Made by Google

The December Feature Drop introduced a trio of smart features to better optimize Pixel usage. Adaptive Charging, which has your Pixel top up slowly overnight to preserve battery health, is the most significant, but there are key requirements to get it to work.

The majority of Google’s apps are free (and more than usable with ads), but the company has built up a number of paid service tiers — led by YouTube — in recent years. The Google Store is now prominently advertising those offerings with a dedicated “Subscriptions” landing page.

Earlier this month, Google discontinued its three-year-old premium Assistant smart speaker after announcing a smaller alternative in September. The Google Home Max is now surprisingly in stock on the US Google Store.

Last month, Made by Google surprisingly launched its cheapest phone in a new color stateside. The Barely Blue Pixel 4a is now coming to Japan later this month.

Google’s two budget “a” phones this year are universally praised and highly sought after. The Pixel 4a launched first in August, while the 4a 5G followed with the Pixel 5 this fall. With the holiday shopping season under way, a change to the Google Store reflects how the premium version of this year’s 4a series is getting much more prominent billing.

Black Friday is fully under way and Google is pushing older Pixel owners to upgrade to the Pixel 4a 5G with a notable trade-in promotion. The US Google Store has significantly increased the trade-in value of older Made by Google devices for this one phone.

With the Pixel 5 officially launching in the US and Canada today, the Google Store is rounding out its 2020 phone launches by making the Pixel 4a (5G) available for pre-order in the US.

While Google’s latest smart speaker is priced affordably, it’s positioned to compete at a higher tier. With that comes the expectation of more features to offer a differentiation, and the Nest Audio might get the ability to be used as a “home theater sound system” for content playing on the Chromecast with Google TV.

As customers started receiving the Pixel 5 in mid-October, some noticed a small gap between the display and frame. Google has investigated the issue and says this is a “normal part of the design” that will not impact water resistance.

The November security patch is rolling out this morning as the first update for the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G. All Made by Google phones also benefit from a number of fixes.

The Pixel 5 officially launched in the US and Canada this Thursday, and we are now seeing the first teardown of the device. Notably, the Made by Google phone features an extra measure to secure the screen to the body.

Alphabet today hosted its Q3 2020 earnings call. Sundar Pichai was asked by an analyst about Google’s approach to phones and hardware in 2020. The CEO notably hinted at what’s coming next year.

Google has been steadily improving the quality of haptic motors included in Pixel devices — though this year might be an exception. With the Pixel 5, the ability to set “Vibration & haptics” has been elevated in settings.

This year, Google’s flagship phone launched in the Asia-Pacific and Europe two weeks before US and Canadian availability. Ahead of the Thursday release stateside, the Google Store has started charging Pixel 5 buyers for their pre-orders and removed the ability to cancel.

Following in the vein of other product announcements this year, Google today announced the new “Nest Thermostat.” At $129.99, it’s the first Nest smart appliance to really match the aesthetic of the company’s recent Assistant products.

Last month, we first reported that a new Google Wifi was in the works. Less than a week after Launch Night In, the Google Store this morning quietly released a new router that looks exactly the same, but now starts at $99.99.

While Google’s flagship phone shares the Pixel 4a’s design language, one key difference is the more uniform screen bezel. In fact, there’s no top grill as the Pixel 5 likely leverages an under-display speaker.