Android 14, Pixel Fold and tablet: a preview of Google I/O

On 11 May at 7 pm our time, Google will kick off I/O with a keynote. It is traditionally the framework for announcing new software. This applies to both Android and various Google services. This year, new hardware could also take up more space.

Android 14 for foldable smartphones and tablets

With two developer previews and the first public beta, Google has already begun public work on Android 14. However, the innovations that have become known so far tend to fall into the small category. The keynote would be an appropriate time to announce major changes.

I'm thinking specifically of customisations for foldable smartphones and tablets. Android is not yet optimised for either and Google has always emphasised that it wants to improve its operating system for these devices with larger screens. However, the only tangible support so far has been for developers, who have been given tools to customise their apps.

Another topic could be satellite connections from smartphones, which other suppliers are working on, already offering them, and which Android boss Hiroshi Lockheimer promised for Android 14 in September 2022.

Perhaps there are also details about the partially visible settings for cloned apps in pre-release versions. Although other manufacturers already offer some of these, they are not yet a standard feature of Android.

There are few rumours circulating about what other innovations Google could introduce to Android or its software services. The only certainty is that something will come. For I/O 2022, Google lists 100 announcements.

Tablet, foldable and affordable smartphone

New hardware plays a minor role at I/O, but it could be bigger this year. In line with the new features of Android 14, Google could present its devices with larger displays. This is because the Pixel series has recently only featured smartphones in the conventional form.

Pixel Tablet

Google tentatively announced the Pixel Tablet a year ago at I/O 22 /page/google-io-first-details-about-pixel-7-to-pixel-watch-and-pixel-tablet-23688. There was not much more than a picture and the information that the tablet would be released in 2023. This was followed in autumn 2022 by further details: the Tensor G2 as processor, aluminium housing with ceramic coating and accessories that make it the hub of the smart home. Not seeing a final presentation of the Pixel Tablet at I/O 23 would be a disappointment.

Pixel Fold

There have been so many leaks about the Pixel Fold, Google's folding smartphone, that anything other than a final unveiling at I/O would be a big surprise. Google could use it to show off the new functions of Android 14, which are intended to make this device category more usable - years after other manufacturers started using Android for foldables and customising them with their own user interfaces.

The foldable Pixel, for example, is said to be just 12.1 millimetres thick when folded and 5.8 millimetres thick when unfolded. By comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Fold 4 is at least 15.8 and 6.3 millimetres thick. Visually, the Pixel Fold in the leaked images also looks more like the Oppo Find N, which is not yet officially available in Europe. The outer screen of the Pixel Fold measures 5.5 inches and the inner touchscreen is 7.6 inches when unfolded.

Pixel 7a

The Pixel 7a is likely to get less attention than the Pixel Tablet and Fold at I/O. It is not Google's first mid-range version of the Pixel smartphone. According to the leaks, differences to the Pixel 7 are again to be expected at some points in order to lower the price. But important features such as software and processor are identical.

Corona recently mixed up the release dates of the a models from the Pixel series. A leaked schedule for Google's products suggests a sales launch around I/O in May.