Is the Pixel tablet still worth buying in 2026?

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Google revealed the Pixel tablet in May 2023 at its I/O event, becoming the company’s first tablet since 2018. Launching at a starting price of $600 with a speaker that doubles as a charging dock, the Pixel tablet wasn’t considered the best tablet you could buy when it was released. In fact, when it launched, it received mixed reviews, and many didn’t consider its value proposition good enough to be among the best Android tablets. But since arriving in stores in 2023, a lot has changed about the Pixel tablet.

First, its hardware is no longer up to date, which makes it quite easy to find at a reduced price. On the used market, you can get the Pixel tablet for between $250 and $350, depending on condition, on platforms like Best Buy and eBay. Even if you buy it new, you can get it cheaply because even Google hasn’t kept the price of the tablet constant. The company first dropped the price to $500, then later reduced it by another $100 to $400 while simultaneously ditching the originally provided dock.

For a tablet launching in 2023, you might wonder if the Pixel tablet is still worth buying in 2026. After all, it’s about three years old at this point, and the hardware you get isn’t as impressive or snappy as the newer models from manufacturers like Samsung and Apple. Despite its age and the existence of newer options, the Pixel tablet is still worth buying in 2026 because it’s unlike any of your usual tablets. This is a unique device that doubles as a smart home hub and is also convenient to use as a smart home assistant.

The reason why the Google Pixel tablet is one of the older tablets worth buying in 2026 is its capabilities as a smart home hub. With the docking station, you can place the tablet anywhere in the house and control different smart devices from there. This dock can also charge the tablet, so you don’t have to worry about it running out of charge. Built-in magnets on the back allow the device to be attached to vertical metal surfaces, meaning you can move it and place it in more places around the house than any other tablet, like on your fridge door when you’re in the kitchen.

Another feature that makes the Pixel tablet attractive is that the dock has a built-in solid speaker and with Google’s Gemini Assistant, you can use it as a home assistant. Additionally, while Google initially planned to stop updates to the Pixel tablet in 2026, the company extended support for two more years, pushing end-of-life to mid-2028. This is a big part of what makes the Pixel tablet worth buying in 2026, as you wouldn’t want to buy a device that’s no longer updated.

The Pixel Tablet certainly isn’t the most powerful tablet you can buy, especially this year when models like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra and Apple’s M5 iPad Pro exist. Although its hardware specifications are not high-end, they are more than sufficient for basic tasks. It has a 10.95-inch LCD panel with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 and a brightness of 500 nits. The display features a 16:10 aspect ratio and a dynamic panel.

Under the hood is Google’s Tensor G2 chip, which remains a capable chip for multitasking and high-end gaming. Of course, this is possible because modern chips typically offer marginal performance improvements each year. Alongside the Tensor G2 are 8GB of memory and 128 or 256GB of storage.

The Pixel tablet is powered by a 27 watt-hour battery and the battery life is excellent, living up to Google’s claims of 12 hours. The Pixel tablet offers good enough performance for the majority of people. But if you need high-end performance from your tablet, you should probably look elsewhere.