TheGoogle Pixel Tabletwants to be both a smart display and a tablet. It’s a great idea in theory, but the execution is lacking quite a bit. It’snot a full replacement for a Nest Hub, and even at$400 this Cyber Monday, it’s still significantly more expensive than its closest smart display relative, the Nest Hub Max. Depending on your needs with a smart display, the Nest Hub Max might be the better alternative for you, especially considering that it’s only $130, thanks to one ofmany Cyber Monday deals.
Google Nest Hub Max
The Nest Hub Max may be old at this point, but it’s still a better smart display than the Pixel Tablet in its current form. At $130, you may’t really go wrong with it if you just want a big smart display.
To preface this, my relationship with the Pixel Tablet is volatile at best. It managed to replace my small first-generation Nest Hub in the kitchen and lives there as a smart display 90% of the time. I was initially in love with the fact that I could run any Android app I wanted and carry it throughout the apartment with me. Still, in the end, it stays put in its dock most of the time, with me interacting with it via voice or casting from my phone most of the time.
The Pixel Tablet also lacks key features that many smart display users have come to rely on. The biggest miss is its lack of Continued Conversation support, which allows you to issue multiple commands or ask questions in a row without having to repeat “OK Google” over and over. You get used to having to do that, but it’s still annoying.
Google Pixel Tablet
On top of this, the Pixel Tablet consists of two disparate interfaces, one emulating the Nest Hub experience on the surface and one being Android. You run into inconsistent actions depending on which mode you use it in. For example, if you start music with your voice while you use the tablet interface, the Assistant will launch your music service’s Android app. If you’re on the smart screen experience when you do this, the Pixel Tablet will use a Cast-like interface that you can’t properly interact with while in tablet mode.
All these inconsistencies make the Pixel Tablet feel slapped together, like it still isn’t fully finished to this day, half a year after its launch. For my use case as a smart display, most of the time, this just leaves the bigger screen as an advantage over the regular Nest Hub to compensate for all the disadvantages. If you’re anything like me, I can only recommend going for a Nest Hub Max instead as a much more affordable and a lot less frustrating alternative.
Go for the Nest Hub Max for a more streamlined experience
Nest Hub Max
The Nest Hub Max is indeed significantly older than the Pixel Tablet at this time, with it first launched in 2019, which is ancient for consumer tech. However, in contrast to the Pixel Tablet, it has proven to be more reliable when it comes to its core use case. Continued Conversation is very much available on it, and you can even use more advanced features like Look and Talk, which lets you omit the keyword altogether.
At the same time, there is merit to the theory that Google is winding down its smart display business, with the company in the process of removing some features. TheNest Hub Max losing its video calling capabilitiesdespite its front-facing camera is likely the biggest loss. I wouldn’t be surprised if Google discontinued the Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max within the next year or two. At the same time, you’ll likely be able to get a year or two of good use out of the screen at the very least, and that might tide you over until a better and improved version of the Pixel Tablet comes along that can serve as a proper smart screen alternative.
Even if the Nest Hub Max may not be long for this world, it offers much better value as a smart display than the Pixel Tablet. You won’t have to worry about two different interfaces mashed together and the lack of key features like Continued Conversation. At $130, it’s also not the biggest deal if Google does end up discontinuing its smart display lineup.
