Mountain View-based tech behemoth Google has today taken center stage and unveiled its first-ever self-branded smartphones, under the Pixel moniker. For the Pixel, the company has laid immense focuse on keeping the hardware and software both sleek+simple inside out. And what the company has in the end tried to tie all ends using its âsmartâ and âquirkyâ Assistant that resides just a touch away.
With the round-edged smartphone that hosts a partial polished glass-covered back and a slender aluminum body, Google hasnât laid much emphasis on the internal specification of the devices. Instead, the company has divided its utmost attention across five core categories i.e Assistant, Camera, Unlimited Storage, Communications and VR.
The Pixel smartphones as expected will come in a couple screen sizes i.e the smaller 5-inch Pixel and the bigger 5.5-inch Pixel XL. The devices will be available in some pretty bright and exactly named colors â Quite Black, Very Silver, and last but not the least Really Blue(this is limited edition). The Pixel, as reported before, will start at a hefty $649 for the 32 GB Pixel model.
But, weâll first dive head in first into the internal specifications to get you acquainted with the heat it packs behind that body. Corroborating most of the rumors and leaks, both the Pixels are powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, clocked at 2.15 GHz, coupled along with 4 gigs of RAM. The Pixel devices both will have an HD display, but we believe that the smaller Pixel will host a 1080p screen while Pixel XL will host a 1440p one.
On the camera front, Google took a pause and started boasting about the camera combination that has been included on the smartphones this time around. And judging by their confidence, they could actually be right. And if theyâre, the could actually turn-around on the unimpressive tarnished image of the camera of the previous Nexus devices.
The company says that the Pixel sport a 12.3-megapixel rear camera with an f/2.0 aperture and a large 1.55 micron pixels to capture immense amount of light. And this they say is the best camera ever, and scores a 89 on the DXOMark Mobile scale, which is better than the 86 that iPhone 7 scored. On the front, the Pixel host a decent 8-megapixel camera for your selfie and Snapchat needs. It hasnât included any gimmicy camera features, but simple smart burst, HDR+ and video stabilization to the users.

Also, Google belives that since theyâve provided you with the best smartphone ever so theyâre now providing you with an unlimited storage options on Google Photos. This offer is available only to Pixel owners, where all photos will be stored in RAW quality on the cloud.
And now letâs talk about the core âhuman-likeâ AI that resides inside yoour smartphone to help make your daily life easier by making results available at your immediate command. Just like in previous iterations, you still need to touch and hold the center home button to call upon the Assistant, but you can also say âOk Googleâ as well. And weâve all seen the usability and the diverse applications of the Assistant in the preview build of the same in Allo, so you can converse with the same to know more about a certain topic, send messages, call cabs among others. It also brings along with it screen-reading capabilites alongwith it from Android Marshmallow.
In addition, the Pixel devices will run on the latest flavor of Android, Nougat. With the inclusion of an USB-C port, the Pixel duo provides quick charging capabilities that can help your phone last a good seven hours with just a 15 minute charge. The company also boasted about the availability of its recently launched communication apps â Allo and Duo. It has also brought help righ to you with the inclusion of 24X7 customer support service that also allows you to share your screen to easily share your problems.
And Google also finally took the time to detail us on the robust and wonderful VR capabilities of the new Android devices as well. Click here right away to know more about it.
In India, the Pixel devices are expected to be exclusively sold with online retailer Flipkart(another great win for them), Reliance Digital and Tataâs Croma store. And if youâre already sold and keen on buying one Pixel right away, then the pre-order for our country starts on October 13th(thatâs soooo early! excited af!).
The Tech Portal is published by Blue Box Media Private Limited. Our investors have no influence over our reporting. Read our full Ownership and Funding Disclosure â

Our dedicated desk-team at The Tech Portal, bringing you breaking technology and startup coverage from the US and Europe.
9 comments