At its annual hardware showcase, Google showed off its much-leaked Pixel 4 series of smartphones. While the Pixel 4 offers a range of new features, Google is doing away with what was a key incentive for buying the previous three generations of Pixel devices — unlimited, full-res Google Photos storage.
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The perk allowed Pixel owners to upload their pictures and videos in the original quality for free on Google Photos. That meant it didn’t count against your Google Drive storage irrespective of how many 4K videos you have in your gallery.
Google hasn’t bundled that deal on the Pixel 4 series, meaning users will have to settle for high-quality, compressed uploads unless they’re willing to invest in additional cloud storage — just like pretty much every other Android phone.
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In lieu of that, Google is including a three-month trial of Google One on the Pixel 4 which comes with 100GB of cloud storage. It’s certainly not a fair trade-off and could end up being a significant deal-breaker especially for existing Pixel users looking to upgrade. Pixel 3 owners, in comparison, will be able to enjoy the Google Photos perk until January 31, 2022.
With the Pixel entering its fourth year, Google is most likely being more sensible and less aggressive with its promotions. It’s now hoping to convince Pixel 4 users to continue their Google One subscription which normally costs $2 a month for 100GB.
Apart from that, the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL replace the traditional fingerprint sensor with a facial recognition system. There’s a radar chip embedded under the front bezel which enables users to control the phone and perform several actions like snooze the alarm by simply waving their hands over it. In addition, the Pixel 4 has more RAM than before and the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor.
The centerpiece to Google Pixel phones — the camera has also been upgraded. The Pixel 4 has two of them, a regular 12-megapixel snapper and another 16-megapixel telephoto lens. The phones house a new camera mode for astrophotography and capturing the night skies as well. Google says it has improved the Portrait Mode and it’s now more accurate at figuring out the edges around tricky subjects such as pets.
Google Pixel Watch 2: rumored price, release date, news, and more
Google is a brand that we all know and either love or hate. Aside from being the company behind many web services, Google has done quite well with its Pixel smartphones — with the latest being the Google Pixel 7 family. In 2022, Google also released its first smartwatch, the Google Pixel Watch, though it received mixed reviews overall.
We’re expecting Google to release a follow-up to the Pixel Watch sometime this year in the form of the Pixel Watch 2 and, hopefully, it will improve upon what was already established with the original.
The Google Pixel Watch is finally getting a long-awaited feature
The Google Pixel Watch has been routinely adding new features for owners to enjoy ever since it first launched last year, and now it appears that it'll be getting a long-requested health feature.
Spotted first on Reddit, it seems like the Pixel Watch is now able to track blood oxygen levels (SpO2.) SpO2 tracking is a pretty common health feature on most other flagship smartwatches like the Apple Watch and Galaxy Watch, so the fact that it wasn't included at launch on the Pixel Watch made it feel like it was missing a major feature.
Don’t buy the Pixel 7a — this is the best cheap Pixel of 2023
Last month, Google held its annual developer conference, Google I/O 2023. The event gave us a peek at some exciting new hardware coming soon, including the Pixel Fold and Pixel Tablet. But Google also dropped the latest in the Pixel 7 lineup, the budget-friendly Pixel 7a. For just $499, you get a 64MP camera, a 6.1-inch display with a 90Hz refresh rate, the Tensor G2 processor, and wireless charging capabilities.
However, in an interesting move, Google decided to keep the Pixel 6a around, as it is still available to purchase. But it also got a big price cut, bringing it down to a mere $349.
