What to expect from Google’s October 4 event for Pixel 8 and more

Ben Schoon | Oct 1 2023 - 9:00 am PT

In just a few days, Google will host an event in New York City to unveil the Pixel 8 series and the Pixel Watch 2. Here’s everything you should expect to see from the event.

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Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro

The obvious stars of the show at this week’s event will be the Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro.

Google’s updated flagships are set to potentially be very exciting, with lots of noteworthy updates including updated designs, new “Actua” displays that are much brighter, updated camera hardware and software, a lot of AI, and also the new Tensor G3 chipset. That chip might be the biggest potential source of improvements, as it’s rumored to be packing updated hardware that should be more efficient, and perhaps run cooler too.

Here are some key stories about Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro from the past few weeks:

Pixel Watch 2

Beyond the phones, Google is also set to debut Pixel Watch 2, the sequel to its first smartwatch. Based on everything we’ve seen, this appears to be more of an “under the hood” sort of update, as the new smartwatch has the same design. However, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, as it leaves the door open to lots of iterative improvements.

Some key things that we’ve learned about Pixel Watch 2 thus far include a new chipset which should make the watch faster and improve battery life, as well as new health sensors that should result in additional Fitbit features, such as stress tracking. New bands also appear to be coming.

Pixel Buds Pro

The only other hardware that’s confirmed to be coming is a minor hardware refresh to Pixel Buds Pro. Google showed off a new Porcelain color while teasing this event, and we previously reported that a blue color was also coming.

But these are just new colors.

Google has confirmed that pre-orders for the new hardware will open up the day of the event, with the release date confirmed via a carrier (and our own sources) to be October 12.

Any ‘one more thing’ surprises?

Realistically, most Google events are pretty tame when it comes to dropping big, unexpected announcements. Perhaps the biggest reveal we’ve had in recent years was at Google I/O 2022 when the company dropped a first look at Pixel 7, Pixel Watch, and Pixel Tablet.

But, could we see any surprises this week?

If Google were to announce anything extra, the most logical reveal would be a new Chromecast. It wouldn’t be unprecedented to get TV hardware at a Pixel launch event, as we saw exactly that with the original Chromecast dropping alongside the Pixel 5 in 2020. And there’s plenty of evidence suggesting that a new Chromecast is coming, as we’ve covered.

However, the lack of any hardware leaks or really anything particularly substantial would suggest this probably isn’t happening.

Other guesses on teasers might include the potential of hearing more from Google’s foldable game – a “Pixel Flip” seems to be in the pipeline – or maybe a tease of the Pixel 8a given we’ve literally already seen hands-on images of the device. But, again, we don’t think this is likely at all.

Stay tuned for 9to5Google’s full coverage of Google’s upcoming event, and our forthcoming reviews of the new hardware.

This Week’s Top Stories

You guessed it, more Pixel leaks

With Google’s event just a couple of days away, the leaks just keep coming. Here’s a list of all the big leaks from this week.

Google Podcasts is dead

Earlier this week Google announced that it would shut down Google Podcasts next year in favor of YouTube Music. The closure comes as absolutely no surprise, as Google Podcasts has been stagnant for a while, but it’s still a shame for many users, as the app’s simplicity and pre-installed status on Android phones was useful.