Editor's Note: The Google Pixelbook 2 reportedly canceled — here’s what we know so far, based on what we've heard about Google's changing plans. In short, it sounds like you shouldn't expect a new Pixelbook anytime soon. For posterity, the original article follows:
It's been years since we've heard anything about the long-awaited Pixel Chromebook, and some still have hope it will eventually materialize — even if that hope is faint at best.
As Android Authority reports, during a Qualcomm press event in London, Chrys Tsolaki, who is a Retail Partner Manager for Chromebooks at Google, was asked if the company was working on a new Pixelbook laptop. She replied with: “Next year there won’t be anything coming. In the future, I don’t know.”
That statement certainly doesn't bode well. But just because we won't get a Pixelbook 2 in 2022 doesn't mean the premium Chromebook won't arrive in 2023. Perhaps that's naive thinking considering how long we've waited for even a crumb of news, but we'd rather be optimistic.
Here's all the current information we have about the Pixelbook 2.
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Google Pixelbook 2 release date
The Pixelbook wowed eyes and tried to redefine what a Chromebook could be on October 30, 2017. Next, the Pixel Slate (which isn't getting a sequel) arrived on October 9, 2018.
The Google Pixelbook Go was announced on October 15, 2019. Much like the Pixelbook and the Pixel Slate, Google announced the Go at a media event.
Based on that pattern, we expected the Pixelbook 2 to release in October 2020. That didn't end up happening, either in 2020 nor in 2021. Given Tsolaki's statement, a Pixelbook 2 won't release in 2022.
Google Pixelbook 2 specs
One interesting bit of Google Pixelbook 2 rumormongering we've seen in the past points to Google going with recent trends in computing.
Multiple Geekbench 4 benchmarks posted to that app's own site show signs of a device named "Google zork" that ran on AMD Ryzen processors. The scores were published on April 1 and June 3 (both in 2020), with the former date's machine using an AMD Ryzen 7 3700C with Radeon Vega Mobile graphics, while the June upload was done on a "Google zork" with an AMD Ryzen 3 3250C 15W with Radeon Graphics. Zork, as weird a name as it is, was rumored as a potential Chromebook codename since an About Chromebooks post in 2019.
The highest multi-core score from those tests was 8,298 (on a Ryzen 7 unit), which only slightly beats the 7,927 that the original Pixelbook (with a 7th Gen Intel Core i5 CPU and 8GB of RAM) scored on that same test.
Could the Pixelbook go AMD-only? As more and more laptops offer both AMD and Intel versions, it's not impossible.
Don't worry, by the way, about Geekbench labeling these scores as coming from a device running Android. ChromeOS doesn't have its own version of Geekbench, so it has to run via Android app emulation.
All of the above information is years old, with mobile technology becoming more performant and powerful. The Pixelbook 2, when it comes out, should have the latest tech underneath its proverbial hood. We just can't definitively say what components the Chromebook may have. It would all be speculative at this point given how far removed we are from the rumored specs posted above.
Google Pixelbook 2 price
Google still believes in high-priced Chromebooks. How do we know? The original Pixelbook is still starting at $999 on Google.com, even in 2022.
This is why we're betting that the Pixelbook 2 will also start at/around a grand. How they'll convince us to drop that kind of change, we are waiting to see.
Google Pixelbook 2 outlook
As it stands now, we hope for more reasons for the Google Pixelbook 2 than a small performance boost. The original Pixelbook had a bit of a battery life issue, lasting only 7 hours and 43 minutes on a single charge — falling below more affordably priced competitors.
So, as we continue to look for Pixelbook 2 news and rumors, we're hoping to learn about a redesign or claims of longer battery life. But given that the Chromebook will not release in 2022, it's best if we put it out of mind until more concrete news becomes available.
