Everyone knew Google was going to announce new Nexus smartphones and a new Chromecast at its press event yesterday, but nobody saw the Pixel-C coming. The Pixel-C is a hybrid laptop/tablet, in the same line as the extremely premium Chromebook Pixel.
But the Pixel-C isn’t a Chromebook, it’s an Android device—perhaps the most premium one ever made. Google is waiting to release all the details about the device until later this year, but here are the top 5 reasons we’re really excited for what the Pixel-C has to offer:
1. It’s really sleek looking
As I stated above, the Pixel-C isn’t a full on laptop like the Chromebook Pixel. However, it does share the same beautiful design and extraordinary build quality. The Pixel-C is made entirely from aluminum and glass, making it the most high quality Android tablet ever made.
As for the convertible aspect of it, Google has put together a really intuitive magnetic system that means it doesn’t use a hinge and doesn’t even have a kickstand or docking mechanism. Seeing it convert is really impressive, especially since it still looks to be fairly sturdy despite the lack of many moving parts. In other words, it’s the first tablet made entirely by Google—and it shows.
2. It’s got some decent internals
The Pixel-C is no slacker when it comes to specs either. It’s powered by the Nvidia Tegra X1, a premier mobile processing chip, as well as the 256-core Maxwell GPU, which has the same graphics architecture as the company’s famous GeForce graphics cards. The Pixel-C also comes with a beautiful 10.2-inch display with a 2560×1800 resolution, 3GB of RAM, and a USB-Type C port.
3. The keyboard isn’t scrunched
Unlike a lot of Bluetooth keyboards, the keyboard on the Pixel-C takes a smart approach to shrinking down its size to fit a smaller device. We’ll have to wait to see what the travel and comfort level is like once we get our hands on it, but it looks like Google has done a good job of cutting out unnecessary keys and leaving enough space between keys for maximum comfort.
4. It runs Android, not Chrome OS
This might sound weird, right? After all, Chrome OS is the full-fledged laptop operating system right? Well in this case Android is going to be a much more useful option with access to all of the apps and customization that it offers compared to the very minimal Chrome OS. Also, no one in their right mind would want to use Chrome OS as a tablet.
5. It’s very affordable
One of the best things about the Pixel-C is the price. The 32GB base model is just $499, while the 64GB version is $599. On top of that, the optional keyboard is $149. As a matter of perspective, it matches up in price with the Surface 3, but sits a good $200 less than the Surface Pro 3 and $300 less than the iPad Pro. It should be noted that the 32GB base model of the Pixel-C offers significantly less storage than the base model Surface 3, however.
The Pixel-C will be available to buy later this year.