Pixel 8, Pixel Watch 2, and a lot of AI

Techtober starts off with a bang! This week, Google had an event where it (officially) announced all of its products! Marques, Andrew, and David start it off with the Pixel Buds Pro update and the new Pixel Watch 2 before going deep on the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. They talk about everything from the new camera system to the scary good AI features that Google is putting in its smartphones. Of course, we wrap it all up with some Google-themed trivia. There's a lot to get into. Enjoy!
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
02:01 Pixel Buds update
11:37 Pixel Watch 2
19:09 Bard and Assistant
31:44 Trivia
32:59 Babbel (Sponsored)
33:56 Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro
46:29 Trivia
46:55 Netsuite (Sponsored)
48:07 New Pixel Camera Features
01:14:21 Trivia Answers
01:20:06 Outro
Shop products mentioned:
Google Pixel 8 - geni.us/2LGS325
Google Pixel 8 Pro - geni.us/emmE
Google Pixel Watch 2 - geni.us/OCxd
Links:
MKBHD Pixel 8 Impressions: bit.ly/pixel8impressions
Shop the merch:
shop.mkbhd.com
Instagram/Threads/Twitter:
Waveform: / wvfrm
Waveform: www.threads.net/@waveformpodcast
Marques: www.threads.net/@mkbhd
Andrew: www.threads.net/@andrew_manga...
David Imel: www.threads.net/@davidimel
Adam: https:www.threads.net/@parmesanpapi17
Ellis: / ellisrovin
TikTok:
/ waveformpodcast
Join the Discord:
/ discord
Music by 20syl:
bit.ly/2S53xlC
Waveform is part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

[@charlesdamien5849]

Oh trauma? "fix it in post" Bad letter grade? "Fix it in post" tax evasion? "Fix it in post"

[@dragonite4242]

Lol technically yes cuz you send it tax then u get audited if wrong

[@singular9]

Murder? Fix it in post!

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

I'm not there in the podcast to understand what your comment means, but I had to give you the 69th like

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

tax evasion is worse than murder in this society@@singular9

[@FirestormX9]

CLIMATE CHANGE?! FIX IT IN...... or... maybe its still bugged..

[@tanakamawere]

Marques' intro greeting of "People of the internet" should be "People of the internet, bots and AI scraping this episode. We are your hosts..."

[@quackerdeezles]

Genius

[@Atmatan_Kabbaher]

I have a 'prove you're human' role in my discord server that's just a middle finger emote.

[@davidrochester]

I watch this in the background of my morning routine and I feel like this is the only news I care about

[@bentley625]

& Wanshow & Flagrant for laughs lol my weekly schedule... that is what 6-7 hours a week of content

[@bentley625]

Also ordered pixel 2 watch and 8pro for wife she's got 6pro and samsung watch currently

[@vz3_]

jfc this is cringe. I love this channel too but non-tech news matters too. go read a newspaper.

[@tysak4]

Same

[@bentley625]

​@@vz3_that's for BreakingPoints

[@chillinJohnny]

Assistant with Bard Is the most overdue feature They've advertised Google assistant being able to respond all of your questions when they made it

[@MichaRoden]

It did respond at all your questions. The fact that 90% of the time the answer was “I’m going to Google the answer for your question” is just a little detail

[@bashbifaananyi3136]

I guess calling Assistant bard would be better

[@arghyabiswas5078]

Here’s my tech update for the week! Friday is such a genius day to release these! Love and respect for the whole WVFRM team!

[@eomoran]

It’s actually a terrible day as they have to compete with wan Show

[@PrestoJacobson]

Why is it genius?

[@randolphwashington7265]

18:13 lol MKBHD face after he said “you can go to jail!” lol did I just hear him ask for for an ankle bracelet 😂

[@timothychinye6008]

The meaning genius is very quickly not meaning genius anymore

[@eShok]

Blown away by Google's AI advancements! 🚀 I genuinely believe they're on track to outpace iPhone in disruptive ways. Can you imagine Tensor chips processing features like video boosts locally in just 2-3 years? I'm rocking a 5-year-old P20 Pro (with buttons falling out 😅) and thinking of getting the Samsung A54 as a bridge until AI matures even more. Pixel 8 Pro's tempting, but that price tag... 💸 The A54 will still have great resale value by then!

[@cosisthebest]

Feels like fantastic tech is always 2-3 years away but sometimes its nice to treat yourself and have great things now. If you're gonna have this phone for 5 more years (with software support) the price tag isn't as big of an issue

[@raycheshire5581]

7a????

