All the Hardware Google Announced at I/O 2022

We've got a first look at the Pixel Watch, details on the Pixel 6A and Pixel Buds Pro, a peek at the Pixel 7 series, and even an Android-powered Pixel Tablet.
Google Pixel gadget lineup
Photograph: Google

Every spring, Google has shown off some hardware at its annual software event, Google I/O. A gift-wrapped box in a sea of virtual gift cards, if you will.

But at this year's developer's conference, hardware is stealing the show thanks to a number of long-anticipated product launches, from the Pixel 6A and Pixel Buds Pro to the Pixel Watch, Pixel 7, and Pixel 7 Pro, and even a glimpse at a Pixel Tablet—there are a lot of goodies.

None of these devices are launching immediately, but you won't have to wait long to get your hands on them. Here's everything you need to know. 

Pixel Watch
Courtesy of Google

The Pixel Watch has been rumored since Google started making Pixel phones in 2016—likely even before that when Google initially launched its specialized operating system for smartwatches. Well, Google's wearable is finally arriving, though details are slim. 

Unlike the Apple Watch, it's round! There's a tactile crown, and it uses recycled stainless steel for the frame. It also features swappable bands, though these appear to be a proprietary strap system, much like Apple's smartwatch. Rick Osterloh, Google's hardware chief, says the Pixel Watch has fluid animations and an improved user interface that's “tappable, voice-enabled, and glanceable.” You'll see more Google first-party apps on the watch, including a Google Home app that'll let you control your smart home devices just by tapping the screen on your wrist. 

Now that Fitbit is a Google-owned company, there's deep integration and plenty of shared fitness-monitoring expertise, with continuous heart-rate tracking, sleep tracking, and the ability to record personal fitness goals. However, when Google acquired Fitbit, it agreed to keep users' Fitbit and Google data separate—that's the case here, and so the Fitbit body data collected by the Pixel Watch will be isolated from Google. There are two fitness platforms on the watch though: Google Fit and Fitbit. Osterloh says they'll work together but that Fitbit is “imbued throughout” the watch's experience. He didn't share more about the integration.

Unfortunately, Google says the Pixel Watch will not work with iOS devices—just Android phones. Wear OS has long supported iPhones, but last year's Samsung Galaxy Watch4 was among the first to be Android-only. It's unclear whether this is a theme for the platform in general, or if Google and Samsung are outliers in the overall Wear OS market. We don't have any pricing details, but Google is touting the Pixel Watch as a premium smartwatch, so expect a price similar to the Apple Watch. It launches in the fall.

Google Pixel 6A
Google Pixel 6aPhotograph: Google

Google's latest A-series phone—the budget alternative to its flagship Pixel—will be called the Pixel 6A and it will cost $449 when it goes on sale in July.

Unlike its predecessors, which use a midrange Qualcomm processor to hold down costs, the Pixel 6A is powered by Google's Tensor chip, the same processor inside the high-end Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro. It's an Apple-like move, echoing how the $429 iPhone SE is powered by the same chip that's in the iPhone 13

It also makes the Pixel 6A one of the most powerful Android phones for the money. The use of the same chip means Google's bringing every software feature you'll find on its flagships down to this phone, including Night Sight for better low-light photography, Real Tone for improved skin tones in photos, and Assistant Voice Typing for faster and more natural dictation. There are even some new perks, like how you'll be able to change the color of distracting objects in your photos instead of simply erasing them via Magic Eraser.

The Pixel 6A looks almost the same as its pricier Pixel 6 siblings, with a thick camera bumper spanning the back and a two-tone design on the recycled aluminum frame, but it has a smaller 6.1-inch 60-Hz OLED screen. That's one way for the company to keep its cost down. The other? Lesser camera sensors. You get a 12-megapixel main sensor and an ultrawide, but the sensors aren't the same as what you'll find on the Pixel 6 series, so don't expect the same fidelity. Still, the Pixel A-series remains unrivaled in its photography prowess compared to other midrange and budget phones, and that is likely to stay the same here. 

