Google’s got at least two new Pixel smartphones coming this year. We’re pretty sure of that, thanks to roughly 7 billion leaks to date. But according to the folks at Android Police, Google also plans to launch at least two other pieces of hardware during the third quarter of 2017 (which means any day now).

The first is a smaller version of the Google Home smart speaker, which is probably designed to compete with the small, inexpensive Amazon Echo Dot.

The second is a new Chromebook Pixel (or Pixel 3, as it’s apparently being called at the moment).

Google Chromebook Pixel (2015)

At this point, that’s about all Android Police can confirm. But there’s reason to speculate a bit.

First up, the new Chromebook would be the third launched by Google. While Chromebooks have grown in popularity over the years, the vast majority have been low-cost devices offered by Google’s partners such as Acer, Asus, HP, and Lenovo.

The first and second-gen Chromebook Pixel laptops were the first laptops Google ever sold to the public, and they were premium devices with high-res displays, speedy processors, and more RAM than you’d expect to need on a device that usually runs on low-end hardware. But Google wanted to both show that Chrome OS wasn’t just for entry-level devices, and also basically create the forward-thinking device to show what the OS could do… much as the company has done with Android and Nexus an Pixel devices.

So the third Chromebook Pixel? It probably won’t be cheap… although it might be cheaper than the previous-gen models, which typically sold for $999 and up.

Android Police notes that Google was reportedly working on a convertible tablet-style laptop code-named Bison last year, but that it was supposed to have shipped with a new operating system called Andromeda that would have combined elements of Chrome OS and Android. Google has scrapped Andromeda, so it’s not clear if the company has repurposed the hardware to use for the new Chromebook, or if Google is using entirely different hardware.

As for the smaller, cheaper Google Home speaker? It’s probably not meant as a replacement for Google’s $129 smart speaker that works with Google Assistant. Instead, it may be positioned as a cheaper alternative (with inferior speakers… and maybe an audio out jack that lets you plug in your own speakers) that lets you use a Google Home in one part of the house and a series of mini speakers in other rooms.

That’s basically how Amazon positions its $50 Echo Dot anyway. It’s a cheaper alternative to the $180 Amazon Echo that has most of the same functionality, but an inferior speaker.

Just as Amazon created the smart speaker product category, the company seems to be leading with the segmentation of that market into premium and entry-level devices. And it looks like Google may be following Amazon’s lead.

You know, assuming these rumors are accurate. They might not be.

 

 

Support Liliputing

Liliputing's primary sources of revenue are advertising and affiliate links (if you click the "Shop" button at the top of the page and buy something on Amazon, for example, we'll get a small commission).

But there are several ways you can support the site directly even if you're using an ad blocker* and hate online shopping.

Contribute to our Patreon campaign

or...

Contribute via PayPal

* If you are using an ad blocker like uBlock Origin and seeing a pop-up message at the bottom of the screen, we have a guide that may help you disable it.

Subscribe to Liliputing via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 9,547 other subscribers

7 replies on “Report: Google Home mini and next-gen Chromebook Pixel coming soon”

  1. Wondering now, like many others, how Google’s Chromebook Pixel will stack up against Samsung’s Chromebook Pro. One thing I’m fairly certain of… built-in storage will continue to be running joke (on potential “customers”). Hopefully the speakers won’t be enemic or buried underneath the device.

  2. I would hate to be the OEM that signs up to build a premium chromebook. Even if Google paid for all the development, it is still a money loser.

    1. the point of the pixel isn’t sales. its for google employees to have a premium device that just so happens to be for sale. (as stated by google) unlike the surface mini that some microsoft execs had that never released.

      1. I agree, so what is the motivation for an OEM to build the Pixel Chromebook when “the point of the pixel isn’t sales”. I believe the OEM only makes money by selling as many units as possible. I suspect that HP is the only company making significant profit from chromebooks by selling large quantities to school districts in the US.

        1. In this case, the OEM makes money because Google pays the OEM to manufacture X amount of units. We’re probably talking about Quanta or Foxconn, not Acer or HP.

          The Chromebook Pixel has always been a Google-branded product, unlike Nexus devices which are done as a partnership between two companies.

          1. It really would be a set number of units too because they have a track record of being out of stock permanently once they are out.

  3. Finally! I have two echo dots and I’ve been wanting to try a google home but too expensive. If this is $50 or less I’ll probably grab one.

Comments are closed.