[@hemanthreddy4765]

“Horse in a room full of henry fords” my new fav line😂

[@agspr]

you guys didn't discuss how they're giving you a free Pixel Watch 2 if you buy the Pro in order to make it an easier sell. i think that will sway a lot of people, it certainly swayed me!!

[@VonDarko]

Me too

[@PeteMikes]

You guys have no ideia how much I've been binge watching your episodes while working. I love seeing the notification of a new episode! :D

[@rubenelvas6571]

you seem to work a lot then lol

[@cryptoafc7655]

ahhhahahahahahaahha@@rubenelvas6571

[@videoz97]

Call screening has always been fantastic in my experience. Rarely have someone hang up on the assistant. Being able to see what they're saying to the assistant instantly is a game changer for screening robo calls. I'm very excited for the new improved screening.

[@heavydmcd]

Same. I love Call screen. I don't have to listen to these companies trying to peddle credit cards and no more scam calls. If they hang up I figure it wasn't that important. Also it is kind of funny to send my wifes calls to the screener every now and again lmao😅

[@Wha2les]

People always hang up, but probably spam anyways

[@claudiabailey5302]

As a person who uses Pixel and iPhone I can confirm the amount spam calls are way lower to virtually nothing on my pixel. I have to laugh that there seems some horror with you guys around pixel photo abilities but strapping Apples goggles on your face is somehow cool.

[@97mico]

Hi guys, just to be clear i think the "clear calling" feature was already there for the pixel 7, now it works also while using the buds

[@daboross2]

Oh interesting, I didn't know that wasn't already working

[@TheSdCardGuy]

Yes it launched with Pixel 7

[@kaylah9206]

David cracked me up today. His Heath ledger mix up and then the Google Fibonacci overconfidence

[@alexisaguirre6349]

I’m from Atlanta, and I’ve never heard of people taking their earbuds out while talking to people. That used to happen back in the day with wired headphones, but ever since AirPods came out, everywhere I go everyone has them on all the time.

[@MusicMonkey5555]

18:04 David, look into Oura ring. I love mine. I use it more for sleep tracking than fitness, but it's minimal, great battery life. I love it. It's picked up bike rides and jumping on the trampoline with my kids as well as helping with soccer practice/scrimmage for my son. And their stats on fitness seem accurate.

[@sachinraj126]

I think there should be a keyword trigger for the transparency mode to turn on. Maybe "hold on". I mean Google already does that with Assistant

[@ericschwartz100]

Show me my manually toggle between transparency, no cancellation mode on my AirPod Pro twos my biggest problem is that if someone starts talking to me at the gym or anywhere, adaptive audio doesn’t automatically kick in which I suppose is not designed to. However, it’s just easier for me to fully toggle all two different modes. Also, when I get really loud at my gym, Adaptive audio doesn’t fully kick in noise cancellation mode so I still hear some of the background noise. That does annoy me still. Just my two cents here.

[@Joey-dl6nm]

Please never stop making waveform I love this

[@XMorbius]

The WVFRM theme makes my Friday mornings!

[@jasco5232]

When I was rocking my Pixel 4 XL, I never saw another pixel user in my state. Then suddenly now I see so many pixel 7's. You guys are 100% correct on the surge in Pixels

[@don.wall_E]

Always looking forward to Fridays just to watch this lovely podcast!

[@IILORIMERII]

Fridays made ever better with a new waveform podcast - thanks to all you guys for making such great episodes!

[@danieldwiggins4225]

PetaPixel uploaded a video/podcast where they speak to Isaac Reynolds, the guy who David mentioned. Really cool info on the new camera systems, including video boost and night sight for video for anyone interested!

[@hazem_khalil]

I love how even though you guys are professional tech guys, you still somehow always maintain an unbiased view about new tech. Instead, you look at things holistically like social implications of new AI features or not taking earbuds out as being rude. It's what I've always enjoyed MKBHD videos. You're not blindly behind innovation.

[@DE0BIZONE]

i just cackled so loud at david saying "it was like, heath ledger.....wait is he dead?"

[@A7ZATRU]

32:59 I want to know what was funny when Marques started the ad read, managed to get through it like a pro🤣

[@RomitHeerani]

The Google summary thing actually works similar to the arc browser thing sometimes unless this new feature is somehow different from the insights feature in the Google app

[@comfysage]

probably the biggest difference is that google summary uses Bard to summarise the article into concise sections making it easier to scan

[@AndrewKarstaedt]

The big determination between smartwatch and activity trackers (a la Fitbit) is battery life. Looked into the Sense vs Pixel Watch 1 last year for my wife, and the feature set of the watch vs the sense was wildly out of proportion, and the Sense had a multi-day battery life. It was a no-brainer.