It has robust 5G connectivity options like most flagship Android phones (sub-6 and millimeter wave), 6 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, and IP67 water resistance. It will get three Android upgrades and five years of security updates. While there is an under-display fingerprint sensor, the headphone jack isn't making a comeback here. The 4,400-mAh battery is also smaller than the one in the Pixel 5A, which means the new phone likely won't last two days on a single charge anymore.

The Pixel 6A will be available for preorder on July 21 in Sage, Chalk, and Charcoal colors, and it goes on sale on July 28. Osterloh says the company is still dealing with supply chain woes, but the Pixel 6A should be in a better place than its predecessor; the Pixel 5A was sold only at the Google Store in the US and Japan, but the Pixel 6A will be available at various retailers in 13 countries, including the US, UK, and Australia, as well as India later this year. (Google also says it will continue selling the Pixel 5A.)

Google Pixel Buds Pro
Photograph: Google

Coming on the heels of last year's Pixel Buds A-Series are another pair of wireless earbuds: the Pixel Buds Pro. These $199 buds have the same design as the A-Series, but Google has added active noise cancellation, to tune out your surroundings, and a transparency mode to let ambient sounds in, both of which are powered by a new custom six-core audio chip tuned by the company's in-house audio engineers. (Google claims it's the best noise-cancellation performance in wireless earbuds. We'll see.) 

Google's algorithms can tune out wind, traffic, and other background noise so that you sound clear when you're speaking on audio and video calls. The earbuds will also support Multipoint Connectivity, a feature which enables them to seamlessly switch their connection from your laptop to your phone when a mobile call comes in, then back to your laptop when you hang up. You never need to tap on any Bluetooth settings; the switch happens automatically.

The Pixel Buds Pro are equipped with touch controls, a case with wireless charging support, and an IPX4 rating for water and sweat resistance. Google says they'll last for 11 hours per charge, or seven hours with active noise canceling turned on. All of these features are bang on the money at this price. Spatial audio support is coming later this year. They go on preorder July 21 and hit store shelves July 28, and come in four colors: Charcoal, Fog, Coral, and Lemongrass. 

Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro 
Photograph: Google

Paired with the Pixel Watch launch this fall are the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. This news was expected, since Google tends to launch its flagship mobile phones in October. But rather than let rumors and leaks steal the thunder ahead of the fall debut, Google chose to show off what these devices look like. The black camera bar now has a recycled aluminum finish. The only other detail we know about the Pixel 7 is that it'll be powered by the “next-gen Tensor” chip, which will add improvements to speech processing, photography, videography, and security. When these phones arrive, they will come with Android 13 pre-installed.  

Pixel Tablet
Photograph: Google

Finally, perhaps unexpectedly, Google is making a Pixel Tablet. It's not the first Android-powered Pixel tablet—that'd be 2015's poorly-received Pixel C—but it's the first one to arrive since Google started paying serious attention to the Android tablet experience. The company has been making strides in optimizing the operating system for larger screens in Android 11, 12L, and the upcoming Android 13. 

All we know so far is that it looks somewhat like a Nest Hub without the base, and it'll be powered by a Tensor chip. Osterloh says it's designed to be “a perfect companion to your Pixel phone” and it will work “seamlessly with all your Pixel devices." It's a premium, larger-style tablet, though Google didn't share any other specifics. Expect it to arrive in 2023. 

AR Translation Glasses

At the end of the presentation, Google showed off a prototype set of augmented reality glasses that offer real-time language translation of whatever the person standing across from you is saying. The glasses look completely normal, with slightly thicker arms, and in the video Google showed off, the wearer is able to see a live translation from a foreign language show up in the upper corner of their vision as the person across from them was speaking. It's unclear at what stage these AR glasses are at or whether they'll ever materialize into an actual product. (Also, this is not the first time Google has teased rosy visions of smart glasses' future.)  

Why tease the Pixel Tablet, Pixel 7 series, and Pixel Watch so early? Google hasn't been shy about showing off its hardware months before the actual release dates, but the Pixel Tablet sneak peek comes a full year before it arrives. “Users are thinking of an ecosystem and an [manufacturer] as someone that they want to invest in for the long term, and we wanted to show people where we’re headed,” Osterloh says. "They can make an informed decision about where we're going as an organization for the next couple of years."