Andy Boxall/Digital TrendsIf you want to buy an Android Wear watch, you won’t find one in the Google Store when you pre-order a new Pixel 2 phone, because Google no longer sells them. This doesn’t mean Android Wear is about to disappear, or be dropped by Google. According to Google’s Android Wear expert Hoi Lam, the decision was due to a policy alteration to only sell Google-made products through the store.
The news came from Lam on Twitter, where he continued to say Google is committed to bringing Android Wear products to “more people all over the world than ever before,” through third-party Android Wear stores hosted by other retailers, including Amazon. Now, the Devices section in the Google Play Store hosts only Google phones, laptops, tablets, VR, Google Home, and Google accessories. The app for Android Wear is alive and well in the Play Store, as is Google’s dedicated Android Wear explainer page, and its official Twitter account.
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While it’s clear Android Wear isn’t about to be abandoned by Google, or the many companies now making smartwatches with the software, this does show a lack of concern regarding the platform on Google’s part. Google launched new smartphones, a laptop, and other products during its October launch event, but made no mention of a smartwatch at all, despite coming up with other hardware of more questionable usefulness. Android Wear wasn’t a major part of the Google I/O 2017 developer conference keynote either.
Google has never designed and made a smartwatch, and previously sold watches made by other manufacturers through the Google Play Store. The closest it has come, outside of the original Moto 360, are the LG Watch Sport and LG Watch Style, released in April, which were the first to feature Android Wear 2.0. Google would have worked closely with LG to tailor the watches to work with the new software. However, neither watch is a Pixel smartwatch.
Removing Android Wear watches from the Play Store, and not introducing its own to fill the space, indicates Google is content to leave watch design and production to the Fossil group, Movado, Montblanc, Tag Heuer, and many others at this time.
PlayStation Backbone controller gets an Android version ahead of PlayStation Showcase
A new Android version of the Backbone One -- PlayStation Edition is now available. The mobile controller brings the aesthetic of Sony's DualSense to Android phones.
Backbone One -- PlayStation Edition, a mobile gaming controller that copies the aesthetics of the PS5's DualSense, was first revealed and released in July 2022. At the time, though, only an iOS-compatible version of the mobile gaming controller was available. Now, Android users can pick up a version of the PS Backbone One that works with their phones. As its appearance and functionality are almost identical to the iOS version in almost every way, it's no surprise that the Backbone One -- PlayStation Edition for Android also costs $99.
Google can create the perfect Pixel phone — if it changes one thing
A new Google Pixel A-series has launched, and it's sure to make reasonably priced phones quiver in their boots. The Google Pixel 7a introduces new features for the A-series, including a 90Hz refresh rate, the highest megapixel count ever on a midrange Google phone, and the Tensor G2 processor. It's a solid smartphone, and it puts up a good fight against a number of similar devices — including the Samsung Galaxy A54 and even the flagship Google Pixel 7.
But the fact that it's able to stand up against its flagship brethren highlights a concern -- the price. The Pixel 7a costs $499, which is only $100 away from the Pixel 7. That small disparity means there's a big gap underneath the Pixel 7a for another phone. The $349 Pixel 6a helps to fill some of that gap, but it's not enough. It's time Google embraced the budget phone market by creating a Pixel phone for those who want a truly cheap smartphone with the Pixel name. Not convinced? Let me make my case.
A budget Pixel would be good for everyone
Don’t buy the Pixel Tablet; get this cheaper Android tablet instead
The market for Android tablets appears to be sinking, but the likes of the Pixel Tablet may have some role in salvaging it. The Pixel Tablet, launched last week -- exactly a year after it was first unveiled -- marks Google's reentry into the tablet segment after almost a decade.
While this development may help bring more manufacturers onto the scene, Google itself feels shy about making big claims about performance and productivity. Instead, the Pixel Tablet is projected as a mere hybrid upgrade to the Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max.