[@M4Kx3]

I noticed when David talks about Bluetooth distortion his voice also went mermermermer 8:26 cool touch!

[@ChloeC664]

I could literally listen to you guys all day!

[@CaseyDarwin]

The pro also has UWB which will be a more significant differentiator when Google's new find network debuts.

[@e39lwd]

Google's looks to finally have momentum with this Pixel launch. I literally had a non tech person at work ask me about it and she ended up pre ordering an 8 Pro. As someone who's never seen a Pixel in the wild (in the Netherlands) that seems like a huge deal to me.

[@StigguLePetit]

Same here in Switzerland! And Pixels are just now the first time officially sold by gogle here.

[@posthumanlife]

Haha same in the Netherlands, collegue asked and just bought the 7 (that I have) I pre-ordered the 8 pro because I shattered this one 😅

[@CaseyDarwin]

With the 7 years of updates, one thing that I haven't heard discussed yet is how it will affect resale value. I think this is one of the reasons that iPhones hold their value so well is because they have a reputation for such long support windows.

[@whatsgoodmyguy4391]

No it's because iPhones software is limited so the hardware doesn't matter

[@nikhildevani5938]

Or maybe because Iphones held the reputation of being the goto premium devices , their phones don't get a massive discount after a year of release plus the hardware holds better (except titanium ones).

[@eomoran]

No. Support is a huge aspect of it. Them never going on sale is another aspect. Them being the only ones to do iOS is kinda meaningless. A crappy phone with no support that does iOS wouldn’t have any resale value, and wouldn’t undercut the market for iPhones either.

[@whatsgoodmyguy4391]

@@eomoran Dude they are on sale all the time free iPhone with service which proves they are struggling to sell these phones..people are tired of paying for incremental upgrades

[@whatsgoodmyguy4391]

@@nikhildevani5938 No it doesn't. That's up to the user. They don't hold value either go ahead and trade last years iPhone for this year and see what Apple gives you for it.

[@kevinkarthik3329]

haha putting this in the background while working or running on a treadmill is such a good pass time !!

[@dirgeofthedawn]

Very much appreciating the censor at 21:50ish lol, thank you for not activating all my google services 😂

[@price.gaines]

I’ve been using the WF1000XM4s and just upgraded to the XM5s. A while back they added a speak to chat feature where it will pause your media and turn transparency mode all the way up in Voice priority mode immediately when you start talking, and it works great. I like it bc I can program the left earbud tap to toggle a less aggressive transparency mode but still have the full on voice priority mode when I start talking.

[@hassanalusi3]

The photo face swap was a BlackBerry camera feature, and it worked really well.

[@godminnette2]

I am a tech enthusiast that uses a fitness band, the versa 3, instead of a smartwatch. I used to have a smartwatch. But I found that they usually just offered me features I never used while having worse battery life. The versa 3 can straight up last me a week without charging. Even if I just charge it during 10-15m showers, it will never run out of battery, meaning I can have it track all of my steps and my sleep. It serves as my alarm in the morning by vibrating my wrist when I'm in the lightest phase of sleep, it gives me very select notifications (too many is annoying and distracting, and answering anything on a watch is silly because it will always be quicker and easier to pull out my phone), and has Google Assistant still.

[@MichaelJohnson2]

Agreed on all points - battery, charge in shower, sleep alarm, only notifications I have is for phone calls. I really like the Versa but every Fitbit I've had only last 1 year and 1 week, just outside the warranty. And customer service is no help.

[@Tdevelops]

Friday has officially begun 🔥

[@leri7222]

I actually didn’t like this pod when it first started but it’s really grown on me lol I think the video definitely helped 👍🏾

[@brianbigley4643]

1:08

[@Leedzboyz]

How one Apple always get the credit for these features? Sony's had a speak to chat feature for the last 3 years -----> kzbin.info/www/bejne/hWfFoYyYd5h_fpI

[@bashbifaananyi3136]

Almost missed the post-credits😂😂😂. Congs David on that mix n match

[@Digmans]

Thanks guys

[@mattrickey2222]

I got the official Pixel Buds Pro update and I was actually shocked how quickly it could detect my voice. I was under the impression it would take some time to activate, but it was really fast.

[@mattrickey2222]

Just tested this feature. Not scientific, but with a stop watch it was .80 of a second to switch. Less than one second makes this very useful.

