First teased a year ago, Google's first Android tablet since the Nexus 10 is finally official. The Pixel Tablet has been unveiled during Google I/O. confirming many of the rumors and leaks that came before. Priced at $499 in the US, the Pixel Tablet isn't your average Android tablet in that it comes with a Charging Speaker Dock which kinda turns it into a smart display.
Visually, the Pixel Tablet takes inspiration from the Nest smart displays thanks to its aluminum frame and porcelain-like finish. This is more so when the tablet is paired with its dock.
As with the newly announced Pixel 7a, Pixel Fold, and last year's Pixel 7 series, the Pixel Tablet is powered by Google's Tensor G2 processor. This is paired up with 8GB of RAM and 128/256GB of storage. This is where the obligatory mention of there being no MicroSD card support comes in.
The first thing you notice on a tablet is its display, and here the Pixel Tablet sports a 10.5-inch LCD display which a 16:10 aspect ratio and a 2560 x 1600 resolution. The panel has a peak brightness of 500nits and also offers support for third-party USI 2.0 stylus pens, which Google is not including in the box. Naturally.
While many 10-inch tablets sport batteries with capacities of 8-9,000mAh, the Pixel Tablet is well below this with just 7,020mAh, which as usual, isn't helped by Google's insistence on including the glacially slow 15W wired charging speed. Coincidentally, the dock charges the tablet at the same 15W speed, which means you'll be waiting hours for a full battery, regardless of which method you choose.
You really shouldn't care for this next segment but we know that it can be of use in certain environments. Yup, I'm talking about the cameras on the Pixel Tablet which consist of an 8MP sensor on the front and rear of the device. When the tablet is on its dock, its front camera offers a continuous framing function that helps keep you in the center of the frame during the video call. Pixel camera features such as Night Sight, Live HDR+, and Long Exposure are also included.
What about the Dock?
Ahh yes, the Charging Speaker Dock. Besides turning the Pixel Tablet into what is essentially a Nest smart display, the dock sports more powerful speakers than is present on the tablet. Once paired with the dock, a feature called Hub Mode is activated which brings features such as digital photo frame and Google Assistant functionality to the setup. You can also cast content to the docked tablet from your phone. One thing you can't do is pair up to the dock's speakers wirelessly, which seems like an oversight on Google's part.
The Pixel Tablet and its official kickstand case are available in Hazel and Porcelain colorways. In the US, you can pick up the Pixel Tablet (128GB) and Dock combo for $499 while in the UK the price is bumped up to £599 which is a little pricey. Additional Docks will set you back $129 while the official kickstand case costs $79/£89.
