Google Announces Pixel Watch 2 and Pixel 8 and 8 Pro

Google has just wrapped up its Pixel event where the company officially announced the Pixel Watch 2 and the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. While some details about the new hardware had leaked ahead of the event, Google managed to keep the most interesting details for today’s event, which of course had a pretty strong AI focus.

Over the years, Pixel phones have been gaining momentum thanks to their distinctive photo and AI capabilities, and Google continues to double down on that with the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. The Pixel Watch 2, however, introduces slightly refined hardware with new software capabilities thanks to a deep Fitbit integration into Wear OS 4

Google Pixel Watch 2

The new Pixel Watch 2 keeps the same circular design that’s now 10% lighter than the original Pixel Watch, but it also adds a larger crown and more durable glass. Under the hood, the new SoC with a quad-core CPU delivers up to 24 hours of battery life, which is six hours more than the Apple Watch Series 9.

The Pixel Watch 2 comes with a more accurate heart rate sensor, a new skin temperature sensor, and a new continuous electrodermal activity sensor that can detect possible signs of stress. These 3 new sensors, combined with Google’s machine learning algorithms should give Pixel Watch 2 owners more accurate and actionable health insights. In addition to all the Fitbit features from the original Pixel Watch, the new model also adds new fitness tools with Heart Rate Zone Coaching and Pace Training features.

Wear OS 4 on the Pixel Watch 2 adds six new watch face families, new Gmail and Calendar apps, as well as improvements to existing apps: YouTube Music is getting podcasts support, while the Google Maps app now lets users check nearby place information. Notifications have also been improved to show preview images and GIFs and let users start a phone call and do other quick actions.

The Pixel Watch 2 is available for pre-order today and it will start shipping on October 12. The Wi-Fi model is priced at $349 while the LTE model costs $399. The new smartwatch also comes with 6 months of Fitbit Premium and 1 month of YouTube Music Premium.

Google Pixel 8

The new $699 Google Pixel 8 is slightly smaller than the Pixel 7, but it comes with a slightly refined design, a brighter 6.2-inch display, and some noteworthy camera upgrades. And just like the bigger Google Pixel 8 Pro, it’s powered by a custom-designed Google Tensor G3 chip.

The dual camera system on the Pixel 8 includes a 50 MP main camera and a 12MP ultrawide camera that enables Macro Focus. The Camera app has been redesigned to be more intuitive, and the Google Pixel 8 supports new AI-powered editing features: Magic Editor uses generative AI to reposition subjects in an image or modify the background, while Audio Magic Eraser can remove distracting sounds in the background.

Other new AI features on the Pixel 8 include the ability to summarize web pages, and better spam call detection with Call Screen. That feature can answer calls from unknown numbers for you and identify calls that you may not want to pick up. “soon, Call Screen will suggest contextual replies for you to tap to quickly respond to simple calls, like appointment confirmations, without having to answer the phone,” Google said today.

The Google Pixel 8 is also available to pre-order today from $699, and it will start shipping on October 12. But if you’re a power user, you may want to keep your money for the Pixel 8 Pro

Google Pixel 8 Pro

The Google Pixel 8 Pro introduces some interesting upgrades including an even brighter 6.7-inch display with up to 2400 nits of brightness, with an adaptive refresh rate that can go from 1 to 120Hz. It does include the same Google Tensor G3 chip as the Pixel 8, but it has more RAM (12GB vs. 8GB) and more sensors, including a brand-new temperature sensor on the back to scan objects.

The Pixel 8 Pro has the same updated 50MP main camera as the Pixel 8, but a better 48MP ultrawide camera with autofocus and a 48MP telephoto camera. “The bigger ultrawide lens delivers even better Macro Focus, the telephoto lens captures 56% more light and takes 10x photos at optical quality, and the front-facing camera now has autofocus for the best selfies on a Pixel phone,” Google explained.

The Pixel 8 Pro also adds Pro controls in the Camera app, and a new Video Boost is also coming later this year. It will enable Night Sight Video to improve image quality in low-light scenarios, and users will also get controls for adjusting color, lighting, stabilization and graininess.

The Pixel 8 Pro starts at $999, and you can get a free Pixel Watch 2 with your purchase. That’s actually in addition to 6 months of Fitbit Premium, 6 months of Google One Premium, and 3 months of YouTube Premium.

Google announces 7 years of updates for the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro

For the first time in the history of Pixel devices, Google announced today that the new Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro will get 7 years of software support. That includes OS upgrades, security updates, and regular Pixel feature drops.

“No major smartphone brand offers this committed level of support and longevity. This makes these phones a more sustainable smartphone choice, because they’ll be secure and perform well for seven years,” Google said today. In addition to providing software updates until 2030, Google will also extend hardware support and make repair parts for the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro available for seven years.

On the software front, Google has also already detailed what’s coming with the next Pixel feature drop that will be released in December. It will include 3 new features for the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, Recorder Summarize, Smart Reply in Gboard, and Zoom Enhance.