Google launched their 2nd generation Pixel Watch 2 in October. I’ve used one for over a week. It’s a great smartwatch, excellent companion to an Android smartphone, and I can see some people who will love it. However, it isn’t something I’d want for myself. This post isn’t written to be a review of the Pixel Watch 2 per se. If you’re looking for reviews, I recommend checking out the excellent write ups from The Verge, Digital Trends, Wired, or DC Rainmaker. Instead, I want to share about how the Pixel Watch 2, as well as smartwatches in general, would work for casual users. Or not. People who ..read more

Google’s Pixel 8, the smaller of their two flagships that launched this year, is great. It’s very much like the larger Pixel 8 Pro, just in a smaller package. Does that make the Pixel 8 a good choice for those who prefer something smaller? I’ll share my thoughts. First up, let me just start off by saying Google offered my review unit in the Rose colourway. It is an absolutely beautiful colour. This colourway is not offered for the Pixel 8 Pro, and it’s arguably more attractive than the Bay (i.e. blue) colourway that is unique to the larger Pixel. In my Pixel 8 Pro review, I said that the Goo ..read more

The bigger of Google’s 2023 flagship smartphone, the Pixel 8 Pro, is great. Although it may seem like there can only be small incremental upgrades from the last Pixel 7 Pro, Google manages to surprise us. Some are meaningfully awesome, others are lesser so. I’m not going to write this post like a regular review of the Pixel 8 Pro. For full reviews, may I recommend those from TheVerge, AndroidPolice, GSM Arena, ZDNet, or any of your favourite source of Android news. Instead, this is going to be my thoughts on the Pixel 8 Pro. Needless to say, Google has made some headway with their Pixel line ..read more

Google didn’t announce a brand new Pixel Buds alongside the Pixel 8 smartphones last week. But they did announce a new colourway, as well as some cool new software features. It’s almost like we’re getting a renewed Pixel Buds Pro. If you’re an existing Pixel Buds Pro owner, you’ll be happy to know today begins the main rollout of firmware version 5.9 which carries all the new features that Google had promised. First up, there’s new clearer voice calling. Pixel Buds Pro now supports Bluetooth Super Wideband with Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. This doubles the bandwidth for voices, which makes you so ..read more

Google launched their latest and greatest Pixel smartphone today. It’s the Pixel 8 and the Pixel 8 Pro. There are a couple of new features worth mentioning, but perhaps something also quite interesting is the pricing. Let me first talk about some of the features that have piqued my interest. This is a big one for me. 7 years of OS updates, security updates, and feature drops. There’s no ambiguity in the language. You get 7 years of Android version updates. This Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro smartphones will still get updates around the time Pixel 15 launches, if that’s still something Google decide ..read more

It’s taken Google quite a few years. Even more, if we counted from the era of Nexus smartphones. But better late than never. This year, Google launched the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. Finally, I think Google has a a pro smartphone to face off with the best the competition has to offer. This post isn’t meant to be a review of the Pixel 7 or Pixel 7 Pro smartphones. I will probably recap some points but there are plenty of other excellent detailed reviews you can find on the Internet. Instead, I wanted to look at how Google has finally got everything right with the Pixel 7 Pro, and the road they’v ..read more

Mid-range smartphones don’t normally attract this much interest. The Google Pixel 4a is quite different, more so than the 3a that preceded it last year. It may have arrived a little late this year, but this budget-friendly face of Android promises to be an instant hit. I shared a quick preview of the Google Pixel 4a earlier this month. I said it was an excellent mid-range smartphone that’s easy to recommend to anyone who just wanted a decent smartphone for casual daily use. The Pixel 4a’s price point also makes it particularly awesome. After using the Pixel 4a for a while, I think it may in f ..read more

Google announced the Pixel 4a this week. It’s an absolutely fantastic mid-range small-sized smartphone, great all-round, including a really affordable price, but with one tiny problem. You can pre-order it today, but you won’t get your hands on it till 9th September onward, probably much later. At just S$499, the Google Pixel 4a can easily be said to be a steal. The Pixel 3a last year retailed at S$659 (and S$779 for the Pixel 3a XL). Apple’s iPhone SE, their affordable smartphone launched this year, sells from S$649 upward. This makes the Plxel 4a very attractive. It’s a completely decent sm ..read more

Consumer tech gadgets get refreshed very often. It’s no surprise then that most people upgrade their phones from time to time. Some might also downgrade, though perhaps less often. I did so, from Pixel 4 XL to Pixel 3 XL, and it’s for the better. We are now living in unusual times. The global COVID-19 pandemic has brought about changes in many aspects of our lives. One of them is about the necessity to wear face masks when outside our homes, a rule that is not uncommon in many parts of the world. What have face masks got to do with downgrading of phones? Well, the Google Pixel 4 XL’s cool Fac ..read more

I was planning to wait for the official unveiling of the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL, but found that Google Singapore themselves jumped the gun. The latest Google smartphones are available now for pre-order. It’s S$1,119 for the smaller Pixel 4 with 64 GB storage, or S$1,269 for the 128 GB storage option. The larger Pixel 4 XL starts at S$1,319 with 64 GB storage, going up to S$1,469 for the 128 GB storage option. There are colours available in Black, White, and a new Orange. The Orange only has 64 GB storage available. On top of all that, you get a S$200 Google Store promotional ..read more