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Google’s fall hardware presentation was a skillfully produced 30-minute affair with four products, as expected. You can experience it with our live blog here or catch up on the most important announcements here. Outside of some very nifty software tricks, there were no big surprises.
But it turns out that we didn’t know all the details to know about the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4A 5G. And with each new little detail, it became clear that Google has decided to act extremely safe with these phones. Every decision he made was aimed at lowering costs without compromising fundamentals.
“What the world doesn’t seem to need right now is another $ 1,000 phone,” hardware chief Rick Osterloh told a small group of reporters after the event. I asked him directly if these phones were designed to be low-cost specifically with the pandemic in mind, and he said that of course they were planned before this year, but that Google had been anticipating an economic recession this year.
(Interestingly, Samsung told me that their Galaxy S20 FE was developed this year when the pandemic started. And the Galaxy S20 FE has better specs than the Pixel 5 almost across the board and costs the same amount. Of course, both need full reviews. before. We really do comparisons. I’m working on the S20 FE right now – let me know if you have any questions).
Many of the decisions Google made were in the service of keeping costs down. The Pixel Neural Core processor used for photo processing has been removed. It went back to a fingerprint sensor instead of face unlock. It opted to avoid the phone’s flashiest features like ultra-high resolution displays, three sets of cameras, curved displays, and even the most powerful processor available.
The new Pixels aren’t just playing it safe in terms of pricing for a bad economy; Google is also being quite conservative in its design. Perhaps the most surprising design feature we hear about is that the Pixel 5 can perform wireless charging despite having an all-aluminum body. The trick is that there is a hole in the back and then it is painted with plastic. Especially on the Pixel 5, there are countless examples of Google sticking to the tried and true.
It kept the same camera sensor that Google has been using for years. Google argues that this is because it is still the most ideal sensor for its algorithms. I admit that a surprise to me today is that Google announced several new camera software features that take advantage of those algorithms. I’ll be especially curious to see if Google can live up to its own videos.
However, the bottom line is that Google sticks to what it knows with the camera. While other manufacturers are experimenting with higher megapixels and larger sensors, Google’s decision to use the same year after year is extremely risk averse.
However, there is a new camera, an ultra-wide sensor that replaces the telephoto of the Pixel 4. That’s the right choice, in my opinion – Google can get something good enough for telephoto in the software with its super-resolution zoom capability. , but as a PM told me yesterday, you cannot use pixels that are not captured by a sensor on the first site. However, it is still a conservative movement. Every other phone out there has seen fit to include one, and instead of swimming against that current, Google gets carried away.
Going back to a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor is a different kind of conservatism. Besides being cheaper, it is also more reliable and faster. I have been using in-display fingerprint sensors for some time, but I must admit that they are still not as fast and predictable as a simple capacitive sensor.
All of these ways Google chose to play it safe are not only justifiable, they can end up being smart. That doesn’t mean these Pixels won’t face a tough road trying to compete with Samsung and OnePlus, they will. And again, I think Google knows. Nikkei Asia reports that Google can only produce 800,000 units of the Pixel 5.
Finally, there is 5G. Google’s line was that “I’d put the G in 5G” and after I recovered from my full body shrink, I realized it was another example of playing it safe. And not in a good way this time.
Follow me through some observations and then see if you make the same leap as me. It is obvious that the US carriers will not provide any help to a non-5G phone. It’s also obvious that the only US carrier that has actually given the Pixel the time of day is Verizon. And Verizon’s 5G network is still too reliant on the 5G mmWave flavor that only works in some places in big cities. And supporting mmWave on a phone is more expensive than just doing sub-6.
The Pixel 5 costs $ 699 and there is a model for all carriers. The Pixel 4A costs $ 499, but the Verizon version with mmWave costs $ 100 more. So it stands to reason that the Pixel 5 is more expensive than it could have been without mmWave.
But including it was the safe bet, even if it seems like a mistake. It simplifies the product line, for one thing, and probably serves as a concession to Verizon. And while the Pixel is more widely available these days, Verizon is really the carrier that Google can’t afford to offend.
As with unit sales, these carrier policies shouldn’t bother you except to the extent that they affect the quality or price of the product, and we’ll get there when we review it. However, right now, I’m just looking at all the ways Google chose to play it safe with these new Pixel phones and trying to think of what that might mean.
As I speculated yesterday, it could mean that these pixels have been tasked with staying strong while next year’s pixels go further in new technology.
Here’s another thing it could mean: good phones! Many people, maybe even most people, don’t want their phones to be showcases of cutting-edge technology. They want something reliable and trustworthy at a reasonable price. It may be that by sticking with so many safe components, the new Pixels could be more popular than even Google seems to expect.
Get caught
┏ The 7 most important announcements of the Google Pixel 5 event.
┏ Live Blog: Google’s Pixel 5, 4A 5G, Chromecast and Nest Speaker Event.
┏ Google Pixel 5 and Chromecast event: all the latest news.
Pixel 5 and 4A 5G
┏ Google announces the Pixel 5 for $ 699.
┏ Google announces Pixel 4A 5G with larger 6.2-inch screen for $ 499.
┏ Google Says Pixel Soli Radar and Motion Sense Will Return.
┏ Verizon has an exclusive Pixel 4A 5G that costs $ 100 more expensive.
┏ Here’s how the new Pixel 5 compares to the Pixel 4A 5G and Pixel 4A.
Chromecast with Google TV
┏ Google Chromecast (2020) review: reinvented, and now with a remote.
┏ Google announces new Chromecast with new Google TV interface.
┏ Google Play Movies & TV is now Google TV, but it is not the same Google TV running on Android TV in the new Chromecast, it is an app.
┏ The new Chromecast with Google TV will not officially support Stadia at launch.
┏ Chromecast Ultra is dead, long live Chromecast Ultra (and this new Ethernet dongle).
Nest Audio, newer software
┏ Google’s new Nest Audio smart speaker is official, it costs $ 99.99.
┏ The improved Google Photos editor is rolling out to Android now.
┏ The Google Recorder app has an audio editing feature.
┏ Google’s new ‘Hold for Me’ feature saves you from elevator music.
