| This week on The Vergecast, Nilay Patel and I interviewed the head of hardware at Google, Rick Osterloh. We start with the only question that really matters: how much effort will Google put in to selling these. Then we end by arguing about IoT protocols. It happens on The Vergecast. In the chat show portion of the Vergecast going out today, I get into some of the meta-commentary on Google’s format that I referenced earlier. Anyway, it’s been a Very Google Week and we’ll move on to other things soon. One final thought that I do want to mention, though. I’m a little taken aback at how mixed the reaction to the Pixel 4 has been. I am as baffled as anybody about Google’s weird decision not to sell it in India and remain unconvinced that its Project Soli spectrum explanation is anywhere near close to the whole story, but we are approaching backlash status and the thing hasn't even started shipping yet. I’m going to suggest avoiding a rush to judgment based solely on a feeling of disappointment that Google didn’t manage to offer any surprises or based on the spec sheet — which I admit is objectively problematic in a couple of areas. I don’t think this Pixel (or any Pixel, really) is meant to compete solely on specs. It’s meant to compete on a different holistic experience of Android. The only way to judge if Google really pulled that off is to review it. Which I and other are certainly doing right now. Stay tuned for that. Also: last Friday I warned that the newsletter might be intermittent this week due to travel and yesterday I sadly made good on that prediction. However, I did keep up collecting the stories from The Verge I thought were interesting and so here it is, a double-tall shot of stories. It's a lot so they're broken down into a few categories. - Dieter Phone news + Motorola teases its foldable RAZR phone reveal for November 13th Looking closely at the hinge, it seems like it is fundamentally built along the same concept as the Galaxy Fold’s hinge, just on a different axis. Sturdy spine behind the folding part with two hinges attached to the sides. Can’t wait to see if this thing is more accessible from a price perspective. + The FCC has voted to approve the T-Mobile-Sprint merger You can probably guess that I am extremely skeptical about this deal being good for American consumers. Plenty more to say and we have some time to say it, but for now the air of inevitability is stifling. + Samsung to patch the Galaxy S10’s fingerprint sensor over screen protector concerns How does Samsung not test against these kinds of scenarios? Yet more good Google analysis + Google’s Pixel 4 face unlock has one major privacy weakness Eep. Bad day for Android biometric security, with this and the Samsung thing. + Google reportedly won’t sell Pixel 4 in India due to Motion Sense radar spectrum issues This is genuinely confusing and there has to be another reason. Just ...turn off the radio. Or build another SKU without it. + Nest is getting ready for the smart home’s Cambridge Analytica moment This from Russell Brandom is the best explanation for why Google changed the Works with Nest program. + Smart take from Jon Porter; Google keeps adding Pixel features it claimed it didn’t need + How the Pixelbook Go compares to other Chromebooks This from Jay Peters is the essential question with the Pixelbook Go: it has many more competitors than the Pixelbook ever did as a top-tier premium device + Adi Robertson rightfully declares that Phone-based VR is officially over + Google Clips is dead It was always going to die, but I hoped it would last as a fun weird thing for just a little longer. + Google Pixel 4 buyers won’t get unlimited photo uploads at original quality Google is absolutely trying to drive people into Google One subscriptions. I think Google One is a reasonably priced cloud storage service, for the most part, but Google is positioning it like some sort of amazing multi-benefit service. It’s cloud storage with random perks from time to time -- if Google really wants to differentiate it, it needs to ...differentiate it. + The Pixel 4 doesn’t include any headphones, or even a 3.5mm adapter in the box This seems like a really stupid thing to do for a phone that ought to be better positioned than any previous Pixel at pulling in some iPhone users. None of them have USB-C accessories. Gaming news + Google’s Stadia wireless controller won’t be very wireless at launch I’m more bummed about this than I expected? I guess that Stadia has been shown off so much and for so long I hoped it would be more buttoned up at launch. + Google’s Stadia cloud gaming service will launch on November 19th With xCloud and this, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Sony finally opened up remote play for the PS4 to all Android phones. Competition! It’s good! + Hands-on with Microsoft’s xCloud game streaming service There are the kinds of bugs you’d expect from an early preview, Tom Warren notes, but it does work if you have a good connection. Hopefully Microsoft is thinking through the whole experience, though, because stuff like the below is a bummer: You also can’t use xCloud if you’re signed into an Xbox One console and it’s in use. So if your family is watching Netflix using your Microsoft Account on a physical console then xCloud will require you to log out of the console or turn it off to be able to stream games from Microsoft’s cloud. It’s a bizarre requirement, and hopefully it’s just a limitation of this early preview. + Ring Fit Adventure review: two weeks with Nintendo’s charming exercise RPG My favorite Nintendo is still Weird Nintendo. Other Android stuff + A closer look at the XC40 Recharge, Volvo’s first electric car Great look from Andrew Hawkins. If these updates actually come, the best way to get Android updates on third party hardware will be to make that hardware a Volvo. Kidding (not kidding?). The native Android Auto infotainment system means the XC40 Recharge can receive over-the-air software updates. So while the car’s driver-assist system isn’t nearly as advanced as Tesla’s Autopilot or GM’s Super Cruise, it can get better once Volvo develops the right software. And then it can simply push out an update to its entire fleet. + Newegg leaks Nvidia’s brand-new Shield TV streaming... tube How fitting: the thing you use to stream internet shows is yet one more tube in a series of tubes. + Nvidia Shield TV Pro leaked on Amazon with Dolby Vision and even faster performance Okay okay okay, here’s the Shield leak Shield fans actually want to see. Gadget news + Facebook’s new Portal has a refined design but familiar limitations The most important new hardware detail is the three-position sliding switch on the top of the Portal that lets you block the camera and mute the always-listening microphone. You can opt to block just the camera, which gets hidden behind a physical shutter, or both the mic and the camera for the full privacy treatment. It’s a much better solution than the little plastic camera cap the original Portal had, which felt like an afterthought. + Beats announces Solo Pro on-ear headphones with noise cancellation I love that Apple announced these just as Google’s hardware event was getting started. I think it backfired on them, which is interesting! These headphones are way more important than they first appear. + NASA unveils future Moon spacesuits that should be ready by 2024 Are spacesuits gadgets? I dunno, but they are cool and worth learning about. Loren Grush went to check them out in person: During a demonstration at NASA headquarters on Tuesday, a spacesuit engineer showed off the flexibility of the suit, proving it can twist and bend at the waist, unlike suits of the past. The suit’s legs are also pliable, allowing wearers to walk on another world — a capability astronauts don’t currently need in Earth orbit. | 
