Google’s next big Pixel

Okay, sure, Google basically spent the last few months spoiling its annual hardware event by repeatedly leaking — and, in some cases, just flat-out announcing — all of its upcoming phones, wearables, headphones, and TV gadgets. But the annual Pixel event is still a big day in the gadget world and also a chance to find out exactly what Google thinks the future looks like.

In this episode of The Vergecast, we talk through all the new devices, from the Pixel 9 lineup to the Pixel Buds Pro 2 to the Pixel Watch 3. We also discuss last week’s launches, particularly the new TV Streamer. Google is now nearly a decade into this phase of its hardware journey and appears to still be serious about being a big player in gadgets. So, the question is: will any of these products make real noise in the market? Maybe the new Fold is the foldable phone we’ve been waiting for, but at $1,800, that’s a big ask. Or maybe the TV Streamer can be the better set-top box we all deserve and need.

In reality, it might just be that Google’s whole hardware plan is actually just an AI plan. These new devices come with lots of spec upgrades in the name of better AI performance and ship with new features like Pixel Screenshots that promise to use Gemini to make your life better and simpler. So much of the hardware world is following this plan, so we chat about whether Google — or anyone — is actually showing us what AI hardware might look like.

If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, check out all our coverage of this year’s Pixel launch. Here are some links to get you started: