end phones that cost almost twice as much.

This is an aggressive move by Google and hopefully it will pay off. Nikkei reports that the company has doubled orders to eight million pieces. Keep in mind that Apple sells 10 times that amount per year. But it’s an optimistic sign given that some past models sold 200,000 units in the quarter.

This represents a change in approach by Google. In other words, it feels more purposeful, thoughtful, and targeted.

For those unfamiliar: Google’s Pixel phones were first released in 2013 and have always been intended to be a sort of halo product from the makers of Android, the world’s most popular smartphone operating system. I was. The idea was that Pixel phones would offer pure Android straight from the source, rather than various kinds of Android from Samsung, HTC, OnePlus, etc. Google has also set itself apart by making the cameras on Pixel phones the best they can be, and has succeeded admirably in that goal. Pixel phone cameras match or beat the best from Samsung and Apple.

But what didn’t succeed was in making sales and moving the market. What Google wanted with the Pixel is similar to what Microsoft did and still does with its Surface line. Not only does the operating system create new hardware revenue streams for the parent company, it also ups their game for the partner companies.

But unlike Microsoft’s slow success with the Surface, Pixel sales have always been paltry, made worse by the fact that early models were plagued with bugs.

However, the more recent Pixel 6 model was well-reviewed and sold slightly better.After Google sent me the device, my time with one was positive. The camera is as good as everyone says it is, and unlike last year’s Android, the software is clean and fast.

The new Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro look to follow suit. There’s also the Pixel Watch, which seems likely to finally give Android users a device on par with the Apple Watch.

The company also showcased the Pixel Tablet, which is expected to launch in 2023. It functions as a tablet like a regular iPad, but the device can also be “docked” into the base, charging the device and making it smart.speaker

clever Rather than competing with Apple and trying to make the iPad a rigid competitor (which is likely to fail in the process), Google is looking at its existing strengths in smart home tech and differentiating itself in useful ways. I am trying. And by adding a kind of seamlessness (you’ll soon be able to control your smart home tech from any Pixel device), it adds another potentially compelling feature.

This is the kind of thing Google needs to do. The lucrative high end of the tech market is dominated by Apple because their products work well and work well together.

Google is unlikely to actually compete at that level, and indeed may not be what it is for. Instead, they may simply want to create a compelling product line-up that is relatively small but increases revenue and encourages Android partners to do the same.

It’s a long climb. But recent announcements have made what once seemed implausible that Google could turn his Pixel line into something worth taking seriously is now a little more likely. It looks like there is

share: