On Wednesday, Google unveiled its latest phones, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. Both smartphones will abandon the traditional 3.5mm headphone jack, just as Apple did with the iPhone 7 last year.
The Pixels will come bundled with a USB-C adapter that users can use to enable their traditional wired headphones. Google also announced Wednesday that it would release branded wireless earbuds, called the Pixel Buds, which will allow users to answer phone calls, adjust volume, or activate the embedded Google Assistant.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The phones will start at $649. Other products Google announced Wednesday include a new laptop and smart home speakers, likely aimed at challenging Apple and Amazon. The devices all utilize Google's voice assistant, which rivals Siri and Alexa. Google's least expensive smart speaker begins at $49, while the Google Pixelbook will start at $999.
"Google just doubled down on its hardware effort, spending $1.1 billion to acquire a significant chunk of HTC's phone operations and know-how," Axios writes. "Now it needs to make the bet pay off." Read more about the launch at The Verge.