Tech giant Google launched its next generation Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL smartphones on October 4, 2017. Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are the descendants to the ‘Made By Google’ smartphones Pixel and Pixel XL which were launched in October, 2016. The search giant has been releasing several bits and bytes about the launch since last month. The first ever teaser came in the form of a short YouTube video.
The launch event was held in San Francisco at 9:00 am PDT, which is about 9:30 pm in New Delhi, India. CEO Sundar Pichai and other top officials of Google gave keynote presentation to shed light on the salient features of the phone. In case you were not able to attend the event in person, you can catch all the updates here. The entire event was live-streamed on a dedicated YouTube Channel.
Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL specs
Display: 18:9 aspect ratio displays for Pixel 2 XL and Pixel 2 with 5-inch full-HD display with an aspect ratio of 16:9.
Back Panel: Glass at the top part with metal solid colour paint at the bottom. Two-colour.
Pixel 2 series is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processors and come with 4GB RAM and 64GB/128GB storage. Pixel 2 battery is 2700 mAh, while Pixel 2 XL has a 3520 mAh juice.
The Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2 XL come with Google Lens, a smart app that identifies objects in images. Good news is that the Lens will also come to users of existing Pixel phones.
Home Screen: Calendar details such as scheduled meeting can be seen alongside weather, time. Google Search bar has also been relocated to the bottom of the screen. The app icons are rounded, similar to Android Nougat version. Both phones will run Android 8.0 Oreo.
Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL Prices:
Pixel 2 - $649 for the 64GB and $749 for the 128GB version.
Pixel 2 XL - $849 for the 64GB and and $949 for the 128GB version.
Google Pixel 2 Launch Event LIVE streaming:
The search giant has launched new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL phones, Google Home Mini and Google Home Max smart speakers, a Pixelbook laptop and a new version of the Google Daydream View VR headset have also been launched at the event today.
Google launch event: As it happened
9:04:51 AM PDT: Google CEO Sundar Pichai begins the keynote with condolences for the victims of Hurricane Irma, Harvey, and Maria as well as the tragedy in Las Vegas.
9:05:01 AM PDT: 5,000km of new roads, 50,000 of new addresses, and more mapped in Google Maps this last year. Google Translate has over two billion translations per day, all thanks to machine learning.
9:05:03 AM PDT: Sundar Pichai is now talking about using machine learning to improve infrastructure, parking
9:05:04 AM PDT: "We are rethinking all of our code products," Pichai says, and "working hard to solve usage problems" by applying ML and AI.
9:09:46 AM PDT: Google's AutoML models "are more accurate than the best human-generated models" for image recognition.
9:11:54 AM PDT: Rick Osterloh takes on stage. It's time for some hardware chit-chat.
9:13:59 AM PDT: Google shows clipping featuring media mentions.
9:15:09 AM PDT: Rick mentions 55 Million Chromecasts sold.
9:16:16 AM PDT: People liked Google Pixel. But why Google only made 20 of them?
9:20:15 AM PDT: Rishi Chandra takes the stage now.
9:21:36 AM PDT: Chandra claims that 50 million voice samples have been used to develop voice recognition software.
9:22:56 AM PDT: Hands-free calling feature to come to UK later this year.
9:23:49 AM PDT: Isabelle Olson, lead designer for Home hardware takes the stage now.
Fact: Isabelle was the lead designer of the original Google Glass
9:27:06 AM PDT: Google Home Mini announced to compete with Amazon’s Echo Dot
9:31:03 AM PDT: Yoky Matsuoka from Nest takes up the stage.
9:32:33 AM PDT: If you have a Nest cam, you can ask Google Home to show your camera on your TV if you have Chromecast
9:34:05 AM PDT: Nest Hello doorbell can automatically ring your Google Home devices.
Fact: Yoky Matsuoka is a veteran in the world of tech/UX. She is a robotic professsor who co-founded Google X, worked at Apple and then re-joined Borg when she joined Nest in 2016.
