Google has shelved the next iteration of its Pixelbook notebook and disbanded the team in charge of its development. According to a source familiar with the subject, the gadget was well advanced in development and was slated to launch next year, but the project was axed as part of recent cost-cutting efforts inside Google. Members of the team have been relocated within the organization.
Google had planned to keep the Pixelbook running till a few months ago. Google hardware executive Rick Osterloh told The Verge ahead of the company’s annual I/O developer conference that “we are planning to offer Pixelbooks in the future.” But he also admitted that the Chromebook industry has altered since the first (and finest) Pixelbook debuted in 2017.
Google’s hardware approach, notably with the Pixel smartphones, has been to create fantastic products while also attempting to demonstrate to other manufacturers how to do it. It started investing in Pixel phones to demonstrate what Google’s version of Android might look like. More recently, the business has re-entered the wristwatch market, with the Pixel Watch arriving in a few weeks, and is developing an Android tablet for release next year. Both of these later products exist in markets where the majority of Android handsets have failed. Google is attempting to persuade developers, manufacturers, and consumers that it is possible to be good.
