Technology and search giant Google has cemented its entry into the mobile fray, with the brand announcing overnight the launch of its first phone - Pixel.
The move was announced at a press event in San Francisco, with the business well and truly diving into the hardware space, also revealing that it's launching a VR headset, a voice-responsive assistant Bluetooth speaker, a WiFi router as well as the phone.
Google isn't new to the mobile game, previously having its software on mobile devices and working with other manufacturers to get its offering to market, however now the business is making the much-anticipated move of launching a phone which is wholly created by Google.
To spread the message of Pixel, a global campaign has been created by Droga5 New York, with the creative centring around Google's most iconic visual asset: the search bar.
To represent the brand’s official evolution into hardware, the ad shows the transition from the search bar to the phone shape in all of the campaign’s major executions, aiming to highlight the evolution from something people know about Google to something new from the company.
The device will land on Australian shores on 20 October with Telstra inking a deal to be the exclusive telecommunications partner for the release of the device. Telstra customers can pre-order the device from today.
Previously telco's have used new phone launches, such as iPhone launches, to lure new customers offering competitive pricing and adding on extras to get customers to switch. So Telstra having this exclusive tie-up with Google could lead to many contemplating moving to the carrier.
Much like other smartphones on the market, Pixel will come in two sizes L – 5 inch and XL – 5.5 inch, as well as three colours: Very silver, quite black and a limited edition for the U.S. only, really blue. Pixel prices will start at $649 in the US, UK, Canada, Germany and Australia.
When it comes to other specs, Google is claiming that Pixel has the best smartphone camera ever, with the device having a 12.3MP camera, featuring an f/2.0 aperture and big 1.55 micron pixels. Pixel will also feature Google Assistant, which allegedly will allow users to have conversations with their mobile devices.
Watch the Pixel sizzle reel featuring all the specs below:
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