9:36:45 AM PDT: With the brand new Broadcast feature, you can ask Google to broadcast a message to all the home devices in the house.
9:37:44 AM PDT: Google is making kid-friendly features for Home as well.
9:40:01 AM PDT: Google Home Max unveiled!
9:41:07 AM PDT: "Our biggest and best-sounding Google Home ever
9:41:42 AM PDT: "20 times more powerful than Google Home" for volume.
9:42:14 AM PDT: "Smart Sound," the speaker adapts to your room.
9:44:33 AM PDT: $399 in December for Google Home Max.
9:46:57 AM PDT: Matt Vokoun is onstage.
9:51:07 AM PDT: Matt unveils Google Pixelbook, 10 mm thick and 1 kg in weight.
9:53:00 AM PDT: 12.3-inch touchscreen. 235 ppi, Quad HD LCD
9:50:28 AM PDT: Core i5 and i7 processors, up to 16GB ram, up to 512GB storage. 10 hours of battery.
950:57 AM PDT: Two USB-C ports, but I don't see an SD card slot. You can automatically set a Pixel phone to tether. "Instant tethering."
9:54:40 AM PDT: Google Pixelpen: Built with Wacom. 10ms latency, 60 degrees of angular awareness, 2,000 levels of pressure sensitivity.
9:54:43 AM PDT: The stylus has 2,000 levels of pressure sensitivity
9:55:31 AM PDT: You can use Snapchat on your laptop. Snapchat is making a custom large-screen version for Pixelbook
9:57:25 AM PDT: Google Pixelbook costs $999 and Pixelpen $99
9:57:44 AM PDT: Available in US, Canada, UK, and in 1,000 retail locations. In stores beginning October 31st.
9:59:51 AM PDT: Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL is finallty here: Two sizes. "5-inch and a 6-inch XL"
10:00:01 AM PDT: All-aluminum body with "premium hybrid coating." Front-facing stereo speakers. Bluetooth 5.0 support. Smaller Pixel 2 is a "full HD OLED" display with 100,000:1 contrast ratio.
10:02:39 AM PDT: Pixel 2 XL screen is pOLED, QHD+, 18:9
10:07:37 AM PDT: "Active Edge" you squeeze the phone to launch Assistant.
10:09:49 AM PDT: Launching with "Pure Android Oreo."
10:11:38 AM PDT: Google Lens can recognize phone numbers, addresses, art, etc.
10:15:16 AM PDT: "AR Stickers" built into the camera, exclusive to Pixel.
10:20:00 AM PDT: Time to check Pixel's camera!
10:21:34 AM PDT: Google says Pixel 2 has greater high dynamic range, optical image stabilization, and a portrait mode that doesn't use a second camera but dual-sensor image technology. It also has OIS.
10:22:40 AM PDT: Motion Photos - takes 3 seconds of video, kind of like Apple Live photos.
10:25:22 AM PDT: Pixel 2 users will still get free, unlimited storage in Google Photos.
10:25:57 AM PDT: Including 4K videos, full-resolution photos.
10:26:13 AM PDT: Google Pixel 2 is water-resistant.
10:27:05 AM PDT: Pixel 2 is $649 to start, 64GB. 2 XL starts at $849. Avail in US, Aus, Ger, India, UK, Canada for pre-order
10:28:45 AM PDT: Google Home Mini free with purchase.
10:32:01 AM PDT: Google Daydream View time now! 250+ VR titles in Daydream. Available for $99.
10:32:49 AM PDT: Google Pixel Buds. Real-time translation in Pixel Buds. Works with 40 languages. $159. Preorders today.
10:42:00 AM PDT: Google Clips is a tiny camera that uses AI to automatically photograph moments.
10:45:00 AM PDT: Lots of products launched today, 8 of them all!
Google announced new phones, Pixelbook, Pixel Buds and Google Max smart speaker. Google unveiled an updated hardware and a camera rated by DxO as the best phone camera ever with 98 points, beating the Apple iPhone 8 Plus that scored 94 points.
