Google I/O 2022: everything coming out of the online developers conference – The Verge

The Pixel’s camera bar is here to stay, and that’s a good thing

2022-05-12T10:00:00-04:00

You can spot an Apple iPhone from 20 paces away. I bet you'd be able to tell a Samsung Galaxy from that distance, too. Yet, until last year, a Google phone didn't have an eye-catching design language all its own.

But this week, Google revealed that its most distinctive, in-your-face design element ever is here to stay. Not only did it feature on last year's Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro - and will appear on the Pixel 6A this July as well - but Google has also already shown us an even bolder, harder-hitting version will jut right out of this fall's Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro.

I'm talking, of course, about the camera bar.

The original Pixel 6 family. Compare to the Pixel 7 family at the top of this story. | Image: Google" data-portal-copyright="Image: Google">

Or, as Dieter Bohn jokingly …

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After roasting Apple about headphone jacks, Google quietly dumps it from Pixel 6A

2022-05-11T19:40:36-04:00

Look closely: no headphone jack. | Image: Google

Google just revealed the Pixel 6A at Google I/O on Wednesday, and while it has a number of impressive specs for a midrange device, it's missing one that the company has celebrated on its A-series line for years: a 3.5mm headphone jack.

As many smartphone manufacturers have moved on from the headphone jack - a trend largely kicked off by Apple with the iPhone 7 in 2016 - its presence on the A-series line has become more and more of a distinguishing feature. Google even made a ridiculous two-minute ad celebrating the headphone jack in the Pixel 5A that parodied Apple's elaborate design videos. That video was titled, in part, "The Circle Comes …

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Google’s ‘premium’ Pixel Tablet sure doesn’t look very premium

2022-05-11T18:58:49-04:00

This is the front of the forthcoming Pixel Tablet | Screenshot by Sean Hollister / The Verge

Big white bezels. Matte, looks-like-plastic back. Thick profile. 2023. Android.

That's about all we know about Google's forthcoming Pixel Tablet, which the company teased during its keynote presentation for the I/O 2022 developer conference this week. Rick Osterloh, Google's senior vice president of devices and services and head of the Pixel program, confirmed to my colleague David Pierce that the tablet is coming to fill out the range of Pixel devices and provide a complete ecosystem in Google's lineup.

But as I saw the image of the Pixel Tablet pop up in the livestream during the keynote, I couldn't help but react with, "That? That's Goo …

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How the new Pixel Buds Pro measure up to Google’s A-Series earbuds

2022-05-11T17:07:03-04:00

Google’s new Pixel Buds Pro sell for $199, while the Pixel Buds A-Series go for $99. | Image: Google

During its annual developer conference, Google I/O, Google announced a new pair of true wireless earbuds, the Pixel Buds Pro, which will be available for preorder starting on July 21st and in stores on July 28th. The new Buds Pro offer more features than last year's Pixel Buds A-Series, however, at $199, they're also twice the price. So are they worth the extra cost or should you stick with the entry-level $99 Pixel Buds A-Series?

To give you a better idea of which might be a better fit for you, we've compared the features and specs of both models. Note that while we have reviewed the Pixel Buds A-Series, we've not tested the Pixel Buds Pro …

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The Pixel 6A includes Google’s Tensor chipset and costs $449

2022-05-11T17:00:39-04:00

The Pixel 6A follows the 6 and 6 Pro’s design cues. | Image: Google

Google is officially announcing the Pixel 6A, which embraces the company's new design language and custom chipset but keeps the 5A's $449 price tag. The announcement comes as Google kicks off its I/O developer conference, but if you're itching to snag the new device, you'll have to wait a little while longer since it won't actually ship until July 28th. (Preorders will begin a week earlier, on July 21st.)

The 6A follows the pronounced design trend that the 6 and 6 Pro set when they arrived last year with a raised horizontal camera bump and a two-tone body. Following suit, the fingerprint sensor is under the screen rather than on the back pa …

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Here’s how the Google Pixel 6A compares to its biggest competitors

2022-05-11T16:40:53-04:00

The Pixel 6A is the latest phone to join the competitive upper tier of midrange phones, also occupied by Samsung, Apple, and more. Google announced the new phone onstage at its I/O 2022 keynote, detailing just a few key things about it. First thing you should know: it isn't coming out immediately. Unlike how many announcements take place as products are on their way to retailers, this one won't be available to preorder until July 21st, 2022, with orders shipping the following week.

Unsurprisingly, this new (and smaller) 6.1-inch Pixel phone borrows many of the same design features from the pricier Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, with a raised came …

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Here’s when you can preorder Google’s new devices

2022-05-11T16:00:25-04:00

Some of Google’s latest hardware announcements are coming in the summer, while others are further off. | Image: Google

Google just announced a batch of new Pixel products at its I/O 2022 keynote. Among them is a new midrange Pixel phone, the Pixel 6A; some new premium wireless earbuds, the Pixel Buds Pro; and Google's first wearable, the Pixel Watch. This is a healthy amount of new tech to come out of the online developer conference, in addition to what's coming soon for Android 13 and other Google services, but let's not start camping out in lines at the Google Store and various Best Buy locations just yet.

In typical Google fashion, much of what it boasted onstage during I/O are things that are coming soon. If you missed the keynote, here's where you can …

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How do the new Google Pixel 6A’s specs stack up to the pricier Pixel 6 models?

2022-05-11T15:32:48-04:00

The new Pixel 6A in its three color options: charcoal, chalk, and sage. | Image: Google

Google's new Pixel 6A, announced at its I/O 2022 keynote, may seem like just another budget-focused A-series model, but the latest midrange Pixel is a little different than its forebears. In the past, the Pixel A-line opted for a cheaper, plastic build and slower processor to hit a lower price point. This time, the Pixel 6A uses the same Google Tensor processor that first debuted in the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, and yet it still undercuts its flagship brethren to sell at the same $449 price as the outgoing Pixel 5A when preorders go up on July 21st and it hits stores on July 28th.

So if you're not giving up slower performance, what are you giving …

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Google shows off AR glasses that might make a case for augmented reality

2022-05-11T15:15:15-04:00

Google wrapped up its I/O presentation with one big surprise: a look at its latest AR glasses. The key feature Google showed off was the ability to see languages translated right in front of your eyes, which seems to me like a very practical application for AR glasses. While a big part of Silicon Valley is heavily invested in making AR glasses a reality, thus far, no one has suggested a truly "killer" app for AR that would let you overlook the wide variety of privacy concerns inherent with the tech. Live translating the spoken word would definitely be a killer feature.

The company didn't share any details about when they might be available …

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Pixel by Pixel: how Google is trying to focus and ship the future

2022-05-11T15:01:58-04:00

The story of this year's Google I/O actually started three years ago.

At its Made By Google event in 2019, onstage in New York City, Rick Osterloh, Google's SVP of devices and services, laid out a new vision for the future of computing. "In the mobile era, smartphones changed the world," he said. "It's super useful to have a powerful computer wherever you are." But he described an even more ambitious world beyond that, where your computer wasn't a thing in your pocket at all. It was all around you. It was everything. "Your devices work together with services and AI, so help is anywhere you want it, and it's fluid. The technology just fades …

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