The Google Pixel Tablet could be the Pixel Tablet Pro in all but name
A while ago, one leak suggested Google might be working on a Pixel Tablet Pro alongside the standard Pixel Tablet, but now it looks like that standard slate has been scrapped, with only the Pro remaining.
This claim comes from Twitter user Kuba Wojciechowski (opens in new tab), who says that the only major difference between the standard Pixel Tablet and the Pixel Tablet Pro is the chipset – with the former using the original Tensor chipset found in the Pixel 6 series, and the Pro using the Tensor G2, found in the Pixel 7 series.
So unless Google is aiming for a budget slate, it makes sense to cancel the Tensor G1-powered model – as it apparently has done – as that would be a too dated by launch time.
As it turns out, Google initially created “tangor” (T6) with a first-generation Tensor chip (as I also leaked before https://t.co/lQJDAz61Re) but then cancelled the project in favour of a Tensor G2-powered “tangorpro” (T6P).January 26, 2023
Google, for its part, has already confirmed that the Pixel Tablet will use the Tensor G2, so there’s not much new here. We also wouldn’t expect the slate to launch with ‘Pro’ in the name – that element was seemingly used in the codename to differentiate it from the Tensor G1 model but if only one lands, there’s no real need to flag it as a Pro version.
Still, there is some genuinely new stuff here too. The same poster claims to have learned about some additional specs from an anonymous source, saying that the Pixel Tablet apparently has a 1600 x 2560 LCD display, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.
There will also apparently be two different docks for the device. One of these – the Charging Speaker Dock – has already been revealed by Google, but there’s apparently also one that just charges it and doesn’t have a speaker. In both cases these allow the slate to double as a smart home display.
Finally, Wojciechowski has included some new images of the Pixel Tablet and one of its docks, but Google has already shown these elements off, so there’s nothing more really new to see.
I have also been provided with a few photos of the device. pic.twitter.com/ctKWQoVDCTJanuary 26, 2023
Analysis: shaping up to be a OnePlus Pad rival
A recent teaser and specs leaks for the OnePlus Pad suggest that OnePlus’s upcoming Android tablet could be a mid-range device, and what we’re seeing of the Pixel Tablet also points in that direction, so these two slates could be directly competing with each other.
If the leaks above are right, then Google’s has a surprising amount of storage – unless lower capacities are also made available – but otherwise looks to be packing fairly mid-range specs.
It could have the edge over the OnePlus Pad in certain ways, most notably its skills as a smart display, but then the OnePlus Pad may well have an OLED screen – which is typically superior to the LCD rumored here.
OnePlus’s tablet will almost certainly launch sooner too. It’s landing on February 7 alongside the OnePlus 11, while the Pixel Tablet’s launch date is currently unknown.
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