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Google Pixel Assistant may come to Nexus 5X/6P.
Users who bought a Nexus 5X or 6P just before Google announced the launch of their Pixel smartphone, felt somewhat betrayed by the company as it shifted away focus from previous devices. However, it seems that features exclusive to Pixel devices are slowly making their way to Nexus phones.
The first feature to come to the Nexus devices after being available initially on the Pixel phones was the fingerprint swipe gesture. This allows users to swipe up and down on the device’s fingerprint sensor in order to scroll through notifications. Google decided to bring this feature to the Nexus 5X and 6P due to popular demand.
Now, Stephen Hall, from 9to5Google, stated that the learned the Pixel Assistant, which was exclusive to Google-branded phones, will make its way to the Nexus devices in the future, together with the next major update for those devices.
If this news is actually confirmed, it would mark a major shift in strategy for Google, which initially stated that the Assistant would be exclusive to its new series of the phone as well as the Google Home speaker. They wanted to use the exclusive Pixel Assistant as a major selling point for the devices as well as a key differentiator for other similar smartphones.
Despite the great quality of the Google Assistant, limiting it to only Pixel smartphones will not do it any favors since it will be available to a limited number of Android users who are willing to pay for a premium device. While it is doubtful the assistant would see much use for low-end users, who are the vast majority of Android users, midrange, and upped-budget users would be completely excluded, as they would be the ones driving the Assistant forward by promoting through its use.
Releasing the Assistant on more platforms does not only improve the experience and options for more users, but it also leads to the improvement of the software as well, as the Assistant will be able to improve its machine learning capabilities.
Besides the Nexus devices, there are rumors that the upcoming flagship Google smartwatches with Android Wear 2.0, will receive the Assistant as well.
What do you think about expanding the availability of the Google Assistant?
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