Google is going to be launching its first tablet in years, and we’re all wondering just how that’s going to turn out. There’s still a lot in the air as to what this device will be able to do, how it will do them, and if you’ll be able to afford it to do them.
Since there are so many questions about the Pixel Tablet, here’s a full rundown of everything you’ll need to know about it so far. It covers information that’s been confirmed and what’s currently rumored, and it will be constantly updated as more information floods in. So, let’s get started.
When will this tablet come out?
[Update: According to Front Page Tech, the Pixel Tablet could launch in May of 2023 along with the Pixel Fold.]
Right now, we only know that Google is going to launch this tablet sometime in the year 2023. Google didn’t give us any information outside of that. It didn’t even state which quarter or half of the year it will launch the tablet.
If we can conjecture, Google only really launches its Pixel devices during two parts of the year. It releases its Pixel “a” phones about halfway through the year (May for the Pixel 3a, August for the Pixel 4a and Pixel 5a, and July for the Pixel 6a), and it releases the main Pixel phones in October.
So, we can expect it to be released during one of those times in the year.
How will the docking feature work?
This will be the Pixel Tablet’s headlining feature. The tablet will have four connector pins on the back, and it will use them to connect to a stationary dock.
This dock will serve two purposes. For starters, it will be a charger that will keep it topped off and powered on. As for the other feature, the dock will turn it into the equivalent of a Nest Hub display.
This will make the Pixel tablet the best of both worlds between tablets and smart displays. You’ll be able to use it as a regular tablet for work and play and dock it if you need to use it as a Nest Hub.
What kind of specs will this tablet have
These specs are still mostly rumors, so you’ll want to take them with a grain of salt. We believe that the Pixel Tablet will have a 10.95-inch display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600. We don’t know if it’s an OLED or LCD, however.
As for the internals, Google confirmed that it’s going to use its in-house Tenser G2 chip to power the device. This is the same chip that’s powering the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. We’re looking at 128GB and/or 256GB of storage, but that information hasn’t been confirmed by Google just yet. However, there was a recent leak on Twitter that points to this device having 256GB of storage. We don’t know how much RAM we’re looking at, but we’re hoping that it will be between 8GB and 12GB.
As for the battery, we don’t have an official capacity. What we have to go on is the aforementioned leak. On picture shows the device with 70% left in the tank. Next to that, we see that the system estimated 15 hours and 54 minutes of battery life remaining. Hopefully, that points to really good battery life.
There will be quad speakers for this device, which is pretty standard for modern tablets. Two speakers will sit on the left side and two on the right.
We know that the Pixel Tablet will have a single camera on the back. It’ll be on the top right corner of the back, and we’re waiting on information about the resolution. As for the front-facing camera, it will sit inside the sizable bezel surrounding the display.
What materials is it made from?
We expect the Pixel Tablet to have a premium feel to it. Google announced that the chassis for the tablet will be made from 100% recycled aluminum. On top of that, the company coated it in a nano-ceramic finish.
Google coated the chassis with microscopic particles of ceramic to give it a unique feeling. The company said that it was inspired by the feeling of porcelain, and we can’t wait to get our hands on it to find out!
What software will it launch with?
The Pixel Tablet will launch with Android 13 out of the box. What’s fortunate about that is that it has the tablet optimizations that Google’s been working on since late 2021 with Android 12L.
The majority of Google’s first-party apps have been reworked to operate on larger screens. So, apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Keep, and others will look perfect on the tablet’s large display.
Also, the notification shade will be split into two columns to better accommodate a landscape screen. There will be an app dock on the bottom that will house apps for quick access as well. Those are the main changes that Google brought, and there are plenty more in the software.
Since this is both Google’s hardware and software, we can expect both to work great with one another. However, we’ll need to wait on the device to launch to know for sure.
How many variants will there be?
[Update – January 27th, 2023: New rumors point to there only being ONE variant of the tablet.]
Officially, we only know about one model of the tablet. Google didn’t point to any other variants during either presentation. However, 9To5Google spotted some code within Android that pointed to a possible Pro model.
The official codename for the Pixel Tablet is “Tangor”. 9To5Google found the text “tangorpro” in the code. That points to a potential pro model of the tablet.
Dock variants
While new rumors point to there only being only one variant of the tablet, it’s possible that there will be two variants of the dock. The rumor says that one dock will only charge the device while the other one will both charge and act as a speaker.
Will this tablet have stylus support?
It seems likely. Back in May 2022, the Pixel Tablet was certified by the USI (Universal Stylus Initiative). This is an entity that wants to create a standard for stylus compatibility across different devices. So, if the Pixel Tablet was certified by this company, that means that it should be compatible with stylus input.
A new report from January 2023 further confirms that this device will come with stylus support. The report also says that the tablet will use Fast Pair to connect with the stylus. With the Fast Pair technology, the user will be able to easily see the battery percentage of the stylus.
How much will the Pixel Tablet cost?
At the moment, we don’t have any pricing information on this device. However, Google is marketing the Pixel Tablet as a premium product that will complement its flagship Pixel phones. With that in mind, we can’t expect a low price tag.
Also, we have to consider the dock. We don’t know if Google will sell the tablet by itself or only with the dock. We expect the company to sell the tablet and dock separately.
So, looking at the market that Google is targeting and the addition of the dock, we place our guess at around $799 for the tablet itself and $899-$949 with the dock included.
These are just guesses, so you’ll want to take this with a grain of salt. We will update this article when we get more information on the price.
2023-01-31 15:07:59