Google Pixel Slate in 2020: Review

Google Pixel Slate in 2020: Review 

May 13, 2020: In the hunt to find a good mid tier tablet for media consumption and video calls, I went ahead and tried couple of basic to high end tablets in three different platforms and sticked to one at the end. Please read through and find out which one it is. 

First attempt: Amazon Fire HD 8

I have realized that I took a wrong step within 3 days and got rid off it. It was not about just the performance but I honestly couldn't get a vibe of using a 2020 device. It is best suited for kids below age of 10 in my opinion.

Second attempt: Google Pixel Slate i5 model

So in my hunt of finding a media consumption device I have come across pixel slate, though there were many bashing and negative reviews about the device I thought Google might not do a mistake as they have released it alongside Pixel phones. Also, I have never experienced dealing with a Chromebook. Moreover the configuration I have purchased was i5 Processor/8 GB RAM/128 GB SSD. I paid about $550 after the taxes and it was fairly good deal for the price it was first retailed. I would like to break my review in each of it's respective category.

Build Quality: 8/10

With very few complains I would say Google has done a great job of design and the aesthetics of the device. 

The Goods:

1. Finger print scanner doubles as power button.
2. Front facing sterio speakers 
3. Rounded corners and Molecular display is an spellbounding performance for media consumption. 

The Bads: 

1. Available in only size 12.3" which is fairly unusual for a tablet. 
2. More size brings more weight making it two handed use.
3. Think bezels. 

Performance: 9/10

I can say it is a cake walk for the processor housed in the device which is i5 8th gen paired with 8GB RAM. But it all depends on the software which is being run. If the software is snappy enough then i5 is the best processor for a tablet whose primary usage might not be serious computing. 

Software: 5/10

Firstly, do not get me wrong for the perception of this device. After all these are just my opinions on this device after extensive usage. Even after going through many tech YouTubers review I have still purchased it only because of the trust I had in Google. I don't say I lost it but Chrome OS could've been better. In fact it could have been just an Android tablet with a desktop mode browser or flavor of Android which can run either Linux apps. 
I found this very frustrating upon usage as I am constantly being encountered with the system default web apps lying on my home page. I had to open each of them to distinguish which one is an Android app and which one is web app and delete the web app. In short my points are:

The Goods:

1. Best for having light weight apps as the webapps are usually not heavy. 
2. Desktop level browsing. 

The Bads:

1. Poorly fusioned platform of both Android and chrome OS. 
2. Few games or apps are emulated like PUBG. 
3. Pressing the power button doesn't lock the device but just turns off the screen and is less secure. 

Issues I have encountered [videos attached at the end]:

1. Power button doesn't lock the device. We have to go control center and tap on lock icon. 
2. PUBG is not native android app, it's launched as emulated app.
3. Redundancy in app availability. You do not know which version of the app you are opening until you open it. 

Final Verdict: Skip if you need comfort. 

A power house without a quality power is as useless as not having a power house for it. Google did the same mistake. In order to promote or create their own ecosystem they have launched a device which could have been a major competitor for iPad pro and Samsung Galaxy tab S series. It is still a good competition but it is neither Android nor desktop so most of it feels half baked. I was not comfortable using it and got rid off it in a week.

 PLEASE GOOGLE, MAKE IT A COMPLETE ANDROID TABLET AND RELEASE AGAIN. 

Third attempt: Apple iPad 7th gen 

I found one of the biggest deal on this device at bestbuy and got one immediately. I got the base 32 GB WiFi model for 250$ which is decent price. As you know it's performing very well for media consumption or gaming. I also edited a very short 4K video which rendered in a good time.

Here's my opinion about Google Pixel Slate tablet and please keep following this blog for more tech updates soon. Thank you and please leave your valuable comments.

PUBG gameplay on Google Pixel: