Pixel Slate: Google’s latest iPad and Surface rival

In its Pixel 3 event, Google announced the latest iteration of its tablet line, the Pixel Slate. It is a high-end tablet meant to rival Apple’s iPad Pro and Microsoft’s Surface Pro line. However, this time around the Pixel tablet is powered by Chrome OS instead of Android, sports a detachable keyboard cover.

The Pixel Slate comes with very high end specs, sporting an 8th generation Intel processor up to Core i7, with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It also has front facing stereo speakers, front and rear 8-megapixel cameras, all on a 12.3 inch LCD display that Google claims is faster and more power efficient than a traditional LCD. Additionally and for the first time, this Chromebook comes with a fingerprint sensor built in the power button.

Google’s last attempt at an iPad/Surface rival was the Pixel C, which ran android and thus was unattractive to use as a laptop. With the new Pixel Slate, Google hopes to give us the best of both worlds as it runs Chrome OS, making it suitable for laptop use, but is also capable of running Android apps for use as a tablet. Additionally, the higher specification of the Pixel Slate make it a much more capable machine, able to compete with the Surface line. It still runs Chrome OS, which is not as powerful as Windows when it comes to photo and video editing or similar heavy tasks.

The Pixel Slate is meant to be paired with the keyboard cover, but it doesn’t come with it. It will instead be sold separately at $199. It is also compatible with the Pixelbook Pen, which will also have to be purchased separately for $99. The baseline model will sell at $599, and comes with a Celeron processor, with the high-end model selling at $1599 and higher for better specs and higher speed.