[@travisabr1294]

You guys are so wholesome. Especially David. 😊

[@Sbrnsandy]

my fridays don’t start till the pod is uploaded

[@efficientapp]

23:32 - Arc Max AI feature callout, woop woop! Marques warming up more and more to Arc 🔥

[@U2haveaniceday20]

Awesome Podcast Guy’s as always.Loved my Fitbit especially working out 7 days a week was great. I will wait until they release everything from Google and play it by ear to see how it all goes. Thanks so much for sharing.✌️💯

[@mon699]

Always an enjoyable experience ❤why I feel like I have Saha by from the outro of this episode ?👀

[@bobenchorben]

Nice one on muting 'Hey google'. Very thoughtful.

[@andrewlivermont5702]

I’m listening to this on the day of my wedding to help calm my nerves love you guys from the podcast to the videos!

[@EricDejuanOOO]

The Pixel no longer capture photos, it makes them.

[@midnight_yota]

I too have that conundrum where I wanna wear my analog automatic watch cuz I love the way it looks but then I miss the fitness info and also the quick notifications, and Google assistant sometimes.

[@PinchOfLuck]

You forgot in the differences between 8 and 8 PRO, that 8 PRO screen has LTPO 1 - 120 Hz, and the 8 does not. On top of being 400 nits brighter and bigger. I mean, its a worthwhile upgrade.

[@gavinmoss3653]

I use call screening all the time. I find robo calls hang up after the assistant is done, but business calling stay on.

[@REVIEWSONTHERUN]

Cool! Thanks for sharing it. ✌️

[@marcorl100]

Since I got my first (and hopefully last) iphone (14 pro Max), I can't wait to go back to Android. And for some reason this Pixel is making me so hyped. I'm probably going to wait for the Galaxy S24 ultra just to make sure, but the Pixel 8 Pro seems to sum up really well what I miss the most on an Android phone.

[@jkid323]

@2:48 Oh you mean the feature the Galaxy Buds had before Apple cool story ...

[@charleslaferriere2282]

David's T-shirt is gonna be my sun in this cloudy day haha

[@AJ-WALK]

"you silly, silly mannnn" is my favorite David quote now 😆

[@GabbiHilson]

I’m so excited for the google assistant update! It sounds more like what we always wanted it to be

[@carlosmiguel4756]

@36:12 No, the Oppo Find X6 Pro does 2500nits and Xiaomi 13 Ultra does 2600nits.

[@dolphin7961]

For someone who's "not good at sarcasm", you've nailed it for the last several intros

[@xsmockjrx]

I'm definitely getting the 8pro, I feel like the added features are worth and plus bigger is better to an extent

[@mommyofceos]

I just want this podcast out by 9 am. That's it. That's all. ❤

[@Manganellia1]

It's always available in audio format by 4am EST!

[@kentaro2121]

Contribution to the initial headphone topic: I often wear my AirPods Pro 2 at work to listen to music and audiobooks. One additional reason I started using them is to mitigate the high-pitched noise emitted by fluorescent lights. There are moments when I'm not actively listening to anything, but I keep them on solely for this purpose. The transparency mode is incredibly useful since it allows me to remain aware of my surroundings. Even when someone approaches me and starts a conversation, I can respond without any issues. and idk if people are annoyed, but lot of people around me are doing too that I think it is becoming normal. lol

[@shmchuck]

Google said 7 years of software updates and then announced that they will release the update "when it's ready" and not based on regular schedule.

[@shayy__]

glad to see marques's ai programming improve, he's so much more human!

[@MrBaskins2010]

andrew turning off haptics makes him basically round spongebob

[@seitlhamophefo]

Waveform dropping is the highlight of my tech week

[@better.better]

re: Bard/AI improving usability, lowering the barrier to entry. I remember sitting in a Dunkin once, and there was this guy comes in trying to use voice commands to get directions to whatever business he was trying to go to, and he kept repeating the SAME EXACT phrase, like 20 times, and he wasn't even like he was changing his tonality or inflection hoping it would interpret it different or hearing it wrong, he was saying the same words the same exact way, as if somehow Google Assistant was going to magically figure out what he meant.

[@fecorekasi]

I'm buying the PRO because of telephoto, but I would like to have the SMALLER one

[@godminnette2]

A very tiny issue with changing from "Hey Google" is that, IIRC, their original generation smarthome speakers were advertised as having one low-power chip that just listens for "Hey Google," and this chip activates the main listening chip of the board. They advertised this first chip as not being able to have its firmware changed via internet, so it will always only listen for "Hey Google," and can't like, spy on you. I don't know if they still do that; I mean, we all have phones now that don't have dedicated chips to only listen for keywords, and those mics could just be recording whenever. But if they did that for multiple generations of smarthome speakers, then people who want to change it will still have to resort to "Hey Google" for their Google Homes and whatever.

