Everything you need to know about Google's live event

2 months ago

Google is set to unveil two new smartphones as it aims to challenge Samsung and Apple in the premium phone market.

According to reports and a series of leaked photos, the technology giant will on Tuesday announce the Pixel and Pixel XL as replacements for its own-brand Nexus smartphones.

It has been suggested the Pixel will have a 5in display and the Pixel XL a 5.5in screen.

The devices will reportedly come with cutting-edge Snapdragon processors, 12-megapixel cameras, fingerprint scanners and larger batteries.

Both phones are also expected to arrive with the latest version of Google’s Android software, 7.1 Nougat.

The announcement will take place during a live event in San Francisco, where the firm is also expected to give more information on its smart home device, Google Home, which was announced in May.

Google Home enables users to talk to the search engine’s artificial intelligence system to find out news, weather and travel information, as well as use their voice to control smart appliances in their home, including lights and thermostats.

The smart speaker is seen as a competitor to Amazon’s Echo system, which has just gone on sale in the UK.

An updated version of Google Chromecast, which enables users to stream content from their mobile devices to their TV, is also rumoured to be among the firm’s plans for the event, with the ability to support 4K definition TV expected to be revealed.

There have also been suggestions of a new version of Android, designed for laptops and tablets, incorporating aspects of the Chrome OS software Google uses for its desktop computers.

Android executive Hiroshi Lockheimer hinted at the change in a tweet last week.