What to expect from Google's September 29 event

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Apple, Samsung, Sony and Motorola have all launched new phones in the past two months, and now it's Google's turn.

At the conference on September 29, Google will release two Nexus devices and Android 6.0 Marshmallow. The company may also release a new streaming device Chromecast, which will enhance support for the music app Spotify. Let's preview the main content of Google's conference.

Two Nexus phones

Google has chosen to release Nexus phones in the fall for five consecutive years. This year is the first time Google released a Nexus phone in September, and also the first time it released two Nexus phones at the same time.

Nexus 5X

Two years ago, Google and LG jointly launched the Nexus 5, which was officially removed from shelves this spring. Now Google has decided to continue the partnership, and will continue to choose LG as the foundry for the upcoming Nexus 5X.

There have been many rumors about the configuration of Nexus 5X circulating on the Internet, and Android Police has provided us with more accurate information.

Bigger screen: The Nexus 5X is expected to be equipped with a 5.2-inch screen, while the Nexus 5 has a 4.95-inch screen. The screen resolution of the new phone will remain at 1080P, which means that its screen pixel density will be reduced. Of course, this is not necessarily a bad thing, after all, higher pixels will shorten the battery life of the phone.

Fingerprint sensor: Google has added support for fingerprint sensors in the latest version of Android, so we can expect to see this feature in new Nexus phones, and earlier leaks have confirmed its existence.

Higher-megapixel camera: To the right of the Nexus 5X's fingerprint sensor is a protruding camera with 13 megapixels. Its front-facing camera is expected to be 5 megapixels. Android phones have made great progress in camera capabilities in the past year, and I believe the new Nexus phones can also follow this trend.

Faster speed: The Nexus 5X will be equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 chip and 2GB or 3GB of memory, which is similar to the Motorola Moto X Style. Although this configuration is not the best, it is enough. The body space options will be 16GB or 32GB, and it seems that Nexus buyers will fall into a more awkward situation than iPhone buyers.

USB Type-C: Yes, this is a new port, and you may not have a cable that supports it. Nexus phones have always been the benchmark for the trend of the industry, so more and more phones should be equipped with this port in the future.

The design of the Nexus 5X should be similar to the earlier Nexus 5, with a big, solid piece of plastic on the back and a black front, but the new phone will come in a variety of colors including white, black and mint green.

The last is the price and release time. Google's mobile phones are usually available for sale after a few weeks, which is a long wait. In terms of pricing, Nexus phones are usually relatively cheap, but the latest Nexus phone, Nexus 6, costs as much as $649 (about RMB 4,136). At the same time, there are already many low-priced and high-end Android phones on the market, so Google may not set the price of the new Nexus phone too low.

It has been reported that the starting price of Nexus 5X is US$399 (approximately RMB 2,543). Previously, the price of Nexus 4 was US$299 (approximately RMB 1,905) and the price of Nexus 5 was US$349 (approximately RMB 2,224). Therefore, the price of US$399 is indeed more in line with Google's pricing rules.

Nexus 6P

Last year, Google and Motorola jointly launched Nexus 6. This year, Google changed its partner to Huawei. During this process, there have been many changes. From the name of Nexus 6P, we can see that this will be a different phone.

Like the Nexus 5X, we've heard a lot about the Nexus 6P. Here's some info from Droid Life.

New design: Nexus 6P abandons Motorola's vibrant design in favor of a simple metal frame with curved edges and a flat metal back. There's a black piece of material on the top where the camera is. It's expected to come in silver, black, white, and gold.

Fingerprint sensor: This isn't a big surprise, after all, Android already supports this feature, and being a Google phone, the Nexus 6P will obviously support it. Unfortunately, this sensor seems to be installed on the back of the phone, so it may be a bit inconvenient to use.

A smaller screen: Last year, the Nexus 6 had a 6-inch screen, but the Nexus 6P has shrunk the screen to 5.7 inches, which is a strange change. However, the current Moto X Style and Galaxy Note 5 are equipped with screens of this size, and perhaps this has become the mainstream in the industry. It is expected that the Nexus 6P will continue to use the same 2560×1440 pixel resolution as the Nexus 6, and the display effect should be even better when the screen is smaller.

New processor: Nexus 6P will be equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chip (Nexus 6 is equipped with Snapdragon 805), 3GB of memory, and storage space is divided into 32GB, 64GB and 128GB.

Better camera: It's hard to tell from the leaked photos how the camera function will be improved, but judging by the protruding camera, the Nexus 6P should be equipped with a more powerful camera. Reports say the Nexus 6P's main camera is 11 megapixels and the front camera is 7 megapixels.

USB Type-C: Nexus 6P is also equipped with the same USB Type-C interface as Nexus 5X.

Like Nexus 5X, we also don’t know the exact launch time and price of Nexus 6P. Therefore, this phone is still full of mystery. LG has previously manufactured two Nexus phones, but this is the first time for Huawei, and it will rely on this phone to further expand its popularity in the US market.

Android 6.0 Marshmallow

Part of the reason Google released the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P was to show the industry the latest version of Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Marshmallow was introduced back in May and is expected to be officially released next week, with the company set to announce the exact date at the event. Marshmallow will have a more sophisticated app permission management system, enhanced battery management, and a host of other minor improvements.

Two Chromecasts

Two years ago, Google released the streaming device Chromecast, and now more and more services support this device. You just need to plug it into the HDMI port of your TV, and you can enjoy streaming music and videos through it, or stream Chrome browser tabs to the screen.

Now Google has finally upgraded the Chromecas product line, which will have two new products.

Chromecast 2nd Generation

Google is expected to unveil an update to its already popular Chromecast at the event, and 9to5Google has provided us with some details on what that update will entail.

Brand new design: Google has given the second-generation Chromecast a brand new design, and the new model looks more novel. It is like a 3D version of the Chrome logo, with three colors: black, yellow, and red.

Faster Wi-Fi connection: The second-generation Chromecast is expected to support 802.11ac Wi-Fi connection, and it will also support 5GHz networks, which is a very important upgrade. Supporting the new standard allows this product to have higher speeds and less interference, so users can get a better experience when watching Netflix videos.

New app: Google is updating the Chromecast app on iOS and Android. The current app doesn't do anything beyond setting up Chromecast, but the new app will help users find more content to watch.

At present, we don’t know the specific launch time and price of the second-generation Chromecast. It is expected that it will maintain the price of US$35 (approximately RMB 223) of the previous generation.