{"id":48472,"date":"2015-12-14T15:55:00","date_gmt":"2015-12-14T15:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/?p=48472"},"modified":"2015-12-14T16:13:41","modified_gmt":"2015-12-14T16:13:41","slug":"pixel-c-review-hands-on-with-googles-productivity-tablet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/2015\/12\/pixel-c-review-hands-on-with-googles-productivity-tablet\/","title":{"rendered":"Pixel C review: hands-on with Google’s productivity tablet"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pixel-c-hero\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Today we\u2019re going hands on with Google’s Pixel C, the first Pixel device to be released with Android on board instead of Chrome OS. Like a Nexus device, this 10.2-inch tablet comes with the latest version of stock Android (Marshmallow), but it\u2019s built by Google\u2019s in-house team rather than an external manufacturer like Huawei or Motorola. It also sets itself apart from its peers with a unique keyboard cover accessory, which could make it a productivity powerhouse. Let’s see how it does!<\/p>\n

Design<\/h2>\n

\"design\"<\/a><\/p>\n

From the moment you grasp the Pixel C for the first time, you get a sense that this isn\u2019t any run-of-the-mill Android tablet. Its anodised aluminium shell grants it a certain weight and dignity; it feels incredibly durable and well-made. That goes double when the keyboard cover is attached, which hides the screen from view and presents a tough metal fa\u00e7ade from every angle. The metal construction makes this a very slick tablet (quite literally), so you might want to get a case<\/a> to prevent the edges from getting chipped.<\/p>\n

\"2015-12-14<\/a><\/p>\n

The Pixel C, with keyboard cover, compared to an early 2011 15-inch MacBook Pro<\/em><\/p>\n

Pop it apart, and the screen inside will be revealed. Bring the two pieces together again in a certain way and pull, and you\u2019ll reveal the strong magnetic hinge that comes out of the top section of the keyboard. From here, you can freely adjust the angle like a laptop, and gain the same comfortable arrangement for typing. It also shows off the pulsing, multi-coloured lightbar from Google\u2019s earlier Pixel laptops, which sits on the back of the tablet and doesn\u2019t really do anything except look frickin\u2019 cool.<\/p>\n

\"2015-12-14<\/a><\/p>\n

Keyboard and display<\/h2>\n

The keyboard of the Pixel C is definitely its most significant feature, so let\u2019s take a closer look. It has a spartan appearance, with white lowercase on black chiclet keys, and it replaces Cap Lock with Search like a Chromebook. Some keys are unusually sized; the \u20181\u2019 key is twice the size of \u20182\u2019, while the apostrophe key is almost unusable as it\u2019s half the width of a standard key. Still, Google have found room next to the space bar for a\u00a0\u2026 key, which brings up the on-screen symbol keyboard.<\/p>\n

The travel of the keyboard is reasonable, but even without taking into account the layout issues it still doesn\u2019t compare well against a good laptop keyboard (e.g. that of a Macbook Pro). There\u2019s no touchpad either, so you\u2019ll be moving your fingers to the screen to make selections and operate apps.<\/p>\n

\"2015-12-14<\/a><\/p>\n

The keyboard does have some strong positives too, though. It holds the screen very firmly without wobbling, unlike some other tablet keyboards. While it doesn\u2019t connect automatically once the magnetic attachment is made, the Bluetooth connection feels stable and I didn\u2019t experience any input lag. The keyboard also looks good, which is a nice bonus.<\/p>\n

The other good-looking part of this tablet is the display. The 2560 x 1800 LCD screen reproduces text crisply and images with vibrant colours; there\u2019s remarkably little backlight bleed too.<\/p>\n

Productivity<\/h2>\n

The keyboard attachment should make the Pixel C a strong productivity machine, in the same space as Apple\u2019s iPad Pro or Microsoft\u2019s Surface tablets. Sadly, Google miss the mark here, largely thanks to limitations of the Android OS.<\/p>\n

