Following its under-the-radar announcement at Google I/O 2022, the first solid leaks of Google’s Pixel Tablet have emerged from fairly reliable folks at 91Mobiles. It’s a specs-focused leak, giving us a look at the core features that we can expect when the Pixel Tablet comes out, including its storage capacity, processor, and display size.
As per the report, the Pixel has currently gone into its EVT (engineering validation test) phase. This means that the hardware’s been all but finalized and no major changes are expected. At this stage, the Pixel Tablet is reported to come with an 11-inch display, support for WiFi 6, and 128GB – 256GB of storage. It’s also to be powered by the same Tensor that powers the last year’s Pixel 6 when it launches next year. Although the Pixel Tablet has been rumored to be positioned as a Nest Hub replacement (something its frugal design appears to confirm), this report claims Google is testing a USI (Universal Stylus Initiative) pen for this. The Pixelbook and Pixel Slate were Google’s last large-screen devices to support styluses for note-taking and art.
Google’s last Pixel branded tablet was the Pixel Slate, powered by ChromeOS. The company didn’t follow up on that, instead leaving the tablet market to the likes of Samsung and other Android manufacturers. Samsung has done such a good job with Android tablets that it’s hard to see what Google would bring to the table here for a company with a flighty reputation on hardware.
Google will need to do a lot to convince spurned enthusiasts that this tablet is worth investing in as part of its goal to build a Pixel ecosystem. It would be a compelling argument — if Google didn’t just unceremoniously drop its critically acclaimed Pixelbooks.
Other than the Pixel Tablet, Google is set to announce a Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and a Pixel Watch in October. We may learn more about the tablet then.