The Vergecast · Wednesday, August 12, 2026
Critics argue that Google's decision to not pursue bleeding-edge hardware for Pixels, focusing instead on AI and software like Gemini, might be a misstep. The increased price of the new phones raises expectations for greater hardware longevity and capability, especially with the rise of local AI.
“And it's constantly trying to push forward what Android can do at the software level.”
“You made the price go up. This thing should last a long time.”
“And I don't know if this hardware has that longevity in it.”
“The overwhelming feeling was that it doesn't really matter. You basically can't find a game on Android that uses all of the available CPU and GPU anyway. So who really cares?”