Google announced the Google Pixelbook yesterday. It is the first laptop from Google. With top of the line specs, lag-less performance, secure, and support for Android apps, this Chromebook promises a lot more.
Google Pixelbook:
The Google Pixelbook sports a 12.3-inch 1440p touch display with a 3:2 aspect and a pixel density of 235. The laptop will be available in three different versions:
Price |
Processor |
Storage |
RAM |
| $999 | Core i5 (7th gen) | 128GB | 8GB |
| $1,199 | Core i5 (7th gen) | 256GB | 8GB |
| $1649 | Core i7 (7th gen) | 512GB | 16GB |
With the 8th generation of Intel processor out, we were expecting these specifications. The laptop features a 4 in 1 design, which basically means it has a 360-degree hinge that rotates all the way. Google says even the tablet mode feels comfortable in hand due to the small size, thin chassis, and a really lightweight build.
With a thickness of 10mm and a weight of less than 1 Kg, this laptop is definitely on point, not to mention the great build quality and an arguably a great looking design. The Google Pixelbook also features a backlit keyboard with 0.8mm travel distance and a glass trackpad.
Also read: Google Pixel 2 Launched
Talking about its battery, the Pixelbook doesn’t disappoint. Google claims that their laptop is capable of delivering 2 hours of mixed usage from just 15mins of charge. And if you happen to fully charge the laptop, you can comfortably get up to 10 hours of battery life from the 41Whr battery. The laptop comes with a 45 Watt charger in the box.
The Chromebook was solely targeted at a small demographic of users at the start, which included students and budget buyers. But with the Pixelbook they are clearly targeting someone who would otherwise buy something like an XPS 13 or even a MacBook. Google expects a much larger subset of people to get excited about it.
So why buy an expensive Pixelbook instead of a Windows or a MacOS machine? We will leave that up to the potential buyers to decide but the new Pixelbook has a lot going for itself. For one, all your Android apps now run on the huge 12-inch screen, that includes everything from Asphalt 8 to Instagram. Basically, the laptop can run any Android app other than the ones that are in their beta phase.
The Pixelbook also supports Google Assistant. With either a dedicated Google assistant key or using the magic words “OK Google” you can quickly reach your digital assistant with ease. This might not mean much now but with every update to the Google assistant, it will definitely get much better and much more usable. Plus Google has added four microphones to the laptop which will definitely help with the Google Assistant’s hearing abilities.
If you own a pixel phone, the Pixelbook also supports direct automatic tethering and automatic unlock. Although the laptop doesn’t have a fingerprint sensor which could be a disappointment for most, we couldn’t care less.
Coming back to the build, port selection of the Google Pixelbook includes 2 USB-C and a headphone jack. It also houses a 720p camera, 2 speakers and Bluetooth 4.2
Also read: Google Home Max and Mini launched
The Pixelbook will get automatic updates directly from Google. The app selection will also improve with Snapchat and Netflix joining the optimization train that already includes Adobe and Microsoft. Plus, thanks to the enormous spec bump, ChromeOS no longer needs a constant internet connection which is great.
Google Pixelbook Pen
The Pixelbook Pen is a stylus that you can use to draw or navigate on your Pixelbook. The pen weighs in at around 0.05lbs that is 22 grams and has a dimension of 5.79*0.42 inches. The Pen has a 2000 level pressure sensitive tip and a 60-degree angular awareness. Google also claims a latency of 10ms which is good. The Pixelbook and Pixelbook Pen work together with a few machine learning algorithms to reduce latency and increase palm rejection.
The Pixelbook Pen carries a price tag of $99 which seems reasonable seeing how the competition has priced their respective pens and pencils, although a lower price tag could have made it even better.
Conclusion
The Google Pixelbook is already up for preorder and shipping will start from 31st October. The dates are applicable for the US, UK, and Canada, so who knows how long it will take to finally reach Nepal, if ever. The more important question is this: is a laptop running ChromeOS worth as much as a high-end Windows machine or a slightly older MacBook?