[@wininhearts]

On Pixel 8, the ultrawide camera is updated to include autofocus, which brings Macro Focus outside our Pro series for the first time. Pixel 8 does it have macro as Google claims

[@Deadlyshorts666]

Elis slamming that drink between takes was funny to me lol one take it's full the other take it's empty xD

[@pmishraofficial]

7:40 - “Glue ‘em in, baby!”😅

[@dalvincamacho9023]

I think the thermometer could be used with the nest app to take readings from a different room. I currently used an extra sensor in my son ‘s room for that purpose.

[@tommy_lyon]

Thank you for bleeping the "Hey Google" to prevent my home being triggered into thinking it needs to do something.

[@Junker_God]

I'm in highschool and I love listening to the waveform podcast while I do my homework at home

[@anuragsingh4488]

It's so fun that I don't realise when it is a sarcasm and in the middle of it I'm like, Wait, is it a sarcasm? but his expressions are not sarcastic. but also those facts are incorrect so it must be sarcasm. It's always fun. Keep doing it, I love it.

[@jamesdials13]

Will super wide band Bluetooth work on Sony headphones or only pixel buds ?? How about clear calling etc other features they mentioned on pixel buds if I have m4/m5 do those features still help?

[@elmosakillr]

I literally watched the Pixel B-roll at 10:41a, which was the same time on the phone during the capture. Completely freaked me for a second. lol.

[@benochibenocho]

Not everyone who has the pixel buds pro gets the new updates. I didn't get them yet. I'm not sure if that's a normal delay or if they are only available to pixel 6, 6p, 7, and 7p like spatial audio. Mine is 6a.

[@griegomas]

8 pro ultra wide is a larger sensor with a faster lens - we'll see how it shakes out, but it should produce much better images than the 8. Tele lens also went from f3.5 to f2.8 - will still be diffraction limited with a 1/2.5 sensor, but images should be sharper.

[@Konannos]

In regards to the pixel buds and conversation mode, I went to a coffee festival recently and had them in almost the whole day. It worked perfectly as intended for me at the very least in regards to activation. It does a take little longer than I'd like for disengaging but beyond that I've enjoyed it a ton so far.

[@nomading_in]

I would imagine within next year, video boost will probably be configurable e.g. applying a LUT, conversationally with the AI model...that's when things start to get interesting.

[@tiarastevens6278]

David was on something the end of this video lmaoo trivia was too funny 😂😂

[@benhindthebarandkitchen]

Love the long sleeve! Will you ever make an athletic version of the shirt like dry fit?

[@KxNG_RxME]

Got the pro pre-ordered right after the event. Price justification, IMO is the day 1 pro tools for camera, build, & betting on the future software features to be it.

[@Arsalan.Sarwar]

Video Boost for probably Special occasions and events

[@simplemindedmoron]

Pixel 15 won't have a camera... It'll generate images... with bard.....

[@sebastienaugsburger]

Loving these Friday Football episodes

[@ffrreeaakk]

What are you talking about at 1:06:26? I couldn't find it on youtube.

[@moeperk81]

51:16 this feature was baked into Google photos about 10 years ago. It would automatically stitch faces together from multiple pics. I remember someone blinked in a pic and it fixed it.

[@mattjgraham]

Very clever take on the Pixel > Google ethos. We'll fix battery with software :D

[@temjenwapang6243]

Will the new camera software be available for the older models?

[@zoide-777]

When is your full review of the Pixel 8 Pro coming out?

[@ezra3457]

What time do these start!? I always miss the live event! uuugh,

[@fiddlefiver]

I see so many pixels in the Streets in Montreal right now it's crazy

[@theharesbreath]

18:08 - Yes! Fitbit used to make the flex and flex 2 which were just little pebbles with a few LEDs on them. Super minimal. I used to wear one of those inserted into a skin coloured band along with my smart watch on the other wrist. Now I have a Fitbit smart band on my right wrist and galaxy watch on left. Get asked why I'm wearing 2 watches all the time 😂

[@a.girl.has.no.name_]

18:04 David get a whoop strap for your arm. They have a bicep band so you can wear it on your upper arm and it hides under your sleeve pretty well 😎👍🏼

[@joelt4n]

Re 18:55 wearing other forms of devices, I’ve been appreciating the ease of use of a smart ring (oura). Very easy to wear to track sleep, steps and not needing to wear anything bulky.