Google ditches Nexus smartphones and launches Pixel smartphones

pixel-smartphones

Ladies and gentlemen the long wait is finally over. After a series of leaks and rumours, Google has finally unveiled its new line of Smartphones. Now gone are the days of the outstanding Nexus smartphones. A new generation and line-up of smartphones has been launched by Google. From now onwards the smartphones released by Google will be branded as Pixel smartphones. On Tuesday, 4th October, Google released two new smartphones with the Pixel branding. The new mobile devices released are the Google Pixel and the Google Pixel XL smartphones.

“As Nexus users, you’ve played an integral role in this journey for Google. We’re excited about Pixel, and also want you to know that we’ll continue to support your Nexus devices.”

– Google Statement from Tuesday

The Google Pixel is priced starting at $650 (approximately Ksh.65,000), while the Pixel XL starts at $770 (approximately Ksh.77,000). The pre-orders for the phones started on Tuesday, 4th October on select markets. Sales are expected to start on 20th October, later on in the month.

What you get with the Pixel Phones

Both Pixel phones use an AMOLED (active matrix organic light-emitting diode) display. The Pixel variant has a 5-inch display with a Full HD resolution while the Pixel XL variant has a 5.5-inch display with a Quad HD resolution.

The Pixel smartphones are powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor. Apparently, two of these cores will be clocked at 2.15GHz. The other two will be clocked at 1.6GHz.

In matters storage, the Pixel phones come loaded with 4GB of RAM. The internal storage starts at 32GB then jumping to 128GB for the pricier Pixel. That’s all you get for storage as there is no MicroSD card slot. Both Pixel phones will come with Android OS, v7.1 (Nougat) preinstalled. This is the latest iteration of the Google mobile OS.

For those who are curious as to the fate of the 3.5mm jack in the Pixels phones, worry not. The jack is included in both Pixel phones. At the back you get a 12MP camera with f/2.0 apertures. The camera features HDR and panorama. For the selfie lovers the Pixel phones offer you 8MP with f/2.4 apertures for the selfie camera.

We cannot talk about phones without mentioning there battery capacity. The standard Pixel is loaded with a 2770 mAh battery while the Pixel XL variant packs a no-removable Li-Ion 3450 mAh battery.

For connectivity both Pixel phones come with Bluetooth 4.2 and USB Type-C. You will also find a Pixel imprint fingerprint sensor at the back. The Pixel smartphones come in three colors namely very black, quite silver and really blue. The deal even gets more appealing as the Pixel is Google Daydream VR compatible.

One thing that Google has done with the Pixel smartphones that is different from their approach with the Nexus smartphones is that it took full control in the design of both hardware and software. With the Nexus phones, Google commissioned the services of its partners such as LG, Huawei, HTC and Samsung to manufacture the devices. This had a downside in that the Nexus phones were co-branded with Google and its partners with an emphasis on the partners.

Another distinguishing feature is the integration of the Google Assistant. For those in the dark, Google Assistant is the Artificial Intelligence (AI) program from Google. We first saw it when Google released its new Messaging app, Google Allo. The Pixel phones will be the first smartphones in the market to come integrated with Google’s digital assistant. To trigger the digital assistant you will need to long press the home button. The Pixel Launcher that is packed in the Pixel smartphones has been designed to work perfectly with Google Assistant.

Mr. Felix227 Posts

A Math Nerd and a Computer Geek. Currently a Windows 10 Insider. Interested in AI, big data and AR/VR. Takes a keen interest in developments in the tech, business and social media spheres.

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