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Google I/O: $1,800 Google Pixel Fold, AI Updates and More
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Meanwhile, Apple is spending development dollars on an AR headset no one asked for.
I asked for an Apple headset. I love VR/AR and everyone in the VR community wanted Apple to make one since it would push more people to adopt the technology.
Ignore the phone as it has been done before and this one is nothing special. The more important part is the software tools Google has cranked out. Do not underestimate their ability to turn out software. The fire was lit by ChatGPT and they are going to find out what it is like to have a serious competitor. First one out of the gate never wins in the end.
Idle threat, but you are not jumping ship for a foldable phone. If you do attempt the move keep your old phone because you will be back after using Android for a few days. There really is no comparison between Android and iOS other than both are phone operating systems.
The only Google product I care to hear about is a new Pixel 8 Pro. I want to add a line on T-Mobile so I can have the latest iPhone and Google phones.
say it louder for the people in the back!
Google seemed interested in Apple’s headset, given they brought up mixed reality… Once, and said that they would have more to share “later this year”.
I immediately knew what that meant, just like android before it Google wants to wait to see what Apple does first, just in case it’s a lot better than what they have already.
Android was originally supposed to be a Windows mobile and BlackBerry OS competitor… then they saw The iPhone keynote.
$1,800 for an Android phone? Even if someone gave me that phone for free, I'd seriously rather use a $429 iPhone SE.
I agree but I find it all so sad.
I know that quite a few people won’t have smart speakers in their house due to privacy but as someone who grew up on sci-fi I’m a huge smart speaker enthusiast but right now none of them really do it for me. You’re absolutely right about both parts of your statement but perhaps luckily for Apple, and unfortunately for me, Google almost seems to have given up in the smart speaker hardware market. Google’s current Nest hardware is in my experience way less capable than the Amazon Echo stuff in terms of ability to hear me, reacting quickly to the wake word (which for Amazon is actually a word not a slightly clunky phrase), and false-triggering far less than my Nest Home devices do. So Amazon is the answer for me? Well no because the AI in Google Assistant is just so much better than in Alexa and of course as you say Apple is bottom of the pack with Siri’s AI capabilities. But at least Apple has nice Homepod hardware.
Right now I end up with an Echo and a Nest device in most rooms, the Echo for home automation and the Nest for when I want to ask questions, directions, pretty much anything apart from switching stuff on and off or playing music. If only one of the players in this market could come out with good devices with good voice recognition and AI smart enough to work out what they are being asked to do and give good responses I would be happy but so far no one, neither Apple Google nor Amazon, have all of the pieces of the puzzle.
Does the tablet run GrapheneOS?
He is not wrong. I don't want to pay $1500 for a phone because it has a Hollywood tri-camera, a mini-tablet screen, or shoots lasers from its sides.
They can have a higher end model for people who choose that kind of thing, and a lower end model for people who choose a cheaper and functional thing (which is the SE)
Your post reminds me of the classic Nokia 3310
He is not wrong. I don't want to pay $1500 for a phone because it has a Hollywood tri-camera, a mini-tablet screen, or shoots lasers from its sides.
They can have a higher end model for people who choose that kind of thing, and a lower end model for people who choose a cheaper and functional thing (which is the SE)
$1800. 3 years of OS updates + 2 years of lower prioritised security updates after that. This support period starts in June 2023 which means you'll get Android 14 (August 2023), Android 15 (August 2024), Android 16 (August 25) and that's your lot in terms of OS upgrades. Android 17 will release after June 2026.
This support period starts in June 2023 which means you'll get Android 14 (August 2023), Android 15 (August 2024), Android 16 (August 25) and that's your lot in terms of OS upgrades. Android 17 will release after June 2026.Feels like foldable phones are just mediocre phones and mediocre tablets fused into one device.
While the concept of working on a document on your phone in a split screen while on a call sounds like something that can be done, I have trouble working on documents on my 11" iPad Pro by myself. Mobile devices SUCK for stuff like this. Even a laptop is pushing it.
Wow, the Pixel Fold is noticeably thinner than the Fold 4 in that photo. For those that routinely lambast foldables based on dimensions, the 12.1mm thickness of the Pixel Fold effectively makes it thinner than an iPhone 3GS. How many put off getting the 3G/3GS back then because it was too thick? The Xiaomi Mix Fold 2 is thinner yet at 11.2mm and shows foldables can keep getting slimmer.Hands-on photo below. Hmm! Last photo the split screen action is a welcome change! Multi-tasking at it's finest!
As for the weight, the Fold 4 is better balanced and I can one-hand it more easily than my previous iPhone 12 Pro Max or 13 Pro. The camera bump makes iPhones top heavy and far more likely to tip out of my hand than my Fold 4.
