Google properly and officially pulls the entry-level Pixel Slate plug
Google is not exactly a major player in the tablet manufacturing space, but at least at first glance, the search giant's in-house Pixel Slate seemed like a decent competitor for Apple's iPad Pro lineup and the Microsoft Surface Pro 6 last fall with an aggressive starting price of $599, a stylish design, impressive specifications, and optional productivity-enhancing accessories.
The problem, or rather one of the problems, was the entry-level configuration of the 12.3-inch Chrome OS slate packed a not-so-impressive Intel Celeron processor along with 4 gigs of RAM and 32 of internal storage space. Curiously enough, that particular variant, which was exclusively sold through the Google Store, rapidly went out of stock and so did another Celeron-powered model with 8GB RAM and 64GB storage priced at $699.
Although very few people actually managed to buy these two Pixel Slate versions, their sales were never restarted, and recently, all traces of their bizarrely brief existence finally vanished from Google's official US e-store, as noticed by Android Police.
That leaves only three configurations mentioned on the company's website right now, ranging in price from $799 to $1,599 (keyboard not included) with snappier Intel Core m3, i5, or i7 chips under the hood. Unfortunately, the three's recent discounts have officially expired, but something tells us they might return before long, so you probably shouldn't rush to purchase any of them.
After months of radio silence or cryptic statements regarding the curious case of the Celeron-based Pixel Slate, Google has finally confirmed production is indeed halted... without providing any explanation or additional details. For what it's worth, the company says it remains "committed to supporting these variants", planning to "continue to stock Pixel Slate online and in stores - including our recent expansion to even more Best Buy locations."
Oh, well, it's fairly obvious the Intel Celeron tablets were never any good, delivering far less raw power than their cousins. Even less than that price gap suggested.
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