Google have announced three new products - The Pixel 3, Pixel Stand & Home Hub

In the early hours of this morning, Google hosted an event over in New York to announce three of their latest hardware products, all coming to Australia. We’ve now got a glimpse at the Google Pixel 3 (alongside the Pixel 3XL), Pixel Stand and Google Home Hub.

PIXEL 3/XL

The Pixel 3 is the big announcement out of the keynote, with emphasis being placed on the new camera tech and integration with Google Lens/Assistant.

The 3 will ship at 5.5″ and retail will start from $1,199 while the 3XL stands at 6.3″ and will be on shelves for $1,349. They’ll come in three colours; Just Black, Clearly White, and Not Pink. Available for pre-order today, you’ll start seeing the Pixel 3 in-store at Telco’s from November 1.

It would appear the main selling point of the Pixel 3 is the AI-enhanced camera. It’s boasting features like;

Wide-angle ‘Group Shot’ selfie.
The ‘Top Shot’ feature means that when taking photos in motion, alternate versions will be saved before and after actually pressing the shutter so that should you just miss the perfect shot, you’ve got other options to choose from.
‘Super Res Zoom’ that takes advantage of computational camera technology to reduce grainy zoom.
‘Photobooth’ mode that takes selfies without you pressing anything – it simply recognizes you’re facing the camera.

Which are all nice features for a flagship phone, but it’ll be interesting to see if they justify the price tag.

PIXEL STAND

While not even remotely ground-breaking, the Pixel Stand seems like a cool addition to the phone’s arsenal and the Google ecosystem as a whole. Retailing for $119, at a base level the Stand is simply a wireless charger – but when used with the Pixel 3, you’ll be presented with a clean Google Assistant ‘visual and audio experience’ as they’re calling it.

You’re able to control your smart home devices, ask your assistant questions and use it as a photo frame when idle. A groovy product, but similarly to the Pixel 3 – the jury is still out on the price.

HOME HUB

This our first look at a proper, dedicated display device from Google! It’s a product within the Google Home range and as you can imagine will be used to control and monitor your smart home devices.

It has the Google Assistant built-in with on screen access to your calendar, maps, YouTube and Google Photos. The display itself is 7″, which is nice and sizeable without being invasive and it will ship to retailers in ‘Chalk’ and ‘Charcoal’ colours. The ‘Aqua’ and ‘Sand’ colours will be available on the Google Store.

An inbuilt light sensor will allow it to automatically adjust to the conditions of the room to avoid glaringly bright and loud images looking out of place – and similarly when it’s time for bed or to just quiet down the Hub will dim to match the scene.

I can imagine the most functional use for the Hub will be features like ‘Routine’, where on command “Hey Google, good morning” or “Hey Google, what do I have on today“, your Hub will give you a visual rundown of the day ahead – complete with traffic considerations, weather forecasts and reminders.

The Home Hub is available for pre-order now but will hit stores on the 23rd of October and will sell for $219. Pick one up from JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman, Officeworks, The Good Guys, Optus, Vodafone and the Google Store.