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Hardly. The first five generations of the iPad Mini were 7.9" displays. The 7.6" of Pixel Fold and Fold 4 offer an overwhelmingly more satisfying experience for watching videos or reading eBooks over my previous slab phones.
As for "mediocre phone", Android and iOS both have their strengths and weaknesses. I prefer the widgets and customization of Android, but it's the true multitasking/multiwindow support that makes foldables shine. That's the secret sauce missing in iOS -- and, no, lame Stage Manager isn't the answer.
There are two reasons Apple can't or won't make a foldable iPhone Ultra right now. One is software and the other is hardware. iOS/iPadOS has mediocre multiapp/multiwindow support, and without proper functionality you lose many of the benefits of a foldable. It is pointless to unfold an iPhone just to have the same limitations in an iPad Mini, but Android foldables do much more than that.
Reason two is Apple would be reliant on Samsung Display to supply the foldable glass, just like Apple relies on Samsung now for iPhone displays.
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I am not terribly excited. I am have totally lost my faith in Google. For one, my Google Homes drive me crazy. They constantly misunderstand or don't recognize who is speaking and refuse to do what is asked. The one in the next room forever chirps in telling me "something went wrong" after the one nearby already answered. I have Android on a Samsung Galaxy S8 Ultra. The most premium Android tablet experience to date, if price is anything to go by. It is awful to use compared to an iPad. The screen is great, the OS is terrible. I have to hold it with my palms extended lest a nanometer of my palm touches the side of the screen and ruins whatever I am attempting to do on there. Then there is Google's reliability with services. You can't expect something they are excited about today to exist in 2 years. I am at the point where whatever they release is tagged trash in my brain and ignored.
TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️
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Another intake on the color ⚪️. What are your thoughts?Hands-on photo below. Hmm! Last photo the split screen action is a welcome change! Multi-tasking at it's finest!
$1800 seems OK, if the market actually understands the value behind a tablet/phone combo. If it is perceived only as a fancy phone, I don't see big sales numbers in its future. We gon find out.
I have to disagree with you here. I owned every iPhone from the 4 to the 12 Pro Max, not to mention at that time I had an Apple TV, iMac, MacBook Pro, iPad Mini, Apple Watch, and so forth. I jumped ship in 2021 for the Z Fold 3 and I've never looked back. I've never regretted this decision once. Leaving the Apple ecosystem wasn't nearly as hard as people make it out to be, honestly it is nothing to be afraid of. I now own the Z Fold 4 (Pixel 7 for backup) and I've preordered the Pixel Fold to try out. I will never go back to an iPhone unless they make a foldable, or any other slab phone as my primary device. Android has come a long way in the last 5 years, and now I find it to be more stable than iOS was. iOS has gone down hill drastically over the past 3-4 years in terms of stability. Anyway, nothing against Apple because I love Apple, I just haven't been happy with the direction they've been going over the past several years.
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I preordered mine in porcelain (white). 😀
Apple is never behind. They compete against themselves, not other companies. They release something when they feel like they can do it 'right' by their own standards — something they've essentially always adhered to.
Premium brands and luxury brands never "compete" against "competitors." This is the mark of mainstream brands … like Samsung.
Anyway, I'll never use Android, but this ad offers some good ideas of what Apple may offer in the future. Dedicated astrophotography due to sitting still in that laptop-fold mold is pretty neat. No more holding in my breath to keep the phone still for the 30 second timer.
Innnnteresting. I've made a conscious effort to remove as much Google from my experience as is possible (yes even Search). The only time I have to use anything Google, is for my kids' school correspondence - they are heavily reliant on Google's suite, for the obvious we-don't-adequately-fund-schools-in-the-U.S.-so-they're-dependent-on-free-solutions "strategy." I do have the capacity to appreciate G's conscious decision to position the device as "the only foldable engineered by Google." I see what they're doing there...
Wheel I have no interest, this looks like a decent product from G that will likely resonate with those already in their ecosystem. The chrome rim (is that a subtle nod to Chrome) gives me iPhone 3G feels. I'm interested to see how that $1,800 price point is received. It can't be a good indicator for Apple's take on a foldable. By default, it will likely start at $2,499 (if not higher).
Wheel I have no interest, this looks like a decent product from G that will likely resonate with those already in their ecosystem. The chrome rim (is that a subtle nod to Chrome) gives me iPhone 3G feels. I'm interested to see how that $1,800 price point is received. It can't be a good indicator for Apple's take on a foldable. By default, it will likely start at $2,499 (if not higher).
While the $1800 Pixel fold is what is making headlines here, the real win for consumers is the $499 Pixel 7a with some really good specs (90 Hz OLED screen is the big one, along with the Tensor G2, 8 GB RAM and a 64 MP main camera). If I was an Android user that is probably where I would go. Hopefully Apple ups their game on their "mid range" iPhone offerings to complete.