Google Pixel Tablet 2 to add a major something that was missing on first-gen, claims report

Google has been expanding its hardware offerings of late, getting back into tablets with the launch of the Pixel Tablet in 2023.

That tablet put a focus on being a dockable home screen, initially shipping with a speaker dock in the box, but now it seems the company could be planning to take its follow-up in a different direction.

One of the things that the Pixel Tablet wasn’t very good at was productivity. It was a little too thick, there were no productivity accessories and little in the way of support on the software side. Compare that to Samsung or Apple, where you have keyboard covers and a range of software functions to support working on a tablet and Google has some catching up to do.

According to details coming from Android Authority, Google is going to address some of these shortcomings. Work is already underway on the software side with a number of recent improvements to boost the big screen experience, but it’s said that the Pixel Tablet 2 will also have an official keyboard case.

The downside to this is that the design of the Pixel Tablet 2 is said to be close to the current Pixel Tablet, so it might be a little on the thick side once more. Compare it to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ for example, which is slim, metal, comes with a keyboard and is about the same price as Google’s tablet.

More Pixel Tablet power

On top of that, it’s said that Google will be moving to new hardware, although it’s not clear what will be powering the Pixel Tablet 2. The previous tablet launched on the Tensor G2 hardware which was a little out-of-date by the time the tablet hit stores, so any more to more powerful hardware would boost the tablet’s experience.

We’ve already heard that the Pixel Tablet 3 – slated for 2027 – could launch with the Tensor G6 hardware, so it’s clear that Google has tablet performance in mind. Exactly when we might see the Pixel Tablet 2 is unknown, but it’s likely to be teased at Google I/O in May 2025, before being launched in August 2025.

In the world of Android tablets, Samsung enjoys the top spot, offering a range of productivity features, accessories and tablets at a full selection of price points. Google would have to offer something special in the Pixel Tablet 2 to challenge Samsung’s offering.