I guess that’s it… Oh, wait, did I mention the Pixel C got 25% cheaper!>?!!1 Yeah, I saved the best part for last. I was too busy being productive to mention it earlier. Out of the kindness of its heart, Google has decided to offer developers a 25% discount on the Pixel C. That amounts to $125 off the 32GB version and $150 off the 64-gigger. Said another way, you can buy a Pixel C and get the not-really-optional keyboard for free. What? You’re not a developer? It doesn’t appear to matter, as Google is letting anyone punch their email address into pixel.google.com/developer-discount with the promise of a discount code delivered “within a few days.” For the heck of it, I signed up and got my code in a matter of minutes. I am not a developer. Nor am I in the market for another Pixel C, but it wouldn’t surprise me if this is just a somewhat silent discount on a product that too-few people bought at launch.
Which brings us to the critical question: Why, oh why, did Google bother to launch the Pixel C before it’s productivity potential could be fully realized? The Pixel C was very obviously rushed to market with software that was feature-incomplete and extremely buggy. Early reviews blasted the C for it’s software derps and keyboard connectivity issues. They also laughed it out of the room for claiming to be a productivity device without the (real or imagined) Holy Grail of productivity features, the mystical multi-window support. Was Google desperate to put the C on sale in time for the holiday shopping season? If so, that was a dumb call. If more than 10,000 Pixel Cs saw the light of day before Christmas, I’ll eat my mousepad. And, who in their right mind would buy it after reading any of the initial reviews? I am not in my right mind, so I, of course, am exempt from the question.
Had the Pixel C been announced in tandem with the new productivity features in Android N, that would have been something to blog home about. The damage has been done, however, and I don’t think v1.0 of the Pixel C will ever be able to recover in the marketplace. That’s fine by me, but with a new, lower price point and software that finally deserves to run on hardware this good… Let’s just say if you’ve made it to the end of this article, you and the Pixel C were probably made for each other. I doubt you’ll be disappointed. The future for the Pixel C is now, and the future is bright.
The Pixel C Challenge, Day 11: We Interrupt This Program To Bring You Android N - Chrome Story
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