Source: Google is working on the Pixel Tablet 2 along with a keyboard

Many of the best Android tablets on the market are excellent media consumption devices, but only a few of them are also great for productivity. The Google Pixel Tablet, for example, is great at media consumption like many other tablets, but its use as a work tool is limited due to its lack of productivity-focused software features and input accessories. The former is something that Google has already been addressing via software updates, and the latter is something the company can correct by releasing its own first-party input accessories. It seems Google is looking to do just that with its second-generation Pixel Tablet.

It’s been almost a year and a half since Google announced the first-generation Pixel Tablet, but the only thing we’ve heard so far about the Pixel Tablet 2 is its potential code name. That’s because the tablet is still many months away from launching, so it makes sense that little information is available on it. Thanks to a source inside Google, though, we’ve learned some key details about the Pixel Tablet 2.

First of all, our source tells us that the Pixel Tablet 2 will have a newer camera. The original Pixel Tablet had an 8MP (ƒ/2.0, 1/4-inch sensor, 1.12μm, 84-degree FoV) camera on both the front and the back. We don’t know exactly how the camera on the Pixel Tablet 2 will be better, just that it’s been changed. It still probably won’t be anything worth writing home about, but it’ll hopefully have better processing and offer some new camera features.

More importantly, we learned that the Pixel Tablet 2 will be powered by a newer system-on-chip. That shouldn’t come as a surprise since the Tensor G2 chip in the original Pixel Tablet is quite old at this point, but what we aren’t sure of is whether the Pixel Tablet 2 will run the current Tensor G4 or the upcoming Tensor G5 chip. Fellow Android Authority contributor Kamila Wojciechowska shared evidence that the Pixel Tablet 3 will be released in 2027 with a cheaper version of the Tensor G6, so I’m leaning towards Google using the Tensor G4 in the Pixel Tablet 2.

Regardless of whether the Pixel Tablet 2 uses the Tensor G4 or the Tensor G5, it will still be a massive upgrade over the Pixel Tablet. Both chips will not only enable the Pixel Tablet 2 to support 7 years of updates but also allow it to support display output, a win for productivity either way.

Speaking of productivity, our source tells us that Google is currently prototyping the Pixel Tablet 2 with a keyboard cover. We’re told that the keyboard cover docks onto the tablet via the pogo pins on the rear and that it also folds to prop up the tablet. It’s a pretty simple accessory, similar to ones that you’ll find sold with other tablets like the OnePlus Pad 2. There was strong evidence that Google was working on stylus and keyboard accessories for the original Pixel Tablet, but clearly the company never ended up releasing them. When I asked why, my source relayed that Google scrapped the accessories over quality concerns.

I also think Google’s Android software just wasn’t ready for keyboard and stylus input when the original Pixel Tablet released, but Android today has much better support for these input methods. Since the Pixel Tablet’s release, we’ve seen Google work on features like desktop windowing support, new keyboard accessibility options, a new touchpad tutorial, a new touchpad gesture, a revamped keyboard shortcut menu, support for updating the firmware of connected keyboards and styluses, stylus handwriting support in Gboard, and much more. Plus, depending on when the Pixel Tablet 2 releases, it could run either the second quarterly platform release of Android 15 or perhaps Android 16 out of the box, which could deliver even more features we haven’t seen yet.

Our source also tells us the general design of the Pixel Tablet 2 won’t be that different from the original Pixel Tablet. Apparently, early prototypes of the Pixel Tablet 2 have a few of the components in different places, such as the camera and power button being on the left, the volume rocker on the top left, and the third microphone hole is beside the camera instead of on the right side. The top and bottom bezels might be slightly smaller, as well.

There are still a lot of details about the Pixel Tablet 2 we don’t know yet. For instance, will there be an official stylus accessory in addition to the keyboard? What are its full hardware specifications? What will its price be, and will the accessories be bundled with it? We’ll hopefully learn more about the Pixel Tablet 2 ahead of its presumed 2025 release.