Google reveals it isn't making tablets, smart rings, flip phones, or glasses (yet)

Google'snew Pixel 10andPixel 10 Pro FoldandPixel Watch 4may compete with Samsung, but it's happy to let Samsung explore other parts of the Galaxy on its own.In interviews withBloomberg, Google has just revealed a lot of devices itisn'tcurrently working on. Here'sBloomberg:

Despite its partners Samsung and Motorola getting into flip-style phones where the screens open up vertically like an old school Motorola Razr, Google says it intends to sit out that race. It's also not currently working on a smart ring and has paused development on a tablet overhaul until it figures out a meaningful future for the category, executives said.

Pretty sure that's the first true confirmation thatthe Pixel Tablet 2 was canceled! Remember when Googlewas done with tablets in 2019?

And though Google hasrepeatedly teased its own Prototype glassesand evenLet us try them on, it appears that Google devices boss Rick Osterloh isn't sure it'll actually manufacture any glasses for sale:

Osterloh says it's still "TBD" whether Google itself will release glasses again, but he is determined for the category to be part of the company's future.

To be fair, Google has almost always showcased those glass prototypes alongside the XR headsets it's co-developing with Samsung, and —like Meta— it seems more interested inmaking Android XR a platform for other glasses partners as well.

If Google were to release glasses again, though,BloombergI did get one interesting hint about how they might work. Osterloh and his deputy Shakil Barkat suggested in the interview that display-free glasses might pair well with a smaller phone, one that could unfold for your entertainment needs as well. But again, it sounds like Google wants to "sit out" Razr-style folding flip phones for now.

GooglewouldHesitate before announcing glasses, I bet, because of its infamous fails with the original Google Glass. We ranked it near the very top of the listin our 84 biggest flops of the past decade in tech, though I imagine a modern version would receive a less icy reception in the post-Meta Ray-Ban world.

Finally, if you're curious when Pixel phone design might change again,perhaps away from big camera bumps, design chief Ivy Ross toldBloombergthat the company tries out new design languages "every two to three years." That means it's due.