With no form of split-screen multitasking or windowing, you have to flip through apps\u2014clumsily using alt+tab or taking your hands off the keyboard to use the app switcher. It\u2019s possible to root the tablet with a USB-C to USB-A cable<\/a> and enable Google\u2019s rudimentary, pre-release split-screen mode<\/a>, but this is far from a perfect solution. Once split-screen is officially released with Android N<\/a> late next year, the Pixel C should be significantly improved\u2026 and it\u2019ll be a lot cheaper, too.<\/p>\n

\"2015-12-14<\/a><\/p>\n

Apps themselves are also a barrier to productivity on the Pixel C. Too often, tablet apps on Android are just blown up phone apps, with minimal (if any) layout changes to take advantage of that additional screen space. Even hugely popular apps like Twitter are affected, and it seems that Google still have yet to properly incentivise developers to build for a tablet audience.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s unfortunate that Google weren\u2019t able to bring it to market as a Chrome OS device as planned, as this would solve a lot of the tablet\u2019s issues and let it fulfill its natural role as a productivity machine. With proper multitasking (split-screen, windows) and a better range of work-focused apps, Chrome OS seems a much stronger choice. Still, that\u2019s not what we\u2019ve got with the Pixel C, so it doesn\u2019t help the tablet in the here and now.<\/p>\n

Performance<\/h2>\n

Wi-Fi performance is another annoying weakness of the Pixel C. Despite having a modern dual-band Wi-Fi ac solution on board, the Pixel C seems to struggle to maintain a connection to all but the strongest wireless signals. The Pixel C has a terrible time on our office Wi-Fi, with super-slow transfer speeds that make even loading simple websites or the Play Store an exercise in frustration. Compared to other smartphones, tablets and laptops in the office, the Pixel C has by far the worst connection. Other Pixel C owners have reported similar Wi-Fi performance issues (and even returned their tablets over it), so this seems to be more than an isolated incident.<\/p>\n

\"2015-12-14<\/a><\/p>\n

The Pixel C, with keyboard cover, compared to an early 2011 15-inch MacBook Pro<\/em><\/p>\n

Apart from the Wi-Fi, performance seems average to good. Storage speeds are a bit below par (about half the speed of the Nexus 6P, in some measurements), but the CPU and GPU both seem up to the task even in demanding 3D games and there\u2019s little lag when navigating around the stock Android OS. This is rarely an issue for anything other than a low-end tablet, but it\u2019s still good to see that box safely ticked on the Pixel C.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

The Google Pixel C is a conflicted device. It is a gorgeous work of engineering, with well-chosen materials, beautiful details and a cleverly connected keyboard cover. Stock Android Marshmallow is a pleasure to use, with the mid-range hardware inside providing buttery smooth performance. If you want a small, premium tablet for reading, apps or games, this is a great choice.<\/p>\n

But the Pixel C isn’t supposed to be just a stylish but standard Android tablet: its keyboard cover immediately suggests a niche as an ultra-portable productivity machine. Sadly there are some big issues that remove it from consideration: there aren\u2019t enough tablet apps, split-screen multitasking is a no-go and the keyboard has a few weird foibles.<\/p>\n

If you want to get work done on the Pixel C, then wait for version two, wait for Android N\u2019s split-screen mode, wait for enterprising hackers to get Chrome OS running somehow.\u00a0If you can\u2019t wait, get a Surface or an iPad Pro; they\u2019re much better productivity machines than the Pixel C.<\/p>\n

Shop for Google Pixel C accessories ><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today we\u2019re going hands on with the Google Pixel C, the first Pixel device to be released with Android on board instead of Chrome OS. Like a Nexus device, this 10.2-inch tablet comes with the latest version of stock Android (Marshmallow), but it\u2019s built by Google\u2019s in-house team rather than an external manufacturer like Huawei or Motorola. It also sets itself apart from its peers with a unique keyboard cover accessory, which could make it a productivity powerhouse. Let\u2019s see how it measures up!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":48536,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[311,8130,6751],"tags":[8264,310,3429,8259,8263,202,4273],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48472"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/78"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48472"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48472\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48576,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48472\/revisions\/48576"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mobilefun.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}