Google steers towards a positive future with its latest tech toolkit
Focusing on conscious design and minimal finishes, Made by Google launches its fourth range of hardware
![Gif of various Google products](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/qs3LpczagEJ2jZABuNhTsS-415-80.gif)
Google: a brand known for turning itself into an adjective, and transforming the Internet into the intuitive beast it is today. Most recently though, our eyes have been drawn to its design initiatives, including the Made by Google hardware, which has just dropped its fourth collection.
Streamed live from New York City, inside The Shed on Hudson Yards, the keynote was presented with Google's ethos – ‘making life easier everyday’ – at the fore. During the presentation, sustainability entered conversation quite quickly. Rick Osterloh, senior vice president at Google, proudly noted the brand has been carbon neutral since 2007. Evidence of this appears in the 100 per cent recycled plastic fabrics that dress the newest digital assistant, Nest Mini – each one equates to half a plastic bottle. Spearheading the design department, head of design Ivy Ross was sure to mention that conscious efforts doesn’t hinder her meticulous aesthetic, ‘design is about solving problems for people,’ she stated at the keynote.
From the new roster of products, it’s the gaming tool that has significant design appeal. Launching with Google’s Stadia software, its all encompassing gaming platform, the console is minimal and ergonomically built. ‘We wanted the controller to be comfortable in the hands of all gamers,’ Ross says, and to reach this, the team turned to a utilitarian tool for inspiration – knives and their handles.
In the midst of reitering its mission to not let technology interupt your life but enhance it, Google presented other new wares including its latest laptop, the Pixelbook Go. The ultra thin model (13mm) is made for a nomadic lifestyle, and exists in the ‘Just Black’ and ‘Not Pink’ hues, with a satisfying rippled texture at its base for extra grip.
‘What is a simpler form than a circle?’ asks industrial designer Isabelle Olsson when discussing the design of the new Pixel Earbuds that sees the original earbuds turned wireless and given a subtle reshape. The audio instruments fit flush with the ear, allowing you to forget they’re plugged in, while AI technology controls the volume for you, altering naturally against our noise polluted environments.
In April, Google’s blockbuster Milan Design Week exhibition combined neuroscience research with design, and showed the brand merging its tech innovations with other creative realms. This continues with its most recent collaboration with Annie Leibovitz, ‘I was very impressed how I relaxed with it, and glided with it,’ the photographer stated of the new Pixel 4 and its professional snapping capabilities.
Thanks to the work of Ross and her team, the Google hardware language is now identifiable against its competitors, and with this refresher toolkit, Google continues to embed its USP: ‘Our mission is to bring a more helpful Google today.’
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Sujata Burman is a writer and editor based in London, specialising in design and culture. She was Digital Design Editor at Wallpaper* before moving to her current role of Head of Content at London Design Festival and London Design Biennale where she is expanding the content offering of the showcases. Over the past decade, Sujata has written for global design and culture publications, and has been a speaker, moderator and judge for institutions and brands including RIBA, D&AD, Design Museum and Design Miami/. In 2019, she co-authored her first book, An Opinionated Guide to London Architecture, published by Hoxton Mini Press, which was driven by her aim to make the fields of design and architecture accessible to wider audiences.
-
Feel at home at Auberge, Château La Coste's new inn for culture lovers
Auberge La Coste sits at the heart of the art-filled estate, minutes away from the joyful town of Aix-en-Provence
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
This Nova Lima apartment is a Brazilian family oasis with striking Minas Gerais views
A Nova Lima apartment designed by Jacobsen Arquitetura celebrates its long, natural Minas Gerais vistas
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Commune’s sustainable personal care products look ‘quite unlike anything else’
Commune’s Somerset-made products stand out in the sustainable skincare crowd. Madeleine Rothery speaks with the brand’s co-founders Kate Neal and Rémi Paringaux
By Madeleine Rothery Published
-
Is Google’s Gemini AI the best way of getting the most out of our machines?
From summaries to lists of suntan lotion and swimsuits, Google reckons Gemini can save us all time and effort. We dig into new uses for AI
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Torment Nexus or social revolution? Google’s I/O 2024 was all about AI integration
We sift through the revelations and revolutions from Google’s I/O conference, where its Gemini AI model was pushed to the fore for searching and making. The future is how you find stuff, and Google thinks it has the answer to everything
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The Google Pixel 8a is an AI-driven ‘beginner’s smartphone’ that eclipses its pricier rivals
We get our hands on Google’s latest device, the mid-range Pixel 8a, a stripped-down smartphone that still packs an excellent camera, solid hardware and an AI-powered software punch
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Google Pixel Watch 2 wants to look after you
The Google Pixel Watch 2 harnesses the power and potential of FitBit, which the company acquired in 2022, for both personal wellness and safety
By Pei-Ru Keh Published
-
Google Pixel 8 Pro might change our relationship with photography
The Google Pixel 8 Pro phone goes all out to inject generative AI abilities into this essential everyday object
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
We open up the new Google Pixel Fold and find out about the future of flexible screens
Google’s Claude Zellweger offers insights into the design approach behind the new Google Pixel Fold, as we report on life with the company’s first foldable
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The new Google Pixel Fold is the tech giant’s first foray into foldables
The announcement of Google’s first foldable should shake up the market for these esoteric mobile devices: how does it compare to the competition?
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Google Pixel 7a, the company’s newest mass-market model, joins an expanded Pixel eco-system
Slimmed down and slightly shrunken, the Google Pixel 7a still retains the core talents of the seventh edition of Google’s powerful phone series
By Jonathan Bell Published