Google's Hardware Announcement: What To Expect

Alphabet Inc GOOGL is expected to unveil a variety of new devices on Tuesday, designed drive usage of and showcase the company’s best-in-class software services.

Jefferies’ Brian Fitzgerald maintained a Buy rating on the company, with a price target of $1,000.

Expected Reveals

Fitzgerald believes the company will announce two new flagship smartphones that have been designed to directly complete with Apple Inc.'s AAPL iPhone.

Alphabet is also expected to reveal a “strategically important” Bluetooth speaker that will respond to voice commands, while also unveiling its new Chromecast audio/video device and a new OS, Andromeda.

Smartphones

The new flagship smartphones are called Pixel and Pixel XL and are expected to reflect “Google’s new “more opinionated” view around hardware and software design,” the analyst mentioned.

The expected price point for the smartphones if $650, which makes them more expensive than the Nexus series, which they are likely replacing.

The phones are rumored to be manufactured by HTC, featuring 5-inch and 5.5-inch screens, with aluminum and glass construction, and even a headphone jack.

“In our view, Google's ambition here is not merely revenue growth, rather the devices will serve as a top-tier hardware platform to showcase and drive usage of Google's best-in-class software services,” Fitzgerald stated.

Bluetooth Speaker

Called Google Home, this speaker is set to compete with Siri and Alexa, with its Google Assistant features, which will respond to human speech and spoken commands.

According to the Jefferies report, “While the API may not be open to third-parties yet, Google says the speaker will work with a limited set of hardware devices at launch, likely the Nest Thermostat and Chromecast.”

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